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Max Planck scientists criticize handling of animal-rights charges against leading neuroscientist

They say the Max Planck Society’s reaction to a penalty order issued to Nikos Logothetis has disrupted research.
  1. Alison Abbott
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Scientists at one of Germany’s leading neuroscience institutes say that their employer, the Max Planck Society (MPS), is failing in its responsibility to defend the institute’s scientists against efforts by animal-rights activists to disrupt research.

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Nature 558, 13-14 (2018)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-018-05187-w

Updates & Corrections

  • Correction 25 October 2018: An earlier version of this story stated that Nikos Logothetis was indicted on 20 February for allegedly violating animal-protection laws, and that a court had not yet considered those charges. In fact, on 20 February, the public prosecutor in Tübingen announced that earlier in the year, the district court had issued Logothetis with a penalty order — an accusation of a minor offence combined with a fine, which automatically becomes a conviction if the accused does not appeal — for alleged mistreatment of animals. Logothetis immediately appealed. The appeal will be heard in court but no date has been set. The earlier version of the story also said that Stuttgart prosecutors had overturned an earlier settlement granted by the Tübingen court and pursued the case against Logothetis, leading to the indictment. In fact, the Stuttgart attorney general asked Tübingen prosecutors to reconsider their settlement decision, and it was these prosecutors who pursued the case, leading to the penalty order. The text has been updated to reflect these changes.

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