Vigilante justice: Meet the ”Revenge mom”

Marianne was ultimately found guilty of unlawful firearm possession and premeditated manslaughter. Although she was released after only three years, she was given a six-year prison sentence. According to a nationwide survey, the public’s opinion of her punishment was divided: about one-third believed it was fair, another third believed it was too severe, and the remaining third believed it was too light.

Marianne left Germany after completing her sentence in search of a more sedate life away from the limelight. She married a German teacher after moving to Nigeria, and after their divorce, she moved to Sicily. She returned to Lübeck in the 1990s after receiving a pancreatic cancer diagnosis. Even though she had made an effort to put her past behind her, her name was always in the news.

Interviews with Marianne years later showed that she was still troubled by what had transpired. She discussed the distinction between her crime and Grabowski’s in a 1994 radio interview. She spoke eloquently of the tragedy of her daughter’s passing and her conviction that Grabowski had no right to life because of his actions. She acknowledged in a different televised interview that the shooting was intentional, a calculated move to stop Grabowski from lying about Anna any longer.