This article revisits the trial that took place in 1979 in West Berlin, before a United States court, based on the US Constitution and principles of criminal procedure, concurrently with the West German Penal Code (Strafgesetzbuch). The verdict and judgment laid the foundation for an interpretation that precludes invoking a state of necessity as a justification for unlawfulness or an excuse of guilt by the perpetrator who hijacks a watercraft or aircraft, even when fleeing their country for political or religious reasons.