In some courts "Schöffen" are part of the judges. Schöffen are citizens that volunteer as "amateur judges". As far as I know in some trials they even outnumber

In some courts "Schöffen" are part of the judges. Schöffen are citizens that volunteer as "amateur judges". As far as I know in some trials they even outnumber the professional judge and their vote has the same weight. They could "bend the law" as far as I know, but it's not how it's supposed to be. Those verdicts, if appealed, would probably not hold in higher courts. There are pardons by the German president, but I'd guess they don't happen on that scale.