Climber Guilty of Manslaughter in Girlfriend's Death

An Austrian climber has been found guilty of manslaughter caused by gross negligence in his girlfriend's death on the country's highest mountain, but he's not going to prison. Thomas Plamberger, 39, was given a five-month suspended sentence and a fine of around $11,600 over the death of 33-year-old Kerstin Gurtner on the Grossglockner in January 2025, the Guardian reports. During a one-day trial in Innsbruck on Thursday, Plamberger told the judge he is "endlessly sorry" about Gurtner's death from hypothermia but insisted he wasn't guilty.

Judge Norbert Hofer, himself an experienced climber, said Plamberger's decisions on the mountain amounted to a grave breach of duty, telling him Gurtner was "galaxies away" from his level of high-Alpine skill and likely would have survived had he acted differently by turning back or calling for help earlier.

• Prosecutors said the seasoned climber effectively acted as Gurtner's informal guide but failed to protect her as conditions deteriorated: ignoring a rescue helicopter that circled overhead, leaving her exposed in brutal cold and strong winds, and not using emergency gear she carried, including a bivouac sack and thermal blankets, the Times of London reports.
• The pair set out early on Jan. 18, aiming to summit by about 9pm. After dark, Gurtner slipped, injuring her hand and hip, yet they continued toward the top until she collapsed roughly 50 yards below the summit. Plamberger said he called for help after midnight, then left her around 2am to seek rescue. A search team found her body around 10am.

• Plamberger said he had no formal training in mountaineering but had learned from experience and online videos. An expert witness testified that while he was a capable mountaineer in some ways, his communication with rescue teams and his rope technique were "inappropriate," "incomprehensible," and "absolutely incompetent," Mindener Tageblatt reports.
• An ex-girlfriend testified that Plamberger abandoned her on the same mountain in 2023 after they argued about the route and he became frustrated by her slow progress, the Guardian reports. "It was the middle of the night, my headlamp went out, I was at the end of my strength," she said.
• The case turned on whether Plamberger's greater experience made him responsible as a "courtesy" guide. He rejected that idea, describing Gurtner as fit, strong-willed, and comfortable in the mountains, and said they had planned the climb as equals.

• Gurtner's parents backed him in a letter read to the court, saying their daughter took responsibility for herself and they did not blame her boyfriend.
• But Hofer repeatedly challenged Plamberger's version of events, noting that at 5pm, Gurtner apparently tried to call the mountain rescue number but got one digit wrong. The judge said Plamberger's account of how he left Gurtner secured with a rope to prevent her from falling didn't align with her body having been found in a different location, Metro reports. The court was told that she was found dangling from a rope and had been trying to hang on for two hours before she died. The head of the mountain rescue team said she had apparently fallen while trying to climb down by herself.
• Plamberger could have faced a maximum sentence of three years in prison, but the judge told him, "I do not see you as a murderer. I do not see you as cold-hearted."