Investigations after fatal police shots in Schwalmstadt stopped!

Investigations after fatal police shots in Schwalmstadt stopped!

In a tragic incident in Schwalmstadt that came to an abrupt end on October 24, 2024, a 20-year-old woman was shot by several police officers. The relevant investigations have now been discontinued by the Marburg public prosecutor's office. The reason for this? There was no sufficient suspicion against the four police officers who fired a total of 13 shots after the woman pointed an airsoft gun at them that looked confusingly similar to a real weapon. The officers took action in this tense situation assuming they were in great danger. star reports on the incident and its background.

The young woman, who had no fixed address and had already been noticed for driving drunk, was taken into police custody before the evening of the crime. She was found to have a blood alcohol concentration of at least 1.87 per mille. After being fired, she returned Thursday morning and escalated the situation. It is unclear whether the woman shot at the officers before the shots were fired, and no ammunition was found at the scene. According to an autopsy, she was hit by at least two bullets, causing serious internal injuries and ultimately her death. Hesse show explains the details and the legal framework that affect the assessment of the incident.

Reactions and consequences

In the days following the incident, Hesse's Interior Minister Roman Poseck welcomed the decision to close the proceedings and placed police safety at the forefront. At the same time, this tragedy shows how complex and challenging investigations in such cases are. In Germany there are a large number of reports and studies on police use of force, as the research project “Assault in Office by Police Officers” shows. This study found that excessive use of force by police officers is rarely dealt with and the legal consequences are often minimal. The University of Frankfurt deals intensively with this problem.

The social impact should not be underestimated. Frequent reports of excessive force are putting trust between citizens and police in a delicate position. Many complain about fear and distrust of law enforcement, which is particularly noticeable among marginalized groups. The circumstances of the incidents and the low reporting rate of suspected police violence - only 14 percent of those surveyed reported criminal proceedings - show how deeply rooted the problem is. The case in Schwalmstadt is another example of the challenges that both the police and the judiciary face in Germany.