Overview
- Barbara Slowik Meisel reported a slight overall decline in violent offences in 2025 while the proportion committed by children and adolescents stayed near 2024 levels of about 8% for children and 14% for adolescents.
- A higher share of non‑German young suspects persists compared with German youths, which police say should guide targeted prevention and social‑work efforts rather than stigmatize.
- Knife use in offences is described as primarily a problem among young men, with many incidents arising from group disputes in public spaces.
- The new 'Stark ohne Klinge' school program aims to deter carrying knives by stressing that a knife is not self‑defence and can be life‑threatening.
- Slowik Meisel called for reforms to the Strafprozessordnung and Jugendgerichtsgesetz to enable faster proceedings for lighter juvenile offences, with detailed 2025 statistics due in spring 2026.