Overview
- Officers searching for a missing 12-year-old dependent on vital medication found her in her mother’s Bochum-Hamme apartment, where police say she advanced holding two knives.
- Police report a simultaneous Taser deployment and a shot from a service weapon that struck the girl, who underwent surgery and was later described as critical but stable.
- Investigators from Essen have assumed the case for neutrality, and the officer who fired has been designated a suspect and is exercising the right to remain silent.
- Authorities say key points remain under investigation, including the number of shots and whether communication suitable for deaf people was attempted with the girl and her mother.
- The child lives in a Münster residential group and the mother had previously lost custody, while the police union notes knife threats can be lethal regardless of age and cites strict limits on using firearms against under‑14s.