Overview
- Official data through November list 19 cases of police firing directly at people and seven additional shootings at ‘persons in things,’ with 18 injured and two deaths.
- Aggregated reporting by dpa raises the year’s tally to at least 27 incidents when December cases, including Mönchengladbach and a Dec. 27 Bochum SEK operation, are included.
- Investigations into two fatal March shootings in Dortmund and Herne were closed after prosecutors concluded the officers acted in lawful self‑defence.
- An officer’s Nov. 17 shot that critically injured a deaf 12‑year‑old girl in Bochum remains under investigation, and the child’s lawyer disputes the authorities’ account.
- The interior ministry stresses that gunfire is the ultima ratio to avert acute danger, while the published statistics lack detail on locations and circumstances.