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Dortmund: Flowers and candles commemorate the killed youth (photo from August 2022)
Photo: Gregor Bauernfeind / dpa
In the case of the youth who was shot by the police, the Dortmund public prosecutor sees no evidence that the 16-year-old had previously posed a threat to the officers with his knife.
"We have not been able to identify any self-defence or emergency aid situation on the part of the police officers," said senior public prosecutor Carsten Dombert on Wednesday.
Even the use of tear gas and tasers was therefore disproportionate.
Not the mildest means had been used.
The use is therefore illegal, said Dombert.
The shooter therefore made the decision himself to use the weapon.
So he should not have shot on instruction.
It was announced on Tuesday that the public prosecutor's office had charged five police officers involved in the August 2022 operation.
As Dombert announced on Wednesday, the accused have still not commented on the allegations.
The most serious charge is against the 29-year-old officer who shot the youth with a submachine gun.
He is accused of manslaughter.
The teenager died in hospital.
The police were called to a youth welfare facility on August 8, 2022, where the 16-year-old is said to have initially threatened to kill himself with a knife.
Two policewomen, 28 and 31, and a policeman, 32, are accused of causing dangerous bodily harm in office because of the use of tear gas or tasers.
Charges were brought against the 54-year-old service group leader for inciting physical harm in office.
According to Dombert, he is accused of having specified the police procedure during the operation, in particular the use of irritant gas.
"Trust Damaged"
After the indictment, the Dortmund police have now announced that they want to try to gain the trust of people with a migration background in particular.
"This operation, in which a 16-year-old Senegalese refugee tragically lost his life, has damaged trust, especially among people with a migrant background, that we have to restore," police chief Gregor Lange was quoted as saying in a statement.
"The operation has also caused deep dismay in our agency," said Lange.
"It is in our own interest that the death of this young man - and thus also the question of the legality of the measures taken in this mission - is fully clarified." However, he also emphasized that the presumption of innocence applies until the end of the proceedings.
Lange referred to measures for so-called values work that have been running for years, which showed: "We do not tolerate any form of extremism, racism or discrimination, especially not from our own ranks." a police spokesman.
Disciplinary proceedings were initiated against the officers shortly after the operation.
The shooter was suspended and the other four transferred within the Bureau.
Criminologist calls for more focus on de-escalation
The criminologist Rafael Behr criticized the police's approach and training - and called for a stronger focus on de-escalation.
During the operation, "a lot of things went wrong, not all of which were directly attributable to the police," he said on Wednesday on WDR.
There is an “overall atmosphere in the police force that is geared towards terrorist threats and rampage charges.
This is how the police officers are mentally and operationally equipped.«
A submachine gun actually has no place in knife operations or suicide attempts, he said.
'But that's all the humans have on board.
And then they take it with them.« This leads to overreactions or violent reactions because de-escalating options are not sufficiently available.
One can also learn from the operation that "objective evidence" is always good for objectifying the police officers' stories and the subsequent reconstructions.
The bodycams were switched off during the operation, since it was initially an intervention in a suicide attempt.
Behr also criticized NRW Interior Minister Herbert Reul (CDU) for "the fact that those responsible for politics always immediately and without a doubt stand behind their police and believe that they are doing something good for them.
The opposite is the case."
wit/dpa
