Man fatally shoots six family members in Germany, police say

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Source: Washington Post

Europe

Man fatally shoots six family members in Germany, police say

By Loveday Morris and Luisa Beck
Jan. 24, 2020 at 1:38 p.m. EST

BERLIN — A 26-year-old German man fatally shot six of his relatives Friday, police said, a rare mass shooting in a country with some of the strictest gun laws in Europe.

The victims included the suspect’s 65-year-old father and 56-year-old mother, said police spokesman David Ebert. He said police think the other four victims, two men and two women, were also relatives. Two others were wounded.

The shooting took place at the family home, in a residential building above a bar in the small southwestern town of Rot am See, which has a population of just over 5,000. After the shooting, the suspect called the police, surrendering when authorities arrived.

Police said they could not speculate about possible motives on Friday evening, as the suspect was waiting for a lawyer before making a statement.

Private gun ownership is relatively high in Germany compared to some other countries in Europe, with about 20 firearms per 100 citizens. However, gun laws are stringent, and many people keep their weapons at ranges and gun clubs. Gun laws were restricted after a gunman killed 16 people at a school in Erfurt in 2003, and again after another school shooting in 2009 claimed 15 lives.

Automatic weapons are completely banned, while the ownership of semiautomatic weapons is severely restricted. Gun owners must obtain a license. The suspect in Friday’s shooting holds one, according to German news reports.

Loveday Morris
Loveday Morris is The Washington Post's Berlin bureau chief. She was previously based in Jerusalem, Baghdad and Beirut for The Post. Follow https://twitter.com/LovedayM

Luisa Beck
Luisa Beck is a reporter in The Washington Post’s Berlin bureau. Before joining The Post, she made radio stories, audio walks and podcasts for NPR, the Center for Investigative Reporting and museums in the San Francisco Bay area. Follow https://twitter.com/luibeck

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/six-people-killed-in-germany-shooting/2020/01/24/76f49e20-3eb5-11ea-971f-4ce4f94494b4_story.html

[IronLionZion]

1. Of course gun laws are in the very first line of the article

since that seemed important to Loveday Morris and Luisa Beck at WaPo

[OneCrazyDiamond]

2. Wow.

I didn't know they had school shootings too. I thought that was an USA thing. Of course they adjust their laws afterwards.

[DFW]

3. Guns are highly restricted in Germany, but not forbidden.

Private citizens only get a permit after long mandatory courses in ownership rules and psychiatric evaluation. They are required by law to keep firearms in locked cabinets, and get them confiscated, with licenses revoked, if an inspection shows they are not complying.

That is why incidents like this happen in Germany every six years or so, instead of every six days, like in some other countries.

[Polybius]

4. From the article:

"... a rare mass shooting in a country with some of the strictest gun laws in Europe."

Also from the article:

"Private gun ownership is relatively high in Germany compared to some other countries in Europe"

So which one is it?

[sarisataka]

5. They are not mutually exclusive

It is possible to have high levels of gun ownership and strict gun laws