Police officers fool around – but the joke turns serious. An officer shoots into the team bus. He has now been convicted – and must also expect professional consequences.
Augsburg – A 28-year-old policeman has been sentenced by the Augsburg Regional Court for firing his service weapon into a police bus during a water fight. The court imposed a suspended sentence of one year and eight months for dangerous bodily harm in office and damage to property.
In the incident in August 2023, the projectile narrowly missed a police officer in a team bus and broke through a window. Four officers in the bus suffered acoustic trauma.
The man had stated that he could not explain why he had shot and at the start of the trial he initially stated that he suspected that he had reacted reflexively because of the numerous shooting training sessions he had taken as part of his training. The court did not believe this account and its verdict complied with the prosecutor’s request.
Loss of civil servant status threatened
The police officer’s defense had called for a suspended sentence of less than one year – and for good reason. If the sentence becomes final, the young man will lose his civil servant status and will no longer be able to work as a police officer.
If the prison sentence is longer than one year, dismissal from the civil service is mandatory, as a court spokesman explained. If the sentence is less than one year, there is still some leeway under civil service law and at least a theoretical chance of continuing to do the job.
The verdict is not yet final. The prosecution and defense have one week to file an appeal. dpa
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