German Politician Calls for Improved Communication on Mentally Ill Offenders
Following the deadly stabbing attack in Aschaffenburg, SPD’s Dirk Wiese, the party’s parliamentary group vice, has called for a re-examination of the communication channels between the federal government, states, and municipalities regarding mentally ill offenders who have a proven track record of being a threat to the public. “We need a seamless communication between the federal government, states, and municipalities about a new possible threat group: mentally ill offenders who have been proven to be a threat to the general public” Wiese told the Rheinische Post.
According to Wiese, it is likely that the perpetrator does not fit into the existing radar of threat observation and therefore was not stopped in time. This, he said, necessitates immediate consequences. “The goal must be to close this gap, and that should happen quickly” he emphasized.
Many questions still remain unanswered, such as why the Bavarian authorities failed to deport the already convicted, mentally ill, and asylum-seeking individual, Wiese noted. “We owe it to the victims to learn from the horrific crime, to draw the right conclusions, and to take a hard stance.