German Federal Minister of Justice, Stefanie Hubig (SPD), plans to refine the German Criminal Code specifically concerning what are known as “femicides” and gender-based killings. This effort will involve expanding the current provisions regarding murder.
Hubig stated to “Bild am Sonntag” that, “We have found a good way to make it clear: whoever kills because of a motive related to the fact that the victim is a woman should also be convicted as a murderer, provided all other details align”.
Although current law already allows the killing of a woman due to possessive sentiments to be classified as murder, Hubig pointed out that judicial precedents still sometimes downgrade these cases. She remarked that courts might decide, for instance, that an action was committed due to “jealousy” or that the perpetrator was “in a rage” thereby deeming them diminished in criminal responsibility and relegating the conviction to involuntary manslaughter (“Totschlag”).
The goal of the proposed legal clarification is to ensure that killings motivated by gender-specific factors can consistently be evaluated as murder under the law.
This classification would also impact sentencing. According to the Federal Minister of Justice, only a conviction for murder allows the perpetrator to potentially receive a life sentence. In contrast, involuntary manslaughter carries only a limited sentence, such as ten or twelve years, after which the individual is expected to be released.