- Murder of schoolmates: 15-year-old convicted in Lower France
A 15-year-old has been sentenced to eight years and six months in a juvenile detention center for fatally shooting a classmate in the head at a school in Lower Franconia. The Regional Court of Würzburg found that the teenager had murdered the 14-year-old in Lohr am Main in September 2023, a court spokeswoman said. The maximum sentence for murder in juvenile court is ten years.
The panel of judges agreed with the prosecution and the victim's family, who argued that the fatal shot from behind constituted the aggravating factor of premeditation. The defendant's lawyer argued for a charge of manslaughter instead.
The 15-year-old German national admitted to shooting a 14-year-old Italian student with a single gunshot on the grounds of a school in Lohr am Main, northwest of Würzburg, last September. He initially claimed that the shot was not intentional.
The act of fatally shooting a classmate is an instance of violence. The prosecution and the victim's family emphasized the aggravating factor of premeditation, implying a high level of violence.
