Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker 2009 12:00 AM EDTThe terrible spectacle is all too familiar: Heavily armored police officers and Special Forces operatives blocking access to an otherwise deserted school building; crying students running to shell-shocked parents; ambulances and patrol cars waiting as helicopters observe the chaos from above fled on foot and headed toward central Winnenden Along the way he shot a pedestrian — an employee of a near-by psychiatric clinic — before hijacking a green Volkswagen Sharan along with its terrified owner But heavy traffic made the murderer worried and so they turned back again the car crashed into a roadside ditch on the Autobahn entry ramp near the town of Wendlingen am Neckar The driver managed to escape to a patrol car nearby but the shooter vanished in the opposite direction at a car sales yard in a local business area the gunman was shot in the leg by law-enforcement officers but managed to vanish between the parked cars in the vicinity shot himself; he was found dead at around 12:30 p.m Police have speculated that he may have heard about yesterday’s Alabama massacre A misogynistic motive is also being investigated since the vast majority of the victims are female Today’s massacre is the latest in a series of school shootings in Germany in the recent past 19-year-old Robert Steinhäuser killed 12 teachers two students and a policeman in a shooting spree that began in his one-time high school an 18-year-old burst into his former school in Emsdetten in Western Germany shooting and wounding at least 11 children before committing suicide Kretschmer very likely “suffered from a severe personality disorder,” says Lothar Adler from The Ecumenical Hainich Clinic in Muhlhausen Adler is the author of “Amok – A Study” which was based on his analysis of almost 200 school shootings and other killing sprees who was part of the post-Erfurt counseling team explains that very often killers have pronounced narcissistic traits problems in forming normal relationships and are easily offended They also tend to have low frustration thresholds and can harbor grudges for long periods of time “they frequently also lack serotonin a neuro-transmitter that buffers fears and other affects.” While the overall number of such incidents in Germany has actually gone down very slightly over the past three decades those that do occur attract much more public attention “These days the ritualization of the deed is often very pronounced — thus the mask and combat gear,” Adler says is very important as a way to define his dangerousness.” The bodies of the slain are still lying where they fell in the high school waiting for the attention of crime scene staff and medical examiners German politicians across the country are again voicing their determination to help prevent similar happenings in future See TIME’s Person of the Year, People Who Mattered, and more. 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What is this page?The website you are visiting is protected.For security reasons this page cannot be displayed. making more than 80 recommendations on how to prevent a similar incident in the future Included among the recommendations are increasing psychological support services in schools installing alarm systems and renovating classroom doors to prevent them from being opened from the outside Another preventative measure would be to raise the age for recreational shooting of high-caliber weapons from 18 to 21 "We must do all that is humanly possible to reduce the risk of school shootings in the future," said Guenther Oettinger state premier of Baden-Wuerttemberg in response to the report While the state government's goal is to implement as many of the recommendations as possible by November Oettinger said he would have to take into consideration the financial limitations of the state budget The report estimates the door renovations alone would cost 30 million euros the report also criticized the media coverage of the event as sensationalist a town near the south-western city of Stuttgart He fled the scene and was eventually shot and wounded by police before killing himself Tim Kretschmer shot nine pupils and three teachers at the Albertville secondary school in Winnenden on Wednesday morning He killed another three people before he was shot dead by police police said Kretschmer had begun having psychiatric sessions last year but stopped attending in September One of Kretschmer's killings was at the mental health clinic he had attended interior minister of the south-western state of Baden-Württemberg said Kretschmer went on to an internet chatroom in the early hours of Wednesday where he wrote: "I've had enough I have weapons and I will go to my old school in the morning and have a proper barbecue Remember the place's name: Winnenden." A 17-year-old boy from Bavaria was in the chatroom at the time and last night told his father According to a police spokesman, Klaus Hinderer, analysis of Kretschmer's computer has shown that the teenager had become an avid player of shoot-em-up video games, particularly one called Counter-Strike It emerged in German reports today that the headteacher was able to warn teachers with a pre-arranged code over the public address system when Kretschmer burst in possibly preventing him from killing any more than 12 Students said the principal quickly broadcast a coded message to teachers: "Frau Koma is coming." "Then our teacher closed the door and said we should close the windows and sit on the floor," a student In German the word "amoklauf" is used to describe mass shootings and "koma" is the reverse of the word "amok." Germany's Bild newspaper reported the coded alert was worked out by German educators after a deadly school shooting in Erfurt in 2002 as a way to warn teachers An amateur video has emerged showing Kretschmer's final moments can be seen walking unsteadily between parked cars in front of a car dealership Kretschmer had shot a sales assistant and a customer inside He left the showroom and was confronted by waiting police marksmen Kretschmer can be seen on the video apparently reloading his gun before he slumps to the floor It emerged today that Kretschmer sent a letter to his parents saying he was desperately unhappy and "couldn't go on" Kretschmer wrote the note three weeks ago and gave it to his mother and father who met Kretschmer recently through a friend "He wrote to his parents that he's suffering and he can't go on," she told the Associated Press As investigators began their first full day of inquiries into the massacre German media began to release the names of Kretschmer's victims but local police refused to confirm the details Flags are flying at half-mast across Germany in mourning for the 15 people killed by the 9mm Beretta pistol police believe he took from his parents' bedroom A shrine of flowers and candles has formed in front of the three-storey school building where Kretschmer killed eight girls Many cards left there paid tribute to those lost pinned down by a cherub statuette and two single flowers will be foremost in the minds of police as they attempt to establish what could have motivated an apparently normal young man to perpetrate an act of such horror officials remained reticent about the possibility that Kretschmer had deliberately targeted girls suggesting instead the gender imbalance could have been due to positioning in the classroom "I don't want to speculate too much about this at this point," said Heribert Rech the interior minister of Baden-Württemberg "The pupils sitting nearest the door were girls." Testimonies of friends and acquaintances today portray the table tennis champion as a lonely and frustrated person who felt rejected by society A 17-year-old who gave his name as Aki said he had been studying alongside Kretschmer at a private business school in the region and described him as a quiet and reserved boy who enjoyed playing Counter-Strike a multi-player game that involves carrying out assassinations to complete missions Other friends said he had kept dozens of air guns in his bedroom and had taken after his father in his love of guns and weaponry Kretschmer had complained of being teased by his fellow students and ignored by his teachers while at Albertville Today a team of school and police psychologists was due to arrive in Baden-Württemberg to assist the bereaved and survivors of the attack told the Neue Presse newspaper the current site of Albertsville school should be closed for good "The school has become a crime scene," he said "No more lessons can take place there." police said yesterday as they sought to find a motive for the shootings Officials are focusing on Tim ­Kretschmer's state of mind after saying he had struggled with depression and had failed to complete a series of psychiatric sessions last year three teachers and three passers-by in an attack on his former school in Winnenden had become fixated with so-called "shoot 'em up" video games in recent months spending hours playing one called Counter Strike in which ­players must carry out assassinations to win He had also developed a taste for violent films with a personal collection including Rambo First Blood while his computer contained some mild pornography Investigators said one girl Kretschmer had feelings for had not returned them, fuelling speculation that misogynistic resentment may have prompted him to have targeted female victims in his rampage. All except one of the 12 dead at Albertsville secondary school were women or girls. Police would not confirm their identities. Last night police said they had "doubts" about the veracity of an internet "warning" apparently written by Kretschmer hours before his rampage. The existence of the note, which appeared to have him promising "a real barbecue" at his old school, was denied by the chat forum in which it supposedly featured. While the motive for the school shooting – Germany's worst since the Erfurt massacre of 2002 – remained unclear, investigators were definite on how the killer had managed to procure a weapon. The Beretta pistol was taken from his father's collection at home, Mahler said, meaning that Jörg Kretschmer, a member of the local Leutenbach gun club, could potentially face legal action if it was found he had broken laws governing gun storage. He could even be prosecuted for involuntary manslaughter if evidence was found that his son had warned him of his plans. "Everything here points to negligence on the part of the father as far as the ­storage of this weapon is concerned," said police spokesman Ralf Michelfelder. On Wednesday morning Kretschmer entered Albertsville brandishing the pistol and more than 250 rounds of ammunition, police said. He is thought to have fired "at least" 60 bullets inside the school, nine in the area of the local psychiatric clinic and a further 44 on the industrial estate where he was eventually caught. He was found to have 109 unused rounds still on him after he turned the gun on himself. Oct 10, 2024, 11:10 AM | Article By:  Alieu Bobb Gambia-Germany Music Festival is an initiative of Mafoday Cham, Chief Executive Officer of Dembadu Catering & Event and Yahya Sonko Humanity Project. This creative organisation embraces culture, diversity, inclusion and unity, and aims to promote Gambia Music and artistes with the objective of bringing them to the world music stages. The maiden event is meant to showcase the best of Gambian and German vibes in the heart of Winnenden. Mafoday Cham, coordinator of the Gambia-Germany Music Festival, says: “Join us for an unforgettable night of culture, music and unity at Dream City Club, Winnenden. This event is more than just a party; it's a celebration of cross-cultural connections, a night to remember where music transcends borders and brings people together. Whether you're a fan of Gambian beats or curious about experiencing a fusion of new sounds, this is the place to be.” He urges music fans to get ready to dance, celebrate, and create memories that last a lifetime: “Don't miss out!” According to him, the headlining the evening is none other than St-The Gambian Dream, one of Gambia's finest musical talents. He is known for his energetic performances and unique blend of Afrobeat, Rap, and local rhythms. Alongside him, he revealed, they will feature two guest artistes - Bai Babu and Reflex, who will take the stage to showcase their diverse talents, ensuring an exciting and electric atmosphere throughout the night. paintball may seem like a harmless enough sport a game of skill and tactics in which teams of players shoot colored paint pellets at one another But under controversial new gun laws and other measures being considered by the German government games that are deemed to “simulate the killing” of your opponent — which could include paintball — may be banned The new measures include more spot checks on gun owners at their homes to ensure that weapons and ammunition are being stored and locked away properly; raising the legal age for using a high-caliber weapon for target practice from 14 to 18; amnesty for people who hand over illegal weapons to the authorities; and biometric security systems to ensure that weapons are being used by their rightful owners it emerged that Kretschmar had used his father’s gun which he found in his parents’ bedroom but current law dictates that it should have been stored in a secure location While many Germans would agree that tighter gun control is a good idea the possible ban on paintball has players up in arms The sport has become hugely popular in Germany with 200 venues and 250,000 people who play regularly or occasionally There’s even a German Paintball League If the new rules under consideration are voted into law the popular sport could be treated as a civil offense As paintball fans complain that the proposed laws are heavy-handed some politicians claim the measures are shortsighted warning that tighter gun legislation isn’t a quick fix to tackling gun crime “There isn’t a magic formula to prevent a killing spree,” says Dieter Wiefelspuetz interior policy spokesman for the Social Democrats “The biggest challenge is to examine why some young men turn violent when they grow up.” The new laws still need to be approved by the CDU and SPD parliamentary groups but the government is hoping to rush the bill through parliament before the summer recess in July With the federal election coming up in September the government knows that gun control is an easy way to get votes But more difficult is deciding how much control is too much — and how much is not enough See pictures of America’s fascination with firearms. See TIME’s Pictures of the Week. Germany – After a former student’s deadly attack on a German high school last week teens are talking about what could have prevented the massacre Seventeen-year-old Tim Kretschmer gunned down a dozen people – nine students and three teachers – in his former school in the small town of Winnenden in Southern Germany on March 11 and killed three more during his flight before taking his own life The rampage sparked a public debate in German government media and in communities about increased school security further gun controls and other precautions Some German students interviewed said they didn’t see a need for more security “I still feel safe going to school,” says Felix Karger who attends the Benediktiner Gymnasium in Meschede Karger said he didn’t think it likely that his school would be the site of a similar massacre “Metal detectors and security guards would be nonsense – students wouldn’t feel comfortable in school anymore,” said Anne König another student at the Gymnasium der Benediktiner “They would feel controlled and I think that this might be understood as a threat and therefore provoke problematic students into toying with the idea of running amok.” Schools should be places where students feel comfortable and secure Even a law forbidding the possession of guns would “just make having a gun more interesting and might actually lead to students going on a rampage.” the possibility of school violence remains Karger admitted to “thinking about what I would do if something like that happened here.” “But Winnenden made me question the adolescent generation and how something like this is possible But one thing is certain – there is hardly anything you can do to prevent people from running amok.” “There will always be massacres like Winnenden no matter how they change the law or what they do,” he said attends the public Gymnasium in Meschede and concedes that maybe more security could have prevented the shooting schools don’t have as much security as in the U.S and maybe that made it easier,” Stolpe said But Stolpe said schools shouldn’t be under constant surveillance through video cameras or the like there should be “more school psychologists to deal with the outsiders and actually take their problems seriously.” It is clear that the teachers themselves cannot do very much more in terms of dealing with possible perpetrators “It would be hard for teachers to recognize problematic cases and take care of them because they lack both the time and the right qualifications,” said König “They have so many students throughout the day and can’t look inside their heads is talk about what happened in Winnenden in class Köster was disappointed that none of her teachers raised the topic “We should be talking about it because no school can claim that something like that would not happen to them,” said Köster Teachers should talk about how we can react when people run amok.” talked about the rampage in class and was happy to have done so “We discussed the shooting and it helped me to sort my thoughts and deal with what happened,” Stolpe said talking about alternatives to violence is not the teachers’ obligation but a discussion that should be had at home “that many parents obviously don’t do that.” Another heavily discussed topic is the use of violent computer games Köster is in favor of forbidding them because “playing violent computer games is very widely spread thinks that the computer games actually help adolescents to reduce their aggression rather than to build it up “Of course those games can lead to a lost sense of reality but I don’t think that they alone trigger a rampage,” Stolpe said Stolpe and Köster are aware of the problems and were shocked by the Winnenden shooting none of them is actually scared of going to school “I don’t really think about it much because thinking about it doesn’t help,” said König “Theoretically such a rampage could happen here but there is nothing I can really do to stop it That would be the only way to be completely safe.” “It’s on the back of my mind all the time but I suppress the thoughts,” Stolpe said as if something like that wouldn’t happen here But Stolpe admitted she has thought about who at her school might actually be capable of violence “I have only really heard of something like that happening in Germany twice – once seven years ago in Erfurt and now in Winnenden I don’t think anyone here could actually do something like that I don’t really think about the possibility of a rampage here at all,” Köster said Stolpe and Köster said the only thing they can do is to be more attentive “It’s hard for the school officials to figure out who truly is a threat and who is just bluffing,” said Stolpe “There are outsiders everywhere and people who are bullied by others – whom do we take seriously and whom do we not?” “paying more attention to outsiders and putting a stop to bullying might prevent something like this from happening again.” Katie Grosser is a Senior Reporter for Youth Journalism International “This incredibly important, worthwhile organization should be supported by everyone who cares about quality, ethical journalism.” — Nat Hentoff, First Amendment expert, in 2016 Consider making a recurring monthly donation Youth Journalism International / 30 Taylor St All donations in the USA are tax-deductible DENMARK – A year after a devastating fire destroyed Børsen Youth Journalism International connects student writers artists and photographers with peers around the globe and promotes and defends a free youth press “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.” – Article 19 Youth Journalism International works all over the world. Click here to view a map of our impact You can find Youth Journalism International on Facebook Copyright © 2025 Youth Journalism International | Crafted by Cornershop We’re sorry, this feature is currently unavailable. We’re working to restore it. Please try again later. Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time. Germany was in mourning after a teenage gunman ran amok at a school and the local area, killing at least 15 people and finally himself in a shootout with police. Seventeen-year-old Tim Kretschmer Wednesday burst into his former secondary school in Winnenden, a picturesque town in southern Germany, and opened fire, leaving nine pupils aged between 15 and 16 and three teachers dead. Mass killer Tim Kretschmer (left) and students outside the school he terrorised. Photo: AFP Another three bystanders also died during a massive manhunt involving hundreds of armed police commandos and snipers in black body armour, assisted by helicopters and dogs. Less than three hours after the killing spree began, the gunman eventually turned his weapon on himself after being injured in a fire-fight with police, bringing the death toll to 16. "Something bad has happened. My neighbour is lying on the ground. I think she's dead," sobbed Ivo Pashak, 17, to his brother Hannes after the massacre. Hannes, 16, recalled getting the mobile phone call from his panicked brother, who survived the shooting at the school. "He told me there was blood everywhere and he was scared. He also said he simply didn't understand what had happened," Hannes told AFP. The small German town of Winnenden, population about 27,000, was still trying to come to terms with the bloodbath. "My brother was in the classroom where it happened," another unnamed person told German television. "He was sitting next to his girlfriend who was killed. His best friend was killed as well." "The killer simply came into the classroom, pulled out his gun and started firing," said one witness. "One person saw someone shot in the head." "He was constantly reloading his gun," police chief Konrad Gelden said. Kretschmer went into classroom 10d three times, the daily said on its website. On the third visit, he hissed: "Aren't you all dead yet?" A teacher threw herself in front of a female pupil - and was shot by the gunman, said. When police stormed into the school, they discovered the grisly toll: nine children - eight girls and one boy - and three female teachers had been mown down. One teacher, hailed as a heroine, saved the lives of several pupils by locking a door that the gunman unsuccessfully tried to shoot open, the daily reported. Hans Ulrich Stuiber, an onlooker, described the scenes of anguish and misery in front of the school, as parents sought desperately to contact their children inside. "All teenagers have mobile phones and they quickly rang their parents," he said. "But after a few minutes, no one could get a signal." Parents were kept away from the bullet-ridden school until well after the killer had gone on the run. "Some were struck dumb, others were crying and a few had fainted," Mr Stuiber said. About 30 psychologists rushed to the scene, treating shocked parents and pupils alike. Three counselling centres were set up in classrooms but most of the pupils preferred to go home with their parents. Officials said the killer apparently had no motive for the bloodbath and there were no indications that he held a grudge against the school. "The gunman wanted to destroy an entire school," Heribert Rech, interior minister of the southern state of Baden-Wuerttemberg where the slaughter took place, told reporters. "He was completely unremarkable." Kretschmer had achieved "average" marks in his school-leaving certificate and then enrolled in a course to be a salesman, Rech said. He also regularly worked out at the gym and belonged to a sports club. The school, which has 600 pupils, was part of a complex of several other schools with a total of 1,700 students aged from six to 19. In the late afternoon, the town, bathed in weak sunlight, still seemed to be in a state of shock. Only policemen in green uniforms were still on the streets, the commandos in black camouflage long since back in their barracks. After the screams and police sirens that had broken the calm of this picturesque southern German town, only silence reigned. A visibly shaken Angela Merkel, Germany's Chancellor, described the crime as "incomprehensible". "It is a day of mourning for the whole of Germany. Our thoughts go out to the families and the friends. We are thinking of you and we are praying for you," she added. Interior Minister Wolfgang Schauble ordered flags across Germany to be flown at half mast Thursday as a mark of respect for the slain. Church services took place Wednesday in the town. Wednesday's massacre was one of the worst school shootings in Germany in recent years. In April 2002, 19-year-old Robert Steinhaeuser, a disgruntled student from Erfurt in eastern Germany who had been expelled, killed 16 people before turning the gun on himself. In November 2006, a former student at a vocational school in Lower Saxony in northwestern Germany went a shooting spree in the establishment, injuring 37 people before killing himself. The German school shooting came just hours after a gunman went on the rampage in the southern US state of Alabama, killing 10 people before also turning the gun on himself. \\\"Something bad has happened. My neighbour is lying on the ground. I think she's dead,\\\" sobbed Ivo Pashak, 17, to his brother Hannes after the massacre. \\\"He told me there was blood everywhere and he was scared. He also said he simply didn't understand what had happened,\\\" Hannes told AFP. \\\"My brother was in the classroom where it happened,\\\" another unnamed person told German television. \\\"He was sitting next to his girlfriend who was killed. His best friend was killed as well.\\\" \\\"The killer simply came into the classroom, pulled out his gun and started firing,\\\" said one witness. \\\"One person saw someone shot in the head.\\\" \\\"He was constantly reloading his gun,\\\" police chief Konrad Gelden said. Kretschmer went into classroom 10d three times, the daily said on its website. On the third visit, he hissed: \\\"Aren't you all dead yet?\\\" \\\"All teenagers have mobile phones and they quickly rang their parents,\\\" he said. \\\"But after a few minutes, no one could get a signal.\\\" \\\"Some were struck dumb, others were crying and a few had fainted,\\\" Mr Stuiber said. \\\"The gunman wanted to destroy an entire school,\\\" Heribert Rech, interior minister of the southern state of Baden-Wuerttemberg where the slaughter took place, told reporters. \\\"He was completely unremarkable.\\\" Kretschmer had achieved \\\"average\\\" marks in his school-leaving certificate and then enrolled in a course to be a salesman, Rech said. He also regularly worked out at the gym and belonged to a sports club. A visibly shaken Angela Merkel, Germany's Chancellor, described the crime as \\\"incomprehensible\\\". \\\"It is a day of mourning for the whole of Germany. Our thoughts go out to the families and the friends. We are thinking of you and we are praying for you,\\\" she added. Wednesday's massacre was one of the worst school shootings in Germany in recent years. © 2025 Eurogamer.net a brand of IGN Entertainment, Inc. All rights reserved. 18 Mansell Street Level 3, London, E1 8AA, United Kingdom. No part of this website or its content may be reproduced without the copyright owner's permission. Eurogamer is a registered trademark of Gamer Network Limited. ABC News News HomeGerman gunman's parents say sorryShare German gunman's parents say sorryTopic:Homicide German boy Tim Kretschmer, 17, who killed 15 people in a school shooting rampage in Winnenden, Germany on March 11, 2009. (bild.de) Link copiedShareShare articleThe family of a 17-year-old who shot dead 15 people in Germany last week before turning the gun on himself apologised to his victims and their families in a letter published on Tuesday (local time). "The appalling and incomprehensible act of our son and brother took away from you the most valuable and most important thing of all, a loved one," the open letter released by the Kretschmer family's lawyer said. "We are always asking ourselves, again and again, how this could happen. How can we not have noticed his distress and his hate?" they said. "Until this happened we too were a completely normal family. We never thought Tim was capable of something like this." The teenager went on the rampage last Wednesday at his old school in the picturesque Winnenden near the southern city of Stuttgart, armed with a handgun taken from his father's bedroom, shooting dead nine pupils and three teachers. He then killed a passer-by outside a psychiatric clinic where he had been due to receive treatment, hijacked a car and shot two others at a car dealership. He died in a shootout with police about 30 kilometres from the school. Police believe he shot himself. "We are devastated, and this unfathomable tragedy leaves us in tears and lost for words," the letter added. "Our deepest sympathies go out to the victims, their families and their friends. All our thoughts are also with those with physical and mental wounds." AEST = Australian Eastern Standard Time which is 10 hours ahead of GMT (Greenwich Mean Time) ABC News News HomeMassacres spark call for new gun crackdownShare Massacres spark call for new gun crackdownTopic:Homicide Killed 15 people: German boy Tim Kretschmer went on a rampage just hours after a similar attack in Alabama (bild.de) Link copiedShareShare articleMass shootings in the United States and Germany have prompted a renewed call for Australia to crack down on automatic and semi-automatic handguns. A 28-year-old shot himself after killing 10 people in Alabama, and in Winnenden, Germany, a 17-year-old also took his life after killing at least 15 people in a rampage which started at his former high school. Greens leader Bob Brown says the massacres, which happened within hours of each other, should be a wake-up call for Australian governments. "There are 100,000 to 200,000 handguns in circulation in Australia and many of those are effectively machine guns - they are automatic handguns - it's time they were withdrawn from public availability," he said. "I have repeatedly called for this." But speaking on Radio National's Breakfast today, Professor James Alan Fox from Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts, and the author of Extreme Killing: Understanding Serial And Mass Murder, said reducing gun availability and changing gun laws would not necessarily solve the problem. "The good news is that these episodes are rare, the bad news is that because they are rare we cannot predict them," he said. "We cannot identify the shooters before they go on rampages, all we really can do perhaps is reach out to those people near us, to make sure that if they are suffering, if they are troubled, that they have our support. "That may not prevent a bloodbath, but in the process we can indeed perhaps enhance the wellbeing of many of our friends and family and neighbours." Professor Fox says blame is the chief motivating factor for people who carry out mass shootings. He says mass shooters rarely take responsibility for their problems. "In the 1990s we started to see shootings committed by students who were getting even with bullies and teachers who they blamed for their problems," he said. "We'll know a lot more about the shootings in Germany, but I understand he had gone to the school previously, which sounds to me to have a lot to do with blame. "What we often see in the case of mass shooters is they go out for the people they hold responsible for their problems." Professor Fox says perpetrators are usually individuals with a sense of frustration and failure. "They are individuals who don't blame themselves, if they blamed themself for their problem they might take their own life, but they tend to blame everyone else," he said. "Then when they decide that life is not worth living anymore - many fo them commit suicide - they are eager to gain some satisfaction, some payback by going after people who they hold responsible. "Like the shooting in Alabama, the gunman had a hit list, and that's pretty common." Professor Fox says he doubts there is any direct link between the Alabama and Germany shootings, but that connections between shootings over the past decade do exist. "We've had many school shootings in the United States and abroad in the past 10 years, and when you talk about connections, there is indeed a possibility that the shooter in Germany was inspired by previous school shootings," he said. Gun laws in Germany were tightened in 2003 following a 2002 school shooting, which left 17 people dead. In Germany it is currently illegal for people under 18 to own weapons of any sort. ABC News News HomeFather of German killer probed for manslaughterShare Father of German killer probed for manslaughterTopic:Homicide Tim Kretschmer, 17, killed 15 people in a shooting rampage in Winnenden, Germany, last week. (bild.de) Link copiedShareShare articleProsecutors may charge the father of a German teenager who went on a killing rampage last week with involuntary manslaughter for leaving the murder weapon unlocked in his bedroom despite knowing his son was depressed. Tim Kretschmer, 17, used his father's Beretta pistol to kill 12 students and teachers at his former school and three other people last Wednesday, before shooting himself when he was cornered by police. Prosecutors in the southern German city of Stuttgart said they had launched an investigation into the father's role in the crime after establishing that he was probably aware of his son's fragile mental state. Police have said that Kretschmer was treated for depression between April and September last year, before breaking off his treatment. "There are concrete signs that the parents knew of their son's health problems," the prosecutors and local police said in a joint statement. "Based on this, there is reason to suspect this may be a case of involuntary manslaughter." Kretschmer's father, a member of a shooting club, had 15 guns at home. Fourteen of those were locked in a gun closet as required by law, but police have said the Beretta was left unlocked in the father's bedroom. The mother is not being investigated because she did not own any of the guns. The attack in the south-western town of Winnenden was the worst school shooting in Germany since 2002, when a 19-year old shot dead 16 people and himself in the eastern city of Erfurt. It has sparked a debate about whether firearms should be banned from private homes, a move polls show Germans support but which senior politicians have said is unworkable. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Sunday that it was crucial to ensure that rules on the storage of weapons and ammunition were properly applied. CNN and the BBC World Service which is copyright and cannot be reproduced A teenager in black combat gear went on a rampage at his old school in Germany yesterday slaying at least 15 people before turning his gun on himself during a shoot out with police entered the secondary school in Winnenden near Stuttgart at 9:30 am (0830 GMT) killing nine pupils aged between 14 and 15 and three teachers in different classrooms with a handgun He wandered into several classrooms at the school he left last year indiscriminately spraying bullets at teachers and students "He was constantly reloading his weapon," local police chief Konrad Gelden told reporters pulled out his gun and started shooting," one pupil said on German television "One person saw someone shot in the head." "My brother was in the classroom in which it happened," said another "He was sitting next to his girlfriend and she was shot." The German school shooting came just hours after a gunman went on the rampage in the southern US state of Alabama killing 10 people before also turning the gun on himself Mr Kretschmer went into classroom 10d three times hissing on the third visit: "Aren't you all dead yet?" A teacher threw herself in front of a female pupil - and was shot by the gunman Police were alerted to the shootings within three minutes and despatched two vehicles to the scene where they discovered the bodies of the pupils and three teachers - one of whom had only been working at the school for four weeks The 17-year-old then fled the Albertville-Realschule and went to a nearby psychiatric clinic where he shot dead a member of staff and stole a Volkswagen Sharan car He then sped 40 kilometres to the town of Wendlingen By this time a massive manhunt was underway with hundreds of armed police commandos and snipers in black body armour on his trail "The whole time police were on his trail," Mr Gelden said Cornered in the car park of a shopping centre a shootout between the teenager and the police ensued It seems Mr Kretschmer turned his gun on himself after being wounded in the shootout "According to the latest police information he was hit in an exchange of fire (with police) and then used his weapon on himself," police spokesman Fritz Mehl said Two policemen were seriously injured in the fire-fight but they were in a stable condition in hospital German Chancellor Angela Merkel expressed her condolences to the families and friends of those killed in what she called a "horrendous crime." I find what happened today in the Albertville-Realschule in Winnenden incomprehensible," Ms Merkel said "It is a day of mourning for the whole of Germany We are thinking of you and we are praying for you," Ms Merkel added The killings drew international condemnation as well with European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso saying he was "appalled and saddened by the senseless violence that cut short so many lives." The Bild daily said on its website that commandos had stormed the home of the teenager's parents where 16 weapons were legally held - one of which the teenager used in his rampage the interior minister of Baden-Wuerttemberg state said there was nothing in the gunman's background to indicate that he held a grudge against the school "The gunman wanted to destroy an entire school," Heribert Rech said there was nothing in his background to suggest this could have happened." around 25 kilometres northeast of Stuttgart in Baden-Wuerttemberg was part of a complex of several other schools with a total of 1,700 students aged from six to 19 please register for free or log in to your account.