2009 Winnenden shootings#Perpetrator

{{Location map many

|Germany

|label = Winnenden

|position = top

|lat_deg = 48

|lat_min = 52

|lat_sec = 07

|lon_deg = 09

|lon_min = 23

|lon_sec = 55

|label2 = Wendlingen

|position2 = bottom

|lat2_deg = 48

|lat2_min = 40

|lat2_sec = 29

|lon2_deg = 09

|lon2_min = 22

|lon2_sec = 54

|border = black

|caption = Locations of the incident within Germany

|float = right

|width = 200

}}

In the Albertville-Realschule at approximately 09:30, Kretschmer first began shooting with a 9 mm Beretta 92FS pistol, which he had stolen from his parents.{{cite web |url=http://www.blick.ch/news/ausland/wieso-kam-tim-an-diese-pistole-herr-kretschmer-114233 |title=Wieso kam Tim an diese Pistole, Herr Kretschmer? |access-date=19 March 2009 |publisher=www.blick.ch |date=12 March 2009 |language=de |archive-date=15 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090315034804/http://www.blick.ch/news/ausland/wieso-kam-tim-an-diese-pistole-herr-kretschmer-114233 |url-status=live }}{{cite news |url=http://www.spiegel.de/panorama/justiz/0,1518,612732,00.html |title=Protokoll eines Massenmords |access-date=11 March 2009 |date=11 March 2009 |work=Der Spiegel |language=de |archive-date=27 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120327011944/http://www.spiegel.de/panorama/justiz/0,1518,612732,00.html |url-status=live }}{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7937554.stm |title=How German school shooting unfolded |access-date=11 March 2009 |publisher=BBC |date=11 March 2009 |archive-date=21 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120321231236/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7937554.stm |url-status=live }} Eyewitness reports state that Kretschmer started on the first upstairs floor,{{cite web |url=https://stuttgart-journal.de/tp3/2009/03/12/amoklauf-von-winnenden-polizei-konstruiert-genauen-tathergang/ |title=Polizei konstruiert genauen Tathergang (Police reconstruct exact events) |access-date=29 May 2022 |publisher=Stuttgart Journal |date=12 March 2009 |language=de |archive-date=25 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220125232708/https://stuttgart-journal.de/tp3/2009/03/12/amoklauf-von-winnenden-polizei-konstruiert-genauen-tathergang/ |url-status=live }} where he made a beeline for two top-floor classrooms and a chemistry laboratory.{{cite web |url=http://www.hs.fi/ulkomaat/artikkeli/Kouluampuja+iski+Stuttgartin+l%C3%A4hell%C3%A4+Saksassa/1135244209543 |title=Ainakin kymmenen kuoli kouluammuskelussa Saksassa |access-date=11 March 2009 |publisher=Helsingin Sanomat |date=11 March 2009 |language=fi |archive-date=14 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090314065739/http://www.hs.fi/ulkomaat/artikkeli/Kouluampuja+iski+Stuttgartin+l%C3%A4hell%C3%A4+Saksassa/1135244209543 |url-status=live }} In the first classroom (Class 9C which was receiving a Spanish lesson), Kretschmer fatally shot five students in the head at close range without warning. He then entered the next classroom (Class 10D which was receiving a German speaking lesson), killed two more students, and wounded nine more, two of whom would die of their wounds en route to the hospital. As Kretschmer left the room to reload his weapon, the teacher reportedly closed the door and locked it. After unsuccessfully trying to shoot off the lock, Kretschmer then moved on to the chemistry laboratory, where he shot and killed the teacher. Students escaped Kretschmer by jumping out of windows.{{Cite news |url=https://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/chronology-of-a-mass-murder-the-scope-of-this-disaster-is-incomprehensible-a-612780.html |title=Chronology of a Mass Murder: 'The Scope of this Disaster Is Incomprehensible' |date=11 March 2009 |newspaper=Spiegel Online |access-date=7 December 2019 |archive-date=4 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304112341/http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/chronology-of-a-mass-murder-the-scope-of-this-disaster-is-incomprehensible-a-612780.html |url-status=live }} In the three targeted classrooms, he killed nine students and one teacher.{{cite web |url=http://www.bild.de/BILD/news/bild-english/world-news/2009/03/13/tim-kretschmer-shooting-rampage-animated-video/teen-gunman-tragic-school-killing-spree-recreated.html |title=Teen gunman's tragic school killing spree recreated |date=13 March 2009 |access-date=16 March 2009 |archive-date=17 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090317073416/http://www.bild.de/BILD/news/bild-english/world-news/2009/03/13/tim-kretschmer-shooting-rampage-animated-video/teen-gunman-tragic-school-killing-spree-recreated.html |url-status=live }} He shot most of his victims in the head.{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7938228.stm |title=Sad scene at German massacre school |publisher=BBC News |last=Hughes |first=Dominic |date=11 March 2009 |access-date=11 March 2009 |archive-date=20 April 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130420143942/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7938228.stm |url-status=live }} Kretschmer fired more than 60 rounds at the school.{{Cite web |url=https://www.sat1.de/ratgeber/trends |title=Trends – Trends |date=2 July 2014 |website=www.sat1.de |access-date=7 December 2019 |archive-date=15 November 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191115100636/https://www.sat1.de/ratgeber/trends |url-status=live }}

The school headmaster broadcast a coded announcement ("Mrs Koma is coming", which is amok spelled backwards){{cite web |url=https://www.faz.net/s/Rub77CAECAE94D7431F9EACD163751D4CFD/Doc~EA0BCD28DE1E14F69BC31230BF76705D4~ATpl~Ecommon~Scontent.html |title=Polizeitaktik und Notfallpläne "Frau Koma kommt" |access-date=23 March 2009 |publisher=FAZ |date=13 March 2009 |language=de |archive-date=15 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090315013743/http://www.faz.net/s/Rub77CAECAE94D7431F9EACD163751D4CFD/Doc~EA0BCD28DE1E14F69BC31230BF76705D4~ATpl~Ecommon~Scontent.html |url-status=live }} alerting the teachers of the situation; they locked classroom doors. This coded alert had been used by German educators after the Erfurt school massacre in April 2002.

After receiving an emergency call from a student at 09:33 local time, three police officers reached the scene two minutes later and entered the school, interrupting the shooting spree. Kretschmer shot at them and fled the building, killing two teachers in the hall as he departed. He killed a total of 12 people at the school. A quantity of unused ammunition was recovered from the school. "It appears the perpetrator may have intended to do far more harm at the school than he managed," said chief criminal investigator Ralf Michelfelder.

File:Psychiatrisches Landeskrankenhaus Winnenden - panoramio.jpg

Kretschmer fled the scene and killed a 56-year-old gardener of a nearby psychiatric institution in the park.{{cite web |url=http://www.abendzeitung.de/panorama/92317 |title=Das Protokoll des Blutbades: "Rennt, rennt!" |access-date=11 March 2009 |publisher=Abendzeitung |date=11 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090314013749/http://www.abendzeitung.de/panorama/92317 |archive-date=14 March 2009 |url-status=dead}}{{cite news |url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article5894847.ece |title=German school killer Tim Kretschmer warned of massacre on chatroom |work=The Times |location=London |access-date=23 March 2009 |date=12 March 2009 |first1=Fran |last1=Yeoman |first2=Philippe |last2=Naughton |archive-date=11 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240311075541/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/ |url-status=dead }} Large numbers of police officers secured the school building and searched for Kretschmer throughout Winnenden for hours without success. News reports confirmed that Kretschmer was on the run and warned motorists not to pick up any hitchhikers.

At approximately 10:00, Kretschmer carjacked a first-generation Volkswagen Sharan minivan at a car park in Winnenden. From his position on the rear seat, Kretschmer ordered the car's driver, a man named Igor Wolf, to drive towards Wendlingen, {{convert|40|km|mi}} from Winnenden. Kretschmer and the driver went westwards into the suburbs of Stuttgart, the Baden-Württemberg state capital, travelling through the towns and districts of Waiblingen, Fellbach and Bad Cannstatt, before driving on the B14 dual carriageway through the Heslach Tunnel onto the A81 motorway towards Böblingen and Tübingen. The two drove onto the B27 dual carriageway before leaving on the B313 to Nürtingen.

Wolf later reported that, when asked why he was doing this, Kretschmer replied, "For fun, because it is fun."{{cite web |url=http://www.sueddeutsche.de/,tt4l2/panorama/747/462366/text/ |title=Vater von Tim K. will Waffen nicht mehr anrühren |publisher=sueddeutsche.de |access-date=20 March 2009 |date=20 March 2009 |language=de |archive-date=11 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240311075543/https://www.sueddeutsche.de/ |url-status=live }} According to Wolf, Kretschmer revealed his intentions as he was loading his pistol magazines during the ride: "Do you think we will find another school?" Wolf says he quickly changed the conversation then.{{cite web |url=http://www.stern.de/panorama/:Winnenden-Geisel-Ich-Kinder/659386.html?p=2 |title=Interview "Ich wollte für meine Kinder weiterleben" |publisher=stern.de |access-date=2 April 2009 |date=29 March 2009 |language=de |archive-date=1 April 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090401153218/http://www.stern.de/panorama/:Winnenden-Geisel-Ich-Kinder/659386.html?p=2 |url-status=live }} Shortly after 12:00, just before the Wendlinger junction to the A8 Autobahn, Wolf steered the car onto the grass verge and jumped from the vehicle toward a police patrol car.

Kretschmer immediately left the car and ran towards the nearby industrial area, entering a Volkswagen car showroom through the main entrance. He threatened a salesperson and demanded a key for one of the vehicles. The salesperson escaped while Kretschmer was distracted. Kretschmer shot and killed another salesperson and a customer, firing 13 bullets into the two people. As he reloaded, another salesperson and visitor fled through the rear exit. Kretschmer emerged at about 12:30 and shot at a passing car. The driver escaped without injury. The police started to arrive and a shootout began. An officer fired eight shots at Kretschmer, hitting him once in each leg.

Kretschmer returned to the car showroom, firing 12 shots from within the building at police from nearby Nürtingen, who were gradually surrounding the building. He left the rear of the building and ran across a yard to a neighbouring business complex, where he shot and injured two police officers in an unmarked police vehicle.

According to police reports, at this point Kretschmer continued to shoot at random, shooting at nearby buildings and people, including an employee of a firm who was trying to lock the door. Witnesses described observing Kretschmer as he reloaded his pistol before shooting himself in the head.{{cite news |url=http://www.sueddeutsche.de/,tt2m1/panorama/719/461345/text/ |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120630025453/http://www.sueddeutsche.de/,tt2m1/panorama/719/461345/text/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=30 June 2012 |title=Das wortlose Töten des Tim K. |access-date=11 March 2009 |date=11 March 2009 |publisher=sueddeutsche.de |language=de}} The final seconds of the shootout were captured with a mobile phone video camera.{{cite web |url=http://www.bild.de/BILD/news/2009/03/12/winnenden/video-die-letzten-sekunden/des-schul-amok-killers.html |title=Die letzten Sekunden des Amok-Killers von Winnenden |access-date=1 July 2018 |publisher=bild.de |date=12 March 2009 |language=de |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110214130607/http://www.bild.de/BILD/news/2009/03/12/winnenden/video-die-letzten-sekunden/des-schul-amok-killers.html |archive-date=14 February 2011}}

According to forensic evidence, Kretschmer fired a total of 112 rounds, 60 of which were fired at the school, and he had about 110 unused bullets on him when he died.{{Cite web |last=AOAV |date=2014-04-17 |title=15 shootings that changed the law: Winnenden, 2009 |url=https://aoav.org.uk/2014/winneden-2009/ |access-date=2024-10-03 |website=AOAV |language=en-US}}

Kretschmer killed 15 people, including nine students and three teachers at the school, before killing himself. They are:{{Cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/germany/4980428/Germany-school-shootings-Massacre-survivor-thought-it-was-a-prank.html |title=Germany school shootings: Massacre survivor thought it was a prank |first=John |last=Bingham |date=12 March 2009 |via=www.telegraph.co.uk |access-date=2 April 2018 |archive-date=28 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200328120627/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/germany/4980428/Germany-school-shootings-Massacre-survivor-thought-it-was-a-prank.html |url-status=live }}[https://www.abendzeitung-muenchen.de/inhalt.panorama-nichts-ist-wie-es-einmal-war.79bf9181-4cc9-4472-a1ba-1011100d0a3d.html "Nichts ist, wie es einmal war"] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090427045147/http://www.abendzeitung.de/panorama/94617 |date=27 April 2009 }}, Abendzeitung (22 March 2009)

Tim Kretschmer (26 July 1991 – 11 March 2009) lived with his parents in the neighbouring municipality of Leutenbach.{{cite news |url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article5887953.ece |title=German school massacre gunman dies in police shootout after chase |work=The Times |location=London |access-date=11 March 2009 |date=11 March 2009 |first=Philippe |last=Naughton |archive-date=11 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240311075542/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/ |url-status=dead }}{{cite news |url=http://www.tagesanzeiger.ch/panorama/vermischtes/Amoklauf-in-Schule-im-badenwuerttembergischen-Winnenden/story/12303508 |title=17-Jähriger läuft Amok – 16 Tote – Täter Tim K. erschossen. |publisher=Tages Anzeiger Panorama |access-date=11 March 2009 |date=11 March 2009 |language=de |newspaper=Tages-Anzeiger |archive-date=25 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180725112257/http://www.tagesanzeiger.ch/panorama/vermischtes/Amoklauf-in-Schule-im-badenwuerttembergischen-Winnenden/story/12303508 |url-status=live }} He had graduated from Albertville Realschule in 2008 with relatively poor grades.{{cite news |url=https://www.thetimes.com/article/tim-kretschmer-the-boy-who-killed-15-in-school-rampage-stole-pistol-from-his-fathers-arsenal-g5tzw30p3jh |title=Tim Kretschmer, the boy who killed 15 in school rampage, stole pistol from his father's arsenal |last=Yeoman |first=Fran |author2=David Charter |date=12 March 2009 |work=The Times |location=London |access-date=12 March 2009 |archive-date=6 April 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200406210951/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/tim-kretschmer-the-boy-who-killed-15-in-school-rampage-stole-pistol-from-his-fathers-arsenal-g5tzw30p3jh |url-status=live }}

Kretschmer's failing grades had prevented him from entering an apprenticeship. He was attending a commercial high school (Donner + Kern) in Waiblingen to prepare for an apprenticeship for a commercial career. Several accounts described him as having depression.{{cite web |url=http://www.bz-berlin.de/archiv/der-amok-schuetze-17-war-wegen-depressionen-in-der-nervenklinik-die-arzte-konnten-seine-kranke-seele-nicht-heilen-article395103.html |title=Polizei fand Killerspiele, Horrorfilme und Pornobilder auf dem Computer von Kretschmer +++ Er war Einzelgänger und hatte keine Freundin – Der Amok-Schütze (17) war wegen Depressionen in der Nervenklinik. Die Arzte konnten seine kranke Seele nicht heilen |publisher=Berliner Zeitung |access-date=18 March 2009 |date=13 March 2009 |language=de |archive-date=29 September 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110929071115/http://www.bz-berlin.de/archiv/der-amok-schuetze-17-war-wegen-depressionen-in-der-nervenklinik-die-arzte-konnten-seine-kranke-seele-nicht-heilen-article395103.html |url-status=live }}{{cite web |url=http://www.bild.de/BILD/news/bild-english/world-news/2009/03/12/school-shooting-in-winnenden-germany/tim-kretschmer-was-suffering-from-depression-before-killing-spree.html |title=Tim Kretschmer suffered from depression before killing spree |access-date=23 March 2009 |publisher=bild.de |date=13 March 2009 |archive-date=15 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090315234442/http://www.bild.de/BILD/news/bild-english/world-news/2009/03/12/school-shooting-in-winnenden-germany/tim-kretschmer-was-suffering-from-depression-before-killing-spree.html |url-status=live }} Kretschmer was described by a friend as "a lonely and frustrated person who felt rejected by society".{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/mar/12/school-shooting-germany-letter |title=Teenage killer wrote letter to parents saying he 'couldn't go on' |last=Davies |first=Lizzy |date=12 March 2009 |work=The Guardian |location=London |access-date=12 March 2009 |archive-date=6 September 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130906073836/http://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/mar/12/school-shooting-germany-letter |url-status=live }} An anonymous friend described Kretschmer as a quiet student who began to withdraw from his peers.{{cite news |url=http://www.spiegel.de/panorama/justiz/0,1518,612673,00.html |title=Tim K. – der Junge ohne Eigenschaften |access-date=11 March 2009 |date=11 March 2009 |work=Der Spiegel |language=de |archive-date=4 April 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120404224445/http://www.spiegel.de/panorama/justiz/0,1518,612673,00.html |url-status=live }}

He was an avid table tennis player and had hoped to become a professional player. Marko Habijanec, a Croatian table tennis player who coached Kretschmer at the Erdmannhausen sports club between 2000 and 2003, remembers him as being "a bit spoiled", with his mother fulfilling many of his demands.{{cite web |url=http://www.jutarnji.hr/vijesti/clanak/art-2009,3,13,,155619.jl |title=Marko Habijanec: Trenirao sam monstruma |date=13 March 2009 |work=Jutarnji list |language=hr |access-date=15 March 2009 |archive-date=17 February 2013 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130217155540/http://www.jutarnji.hr/vijesti/clanak/art-2009,3,13,,155619.jl |url-status=live }} According to Habijanec, Kretschmer had great difficulties accepting defeat: he would have a temper tantrum, yelling and throwing his racket. The coach said that, having a high opinion of his own abilities, Kretschmer openly denigrated his teammates. When Habijanec discussed Kretschmer's attitude with his mother, he discovered she sided fully with her son.

Media reports say he enjoyed playing the video game Counter-Strike and playing with airsoft guns.{{cite news |url=http://www.spiegel.de/panorama/justiz/0,1518,612826,00.html |title=Polizei hat Hinweise auf Tatmotiv |access-date=12 March 2009 |date=12 March 2009 |work=Der Spiegel |language=de |archive-date=15 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090315092932/http://www.spiegel.de/panorama/justiz/0,1518,612826,00.html |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |url=http://www.berlinonline.de/berliner-kurier/nachrichten/timkretschmerpsychogrammeineskillers/ |title=Tim Kretschmer: Psychogramm eines Killers |access-date=19 March 2009 |archive-date=15 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090315234706/http://www.berlinonline.de/berliner-kurier/nachrichten/timkretschmerpsychogrammeineskillers/ |url-status=live }} Commentators also noted that "game addiction is a symptom of something wrong and not a cause".{{Cite web |url=http://timesonline.typepad.com/comment/2009/03/do-you-think-th.html |title=Did video games cause the shooting in Germany? |access-date=14 March 2009 |archive-date=30 November 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101130224702/http://timesonline.typepad.com/comment/2009/03/do-you-think-th.html |url-status=live }} He also shot his guns in the forest behind his home and also in the basement of his house. On his last day alive, Kretschmer played the video game Far Cry 2 online as "JawsPredator1".{{cite web |url=http://www.news-times.de/Artikelsenden/10581289/Aktuelle-Nachrichten/20107239 |title=Verwirrung um Therapie von Tim K. – Eltern des Amokschützen dementieren Behandlung – Schütze spielte vor der Tat Killerspiel |access-date=19 March 2009 |date=11 March 2009 |publisher=news-times.de |language=de |archive-date=12 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120312004002/http://www.news-times.de/Artikelsenden/10581289/Aktuelle-Nachrichten/20107239 |url-status=dead}}

He had profiles at "MyVideo.de", Kwick.de and other websites.{{cite web |url=http://www.news24.com/News24/World/News/0,,2-10-1462_2485515,00.html |title=Teen 'played video games' |access-date=19 March 2009 |date=14 March 2009 |publisher=www.news24.com |archive-date=18 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090318015321/http://www.news24.com/News24/World/News/0,,2-10-1462_2485515,00.html |url-status=live }} He often played poker with his classmates in the "Cafe Tunix" after school hours in Waiblingen.{{cite web |url=http://www.bild.de/BILD/news/2009/03/13/winnenden/tim-kretschmer-letzter-tag/mathe-klausur-pizza-poker-letzter-tag-vor-amok-lauf.html |title=Tim Kretschmers letzter Tag (Tim Kretschmer's last day) |access-date=11 March 2009 |date=11 March 2009 |publisher=Bild |language=de |archive-date=15 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090315030910/http://www.bild.de/BILD/news/2009/03/13/winnenden/tim-kretschmer-letzter-tag/mathe-klausur-pizza-poker-letzter-tag-vor-amok-lauf.html |url-status=live }}

After inspection of his computer, officers found that Kretschmer was interested in sadomasochistic scenes where a man is bound and humiliated by women. He viewed such a movie the evening before his attacks. Kretschmer also researched previous mass shootings such as the Erfurt school massacre, the Emsdetten school shooting and the Columbine High School massacre.[https://www.sueddeutsche.de/panorama/der-attentaeter-von-winnenden-tim-brauchte-hilfe-1.32115 Tim brauchte Hilfe] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200406210140/https://www.sueddeutsche.de/panorama/der-attentaeter-von-winnenden-tim-brauchte-hilfe-1.32115 |date=6 April 2020 }}, Süddeutsche Zeitung, 9 September 2009. {{in lang|de}}

Kretschmer did not have a criminal record. The press reported that in 2008, Kretschmer had received treatment as an in-patient at the Weissenhoff Psychiatric Clinic near the town of Heilbronn. After being discharged, Kretschmer was supposed to continue his treatment as an out-patient in Winnenden, but ended his treatment.{{cite news |url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article5898272.ece |title=Teenage killer Tim Kretschmer had stopped treatment for depression |access-date=11 March 2009 |date=11 March 2009 |work=The Times |location=London |first1=Fran |last1=Yeoman |first2=David |last2=Charter |archive-date=14 August 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110814094731/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article5898272.ece |url-status=dead }}

According to police and clinic staff, he had been treated repeatedly for clinical depression on an out-patient basis in 2008. His family rejected these claims and maintained that he never received psychiatric treatment.{{Cite web |url=https://www.sueddeutsche.de/panorama/nach-amoklauf-von-winnenden-war-tim-k-in-therapie-1.388229 |title=War Tim K. in Therapie? |access-date=13 March 2009 |publisher=Süddeutsche Zeitung |date=14 March 2009 |language=de |archive-date=21 September 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100921003354/http://www.sueddeutsche.de/panorama/nach-amoklauf-von-winnenden-war-tim-k-in-therapie-1.388229 |url-status=live }} According to a psychiatric report prepared for the prosecutor's office, Kretschmer met five times with a therapist and talked about his growing anger and violent urges; the therapist informed Kretschmer's parents.

In a press conference on 12 March, police erroneously reported that Kretschmer had announced his killing spree several hours ahead of time on Krautchan. The next day, police determined that this message had not been written on Kretschmer's computer and was a forgery.{{cite web |url=http://www.rtl.de/rtlaktuell/rtl_aktuell_artikel.php?article=26422&pos=1 |title=Polizeipanne? Innenminister redet sich raus |access-date=23 March 2009 |publisher=RTL.de |date=13 March 2009 |language=de |archive-date=15 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090315034442/http://www.rtl.de/rtlaktuell/rtl_aktuell_artikel.php?article=26422&pos=1 |url-status=live }}

Three weeks before the shooting, Kretschmer had written a letter to his parents, saying that he was suffering and could not go on. In an interview in 2014, Kretschmer's parents stated that they had always loved their son and that they did not have an explanation for his actions. They have since changed their name and moved to a different city.

Police raided the Kretschmer family house at about 11:00 a.m. on the day of the shooting. Tim Kretschmer's father legally owned 15 guns as a member of a local marksmen club ("Schützenverein" in German).{{cite web |url=https://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5g-7Dbm7W0ADoXhfKS2O_sUrZu4NwD96S47T01 |title=Teen kills 15 in Germany before taking own life |last=Gera |first=Vanessa |publisher=Associated Press |access-date=12 March 2009 |archive-date=13 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090313060357/http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5g-7Dbm7W0ADoXhfKS2O_sUrZu4NwD96S47T01 |url-status=dead }} The Beretta handgun was found missing, along with several hundred rounds of ammunition.{{Cite web |url=http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,4088804,00.html |title=Teenage Gunman Killed by Police After German School Shooting |publisher=Deutsche Welle |date=11 March 2009 |access-date=11 March 2009 |archive-date=24 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121024081513/http://www.dw.de/dw/article/0,,4088804,00.html |url-status=live }} Fourteen of the guns were kept in a gun safe, while the Beretta had been kept unsecured in the bedroom.{{cite news |url=http://www.sueddeutsche.de/panorama/758/461384/text/ |title=Schwarz wie der Tod |access-date=11 March 2009 |date=11 March 2009 |publisher=sueddeutsche.de |language=de |archive-date=26 February 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100226061405/http://www.sueddeutsche.de/panorama/758/461384/text/ |url-status=live }}

Five days after the event, prosecutors initiated preliminary proceedings against the father for negligent homicide, since the gun had not been properly locked away as required by German law.{{cite news |url=http://www.bild.de/BILD/news/2009/03/16/amok-killer-tim-kretschmer/staatsanwaltschaft-leitet-ermittlungsverfahren-gegen-vater-ein.html |title=Staatsanwaltschaft ermittelt gegen Vater |access-date=16 March 2009 |date=16 March 2009 |publisher=Bild.de |language=de |archive-date=18 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090318002502/http://www.bild.de/BILD/news/2009/03/16/amok-killer-tim-kretschmer/staatsanwaltschaft-leitet-ermittlungsverfahren-gegen-vater-ein.html |url-status=live }} The police confiscated the 14 remaining guns. The father announced that he would voluntarily relinquish his gun ownership authorization.

In November 2009, the Public Prosecutor's Department in Stuttgart announced that the father had been indicted on charges of negligent homicide, bodily injury caused by negligence, and violation of the weapons law.{{Cite web |url=http://www.sueddeutsche.de/,ra4l1/panorama/532/495854/text/ |title=Tim K.s Vater angeklagt |date=27 November 2009 |work=sueddeutsche.de |language=de |access-date=27 November 2009 |archive-date=11 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240311075745/https://www.sueddeutsche.de/ |url-status=live }} On 10 February 2011, the state court in Stuttgart found the father guilty of involuntary manslaughter in 15 cases, bodily harm caused by negligence and the negligent abandonment of a weapon. The father received a suspended sentence of one year and nine months,{{Cite web |url=http://www.thelocal.de/society/20110210-33015.html |title=Winnenden father found guilty of manslaughter |date=10 February 2011 |work=thelocal.de |access-date=10 February 2011 |archive-date=19 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110719093627/http://www.thelocal.de/society/20110210-33015.html |url-status=live }} and appealed the verdict.{{cite news |title=Vater des Täters geht in Revision |newspaper=Focus |date=3 July 2011 |url=http://www.focus.de/panorama/welt/amoklauf-von-winnenden-vater-des-taeters-geht-in-revision_aid_642552.html |language=de |access-date=11 July 2011 |archive-date=7 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110707054342/http://www.focus.de/panorama/welt/amoklauf-von-winnenden-vater-des-taeters-geht-in-revision_aid_642552.html |url-status=live }} The appeals court handed out a suspended sentence of one year and six months in 2013.{{cite news |title=Das neue Leben der Eltern des Tim K. |newspaper=Die Welt |date=18 May 2014 |url=https://www.welt.de/vermischtes/article128124230/Das-neue-Leben-der-Eltern-des-Tim-K.html |language=de |access-date=12 March 2017 |archive-date=10 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210510200834/https://www.welt.de/vermischtes/article128124230/Das-neue-Leben-der-Eltern-des-Tim-K.html |url-status=live }}

File:The school building of Winnenden school shooting.JPG

File:Winnenden 2009 -Albertville-Realschule- by-RaBoe 001.jpg

German President Horst Köhler said he was "appalled and saddened" by the killings, and he and his wife offered condolences to the victims, their families, and friends.{{cite news |date=11 March 2009 |title=POLITICAL REACTIONS: Merkel 'Deeply Shaken' By School Shootings |url=http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,612683,00.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090313183256/http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,612683,00.html |archive-date=13 March 2009 |access-date=11 March 2009 |work=Der Spiegel}} Chancellor Angela Merkel described the attack as an "incomprehensible" and "appalling" crime, calling it a day of mourning for all of Germany. Baden-Württemberg Minister-President Günther Oettinger, who traveled to the scene by helicopter, described the event as a "horrible and in no way explainable crime". The European Parliament observed a minute of silence in honor of the victims.

An ecumenical church service was held in Winnenden the evening of the shooting, with Protestant, Catholic and even Muslim clerics officiating. All German flags were flown on half-staff until 13 March in memory of the victims.{{cite web |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-03/11/content_10994626.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090314035317/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-03/11/content_10994626.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=14 March 2009 |title=School shooting shocks Germany, chancellor appalled |author=Yan |date=11 March 2009 |publisher=Xinhuanet |access-date=12 March 2009}}

In the days following the event, some politicians called for legal consequences, including a total prohibition of all shooting video games, better monitoring of gun club members, a directive to have all ammunition deposited with police and a provision to have gun club members store their weapons at the club house. Others dismissed such demands as "placebos".{{cite news |url=http://www.spiegel.de/politik/deutschland/0,1518,613050,00.html |title=CSU will Killerspiel-Verbot, SPD Kontrolle über Schützenvereine |work=Der Spiegel |date=13 March 2009 |language=de |access-date=13 March 2009 |archive-date=14 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090314020419/http://www.spiegel.de/politik/deutschland/0,1518,613050,00.html |url-status=live }}

The families of five victims wrote an open letter to Chancellor Angela Merkel, President Horst Köhler and Baden-Württemberg Minister President Günther Oettinger with demands for consequences. They called for a prohibition on youths' access to guns in gun clubs, less violence on TV and a prohibition of violent video games. They also called for reporting of these incidents without highlighting the perpetrator, so as to minimise the chance of copycats.{{cite web |url=http://www.sueddeutsche.de/,tt4l1/panorama/895/462513/text/ |title=Opferfamilien fordern Killerspiel-Verbot |publisher=sueddeutsche.de |date=21 March 2009 |language=de |access-date=21 March 2009 |archive-date=18 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191218012108/http://www.sueddeutsche.de/,tt4l1/panorama/895/462513/text/ |url-status=live }}{{cite news |url=https://www.welt.de/wams_print/article3420239/Winnenden-Eine-Tat-aus-der-man-nicht-klug-werden-kann.html |title=Winnenden: Eine Tat, aus der man nicht klug werden kann |publisher=www.welt.de |date=21 March 2009 |language=de |access-date=24 March 2009 |newspaper=Die Welt |last1=Kamann |first1=Matthias |archive-date=17 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121017002954/http://www.welt.de/wams_print/article3420239/Winnenden-Eine-Tat-aus-der-man-nicht-klug-werden-kann.html |url-status=live }}

The German parliament passed legislation in June 2009 to improve handgun security with an electronic nationwide weapons registry, increased age limitations for large-calibre weapons and unannounced, random inspections in gun-owner homes to ensure requirements for locked gun storage were met. Obligatory biometric security systems should be introduced once technically feasible.

In May 2009, Germany announced plans to ban games such as paintball on the grounds that they "trivialise and encourage violence".{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/8041320.stm |work=BBC News |title=Germany moves to outlaw paintball |date=9 May 2009 |access-date=9 May 2009 |archive-date=14 May 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090514020904/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/8041320.stm |url-status=live }}{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/germany/5291891/Germany-to-ban-paintball-in-wake-of-high-school-shooting.html |work=The Daily Telegraph |location=London |title=Germany to ban paintball in wake of high school shooting |date=7 May 2009 |access-date=2 April 2018 |archive-date=11 May 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090511071321/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/germany/5291891/Germany-to-ban-paintball-in-wake-of-high-school-shooting.html |url-status=live }} However, the legislature did not ban these kind of games, did not limit the number of guns owned and did not pass a requirement to store guns with shooting clubs or restrictions regarding ammunition storage in private households.{{cite web |url=http://www.morgenpost.de/politik/article1115547/Bundestag_billigt_verschaerftes_Waffenrecht.html |title=Bundestag billigt verschärftes Waffenrecht |publisher=Berliner Morgenpost |date=18 June 2009 |language=de |access-date=23 June 2009 |archive-date=14 February 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120214212120/http://www.morgenpost.de/politik/article1115547/Bundestag_billigt_verschaerftes_Waffenrecht.html |url-status=live }}

• List of rampage killers (school massacres)
• List of school attacks in Germany
• Emsdetten school shooting
• 2016 Munich shooting
• List of attacks related to secondary schools
• Thrill killing

{{reflist|colwidth=30em}}

• Schober, Hardy: Mein Sonnenkind: Wie ich meine Tochter beim Amoklauf in Winnenden verlor und nun gegen die Waffenlobby kämpfe. Südwest Verlag, München 2012, {{ISBN|978-3-517-08734-4}}.
• Stocker, Johannes: Elf Tage im März: Als Einsatzleiter in Winnenden. Scm Hänssler, 2012, {{ISBN|978-3-7751-5404-8}}.

{{Commons category|Winnenden school shooting}}

• [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/7938790.stm Footage of the gunman at the car showroom from the BBC website]
• [http://www.stuttgart-journal.de/tp/pool/nachrichten-stuttgart/sj/2009/03/12/news/amoklauf-von-winnenden-polizei-konstruiert-genauen-tathergang/ Official police report / Tathergang des Amoklauf] {{in lang|de}}

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