Initiative
Justice for Lorenz
19.04.2026 - One year without Lorenz
Ein Jahr ohne Lorenz
19.04.2026 – 14 Uhr
Pferdemarkt Oldenburg
It has now been almost a year since Lorenz was shot dead by police in the middle of Oldenburg city center on the night of Easter Sunday, April 20, 2025. Lorenz was hit by four shots, three of them from behind. Lorenz died from his injuries at the age of 21.
We commemorate and protest!
You can find the full text of the call to demonstration and material to share here.
No Justice – No Peace!
Long Live Lorenz!
Initiative Gerechtigkeit für Lorenz
On the night of Easter Sunday 2025, Lorenz was shot dead by police in the city center of Oldenburg. Lorenz was hit by four shots - three of them from behind. Lorenz was only 21 years old. Since then, there have been protests against racist police violence in Oldenburg and throughout Germany. We and many others are sad, horrified and angry about Lorenz's far too early violent death and the racist atmosphere in Germany.
That is why we as the “Justice for Lorenz” initiative are campaigning for a comprehensive and independent investigation into the night of the crime and for consequences. The “Justice for Lorenz” initiative is an association of relatives, friends, individuals in solidarity, activists from United Against Racism Oldenburg and counselors from the nationwide online counseling Pena.ger e.V.
Lorenz's death is not an exceptional case
Lorenz's death is not an exceptional case. The German police are structurally racist. Time and time again, police operations end fatally when black and marginalized people are involved. This was also evident near Oldenburg in recent years with the death of the Yazidi Qosay Khalaf in Delmenhorst in 2021 and the killing by police gunfire of the refugee Lamin Touray in Nienburg in 2024. For an accurate analysis of the problem, it is therefore important for us to emphasize the context of the racist German dominance society despite our focus on Lorenz.
The “Death in Custody” campaign has counted 264 deaths of Black people, People of Color (PoC) and people affected by racism in custody or due to fatal police violence since 19901.
According to the count and documentation by “Civil Rights & Police/CILIP, more people were shot dead by the police in Germany in 2024 than in any other year documented by them since 1976. And even in 2025 (as of May 6, 2025), according to their count, 10 people have already been shot dead by the police in Germany2.
Remembering Lorenz
It is also very important for us to emphasize something very fundamental: Lorenz was a human being.
Lorenz was a son - a brother - a friend - a child of the city of Oldenburg - a part of our community. Many people knew, liked and loved Lorenz and miss him bitterly. We will forever say his name, remember him and make sure that the world does not forget him.
Especially in light of the racist and inhuman slander that Lorenz was subjected to in parts of the press and in comment sections after his death,3we want to remember Lorenz as a loved one who was violently taken from life.
Seit seinem Tod wurde die Stelle in der Oldenburger Innenstadt von Tausenden Menschen besucht und gewürdigt. Viele legten dort Blumen, Kerzen oder andere Symbole der trauernden Erinnerung ab. Zehntausende demonstrierten bereits in Oldenburg aber auch ganz Deutschland für Lorenz und alle Menschen, die von der Polizei Rassismus und Gewalt erfuhren und erfahren. Das macht uns Mut und Hoffnung in unserem gemeinsamen Kampf für Gerechtigkeit für Lorenz!
Our demands
- a gapless investigation - independent and complete!
- Use of bodycams during police operations!
- Consequences in the event of misconduct and disproportionate action by the police!
- Independent complaints bodies, external monitoring and structural transparency!
- Criticism of racism mandatory in basic and further training for police, judiciary & administration!
- Measures against institutional racism in state structures!
- Making the experiences of black, indigenous and people of color (BIPoC) and refugees visible in the political public sphere!
- Protective measures for marginalized groups!
- Recognition and promotion of community-based protective measures for Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPoC) and refugees in politics & the public!
Current legal status
On the 5th of November 2025 the public prosecutor's office Oldenburg announced4that it will press charges against the police officer who shot Lorenz for negligent homicide. Now the Oldenburg Regional Court must decide in “interim proceedings” whether the lawsuit will be admitted and a main trial opened.
We criticize the grounds for the charges and demand a charge of manslaughter. In our opinion, multiple shots fired from behind are not an accident, but an expression of lethal police violence.
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Contact
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