> Only when threatened and self-defense has to be proportionate. If someone attacks you with a knife you would not be allowed to defend yourself with a firearm if you had one.

Being attacked with a knife means your life is being threatened and using a firearm would be legal even in Germany. The response has to be proportionate to the threat on life or limb not the size of the weapon.

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weinzierl 11 hours ago | parent | next [-]

The knife vs gun is literally the example from legal education to teach that §32 StGB requires the mildest means available in the concrete situation.

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bulbar 11 hours ago | parent [-]

Your are not arguing against the parent comment, right?

Because when somebody attacks you with a knife, drawing a gun oftentimes will not even be an effective defense. But if that is all that's available to you, it's only reasonable to give it a try. You should shoot multiple times or empty the whole magazine though and yes, that's generally justified by the law if that's what it takes to stop the attack.

The exact thing has happened to police man and woman and yes, they get trained to shoot multiple times to defend themselves. Was an outcry in media a few times because people don't understand the situation those people were put into.

	▲	weinzierl 4 hours ago \| parent [-]
		I'm saying that when you use a gun against an attacker with a knife you will end up before a judge as the defendant and not as the victim. The court will decide if using the gun in this specific case was necessary (notwendig) and appropriate (geboten). Only if it was both will you go unpunished.

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bulbar 11 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

> The response has to be proportionate to the threat

No, not even that, at least not in general. For example, it could be well within your rights to hit somebody who keeps insulting you.

And yes, not getting insulted is a protected right in Germany that you generally lawfully defendable under the "Notwehr" laws.

Wikipedia mentions more example of what you are generally allowed to protect:

> Das unberechtigte Anfertigen einer Fotoaufnahme stellt einen Angriff auf das Recht am eigenen Bild dar.[10] Das Anrauchen einer Person kann einen Angriff auf deren Ehre und Gesundheit darstellen.

Translation:

> Taking a photograph without authorization constitutes an infringement of the right to one's own image.[10] Exposed to secondhand smoke can constitute an infringement of a person's honor and health.

Will be easy enough to find more example if your are not satisfied with Wikipedia.

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weinzierl 11 hours ago | parent [-]

Yes, find an example that proofs that "not getting insulted is a protected right in Germany that you generally lawfully defendable under the "Notwehr" laws.", as you claim.

Neither of your sources supports "you may hit someone who keeps insulting you.". If you had linked the original sources, it would have been obvious that the examples are taken out of context.

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bulbar 10 hours ago | parent [-]

Support for the general argument: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Notwehr_(Deutschland)

> Bereits der Diebstahl mittelwertiger Gegenstände darf nach herrschender Meinung jedoch auch mit einer tödlichen Abwehrhandlung vereitelt werden, sollten mildere Mittel (wie Warnschüsse oder Schüsse auf die Beine) nicht zum Erfolg geführt haben bzw. nicht zur Verfügung stehen.[73][55][56]

> However, according to prevailing opinion, even the theft of items of moderate value may be thwarted by lethal self-defense if less severe measures (such as warning shots or shots aimed at the legs) have failed or are not available.[73][55][56]

More specifically, a teacher slapping a child to defend against six year old children: https://www.lawblog.de/archives/2016/09/08/richter-billigen-... https://famos.jura.uni-wuerzburg.de/wp-content/uploads/2017/...

He was also hit by the six year olds, but the court explicitly mentions the attack on his honor as well as foundation for their judgement.

Slapping the child was deemed to be the mildest mean for defence and therefore lawful.

Just to iterate on the first point, even theft of values starting as low as 100 Euro could justify lethal force. Knowing that honor is a protected right, it should not be surprising that hitting somebody can be justified when one get heavily and continuously insulted.

	▲	weinzierl 5 hours ago \| parent [-]
		You are shifting goalposts. Your claims were that "not getting insulted is a protected right in Germany that you generally lawfully defendable under the "Notwehr" laws." and that "you may hit someone who keeps insulting you.". Both are false.