Charges brought against 17-year-old following knife attack on mayor in Herdecke
The adoptive daughter of SPD mayor Iris Stalzer has been charged with grievous bodily harm. The attack occurred on 7 October 2025 at the family home in Herdecke.
Adoptive daughter charged: knife attack on Herdecke mayor Stalzer
Around eight months after the knife attack on Herdecke SPD mayor Iris Stalzer, charges have been brought against her 17-year-old adoptive daughter. This is reported by the investigating senior public prosecutor from Hagen, Bernd Haldorn, and the teenager's defence counsel, Andreas Trode, according to the German Press Agency and the Süddeutscher Zeitung.
The prosecution accuses the 17-year-old of grievous bodily harm. She is said to have inflicted multiple stab wounds on her mother with two different knives on 7 October 2025 in their shared home. Furthermore, she is alleged to have struck an object against Stalzer's head, causing the politician to suffer a fractured nasal bone.
The district court in Hagen is now reviewing whether to admit the charges. Due to the age of the accused, any trial would be held in closed session, according to senior public prosecutor Haldorn. No intention to kill has been established. It has also been confirmed that the 17-year-old herself called the emergency services.
The accused has made no statement on the matter so far. Regarding a possible motive, Haldorn declined to comment, citing the young age of the accused. Investigations against the 17-year-old's brother have been dropped, as the prosecution found he was not involved in the act.
Defence counsel Trode stated to the press agency that his client was temporarily placed in a psychiatric facility following the attack and was later assessed by an expert as criminally responsible. Her current whereabouts are not being disclosed for her own protection. The fact that the charge is for grievous bodily harm rather than attempted manslaughter clearly demonstrates the absence of an intention to kill, Trode said.
According to police, the family had experienced conflict for some time. Mother and children are said to have made mutual accusations of domestic violence.
Iris Stalzer, 58, recovered physically quickly from her injuries. In early November 2025 she was sworn in as mayor of Herdecke — just four weeks after the attack, when many still had images of the rescue helicopter at the crime scene fresh in their minds. In her inaugural address, Stalzer described 7 October as a "day of failure" and "day of vulnerability", but emphasised her "strength" and her "reliability".
Her early assumption of office was not uncontroversial. Local FDP leader Jürgen A. Weber warned that Stalzer should put her position on hold until the legal matter was clarified. The legal expert had won the mayoral run-off ballot at the end of September in the town of around 23,000 inhabitants in the south-eastern Ruhr region with 52.2 per cent of the vote.
Source: Süddeutsche Zeitung