Politicians address security concerns in wake of brutal attack on students

A day after the tragedy in Žďár nad Sázavou, where a 26-year old woman attacked students in a local secondary school, leaving one dead and three others injured, politicians are questioning how it is possible that the attacker, who was previously involved in a stabbing incident at a different school, was released from a mental hospital on the basis of a single recommendation.

Photo: CTK

The town of Žďár nad Sázavou in the Vysočina region is slowly recovering from shock following the brutal attack on students in the Trade and Services Secondary School on Tuesday. A woman suffering from schizophrenia entered the school in the early morning, attacked a randomly chosen female student and killed a 16-year-old boy, who came to her aid. Although there is a chip-based door entry system, the perpetrator managed to slip in unnoticed with a group of students.

Education Minister Marcel Chládek said the ministry had already sent experts to examine the security measures in the school:

“Providing adequate security is the responsibility of school headmasters. After this incident we have released a set of recommendations to all headmasters with regard to the kind of security measures that should be in place. In some cases, schools are well protected but in others, strangers can easily enter the buildings. Though I have to say that security can never be guaranteed 100 percent.”

Marcel Chládek, photo: Filip Jandourek

Mr Chládek added that it was now important to address the question of why a person who suffered from a mental illness and who had attacked a child in the past had been left to walk freely around. Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka on Tuesday voiced the same concern:

“I was shocked to find out that the attacker was the same woman who was involved in the incident in the Havířov primary school. We need to examine the procedure of the court that approved her release and review the expert opinions.”

The woman was released from a mental hospital in Opava, north Moravia, on the basis of a single expert opinion, provided by the doctors who treated her. The Opava District Court consequently approved her release, without seeking a second opinion. Jaroslav Khul is the deputy chairman at the Opava District Court:

“The recommendation to release the patient was based on the claim that the patient was cooperative and did not show signs of instability. She was undergoing group therapy, understood her illness and expressed regret over what she had done. The psychiatric hospital requested a change to outpatient treatment. In case she did not turn up for regular check-ups, her doctor was bound to inform the court immediately.”

Photo: CTK

The head of the mental hospital in Opava, which initiated the woman’s release, resigned from his post on Wednesday, following a meeting with Health Minister Svatopluk Němeček. The ministry will now set up an expert group to propose measures that would lead to changes in the system and prevent similar incidents from taking place in the future.