Police officers in North Rhine-Westphalia must be at least 1.63 meters tall. The upper administrative Court in Münster rejected actions of three women against ir rejection of police service on basis of ir height in a basic decision (AZ.: 6 A 2014/17, 6 a 2015/17 and 6 a 2016/17, not yet legally valid).
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Almost a year ago, Düsseldorf Administrative Court had decided against minimum size. Many similar complaints are still pending in administrative courts of country. The three current applicants are 1.61 and 1.62 meters in size. You now need to cancel your already started training to police officers. The provisional admission, subject to country’s reservation, had already been taken by women by court decision.
Controversial justification of police
The police in NRW justified minimum size by ensuring that especially small people were less capable than larger and could not provide sufficient security. For example, police in front of judges of Upper administrative Court have argued that small police officers would have to climb a chair in order to look at cupboards when searching for housing, Süddeutsche Zeitung reported. She called for an internal police paper. It is also case that small people could stumble over fire blanket when trying to erase a burning person.
These reasons were controversial, SZ wrote. She quoted police researcher Rafael Behr from Hamburg Academy of Police as saying: “I am astonished by self-evidentness of which re is strictly biological and, in part, discriminatory arguments as to why large people are superior to smaller ones.” The police simply do not want to hire small people and try to justify it with seemingly rational arguments.
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Neverless, according to SZ, police report says: “In area of a height of 162.9 cm to 160 cm, re are already limitations which do not intolerable risks for long-term task perception on one hand, as well as dangers for life and limb of Police officers on or hand. “
Different rules in countries
In Germany re are different rules in different federal states. According to SZ, police officers in Hamburg may be about three centimeters smaller than ir colleagues in NRW. In Bavaria, applicants below a minimum size of 1.65 meters could also be hired if y were physically fit enough.
Last October, European Court of Justice also ruled on subject. The judges ruled that requirement of a uniform minimum size for male and female police officers was discriminatory. Only under very strict conditions should an exception be made.
