Supreme Court: Finnish police's forcible removals of hijabs from women was lawful

Finland's Supreme Court has confirmed the lawfulness of police officers forcibly removing hijab headscarves from two female asylum seekers in 2017. The ruling, which sets a potential precedent for future cases, was made following a long-running dispute at a Hämeenlinna police station. The women refused to remove their head coverings citing religious beliefs, but the police were required to photograph them without the scarves.

Police guidelines stated that if a person is wearing a headscarf or veil related to their religious beliefs, photos must be taken with and without the covering. Consequently, an inspector ordered his officers to remove the women's scarves, resulting in assault and breach of duty charges against seven defendants. The Kanta-Häme District Court dismissed the charges in 2022, and the appeals court upheld the decision in 2024.

The Supreme Court ruled that the officers had no reason not to follow the Finnish Police Board's policy at the time and used force as a last resort only if advice, requests, and orders had failed.