Woman stripped by police in Switzerland wins again in Federal Court

Heidi Joos, a resident of the Swiss city of Luzern and former cantonal council member, has gained another upper hand in her long legal battle following an incident during the Corona pandemic. The Swiss Federal Court criticized the police procedures applied against Joos, who was temporarily detained in May 2020 at the Luzern train station square. The court ruled that forcing her to strip completely after her detention and spending the night in a police cell was a disproportionate intervention. This situation was explicitly described as "degrading treatment" by Switzerland's highest court. With the ruling, it was ordered that the female victim be compensated with 1000 Swiss Francs for what she experienced.

The background of the incident dates back to a period when pandemic restrictions were strictly enforced. At that time, Joos, who was 65 years old, was stopped by the police while participating in an unauthorized protest at the Luzern train station square. According to authorities, Joos was preventatively detained because she attempted to evade police control and bit a police officer's arm while being transferred to the police station. At the police station, a full strip search was conducted by two female police officers, removing all of her clothes. According to official statements, it was claimed that during this search, only half of Joos's body was left covered and no physical contact occurred.

In its decision dated 26 May 2026, the Federal Court emphasized that the strip search in question was completely disproportionate and violated laws prohibiting degrading treatment. The high court explicitly condemned this procedure, stating that Joos's personal freedom and private life were infringed upon. The court stated that a strip search could be considered justified if there was a suspicion of a dangerous object being concealed, but in this incident, there was no concrete evidence of such suspicion. Furthermore, it was stated that keeping her in custody for more than 20 hours, even though it was clear that her interrogation would not take place until the next day, was an unnecessary restriction of freedom. The court noted that releasing the suspect and summoning her for questioning later would have been a much more appropriate method.

Following the announcement of the court's decision, Heidi Joos expressed her satisfaction with her legal victory. She said she felt deep happiness that Switzerland's highest judicial body had officially recognized these severe fundamental rights violations. However, the former council member added that she was strongly disturbed by the content of the official statement sent to the press by the court regarding the matter. Joos argued that the court's decision almost entirely accepted the police's one-sided narrative of the incident and reflected only a very small part of what happened. She emphasized that this situation created a false perception, as if she had displayed an aggressive and rebellious attitude from the very beginning, stating that this unfair image did not reflect the truth.

While recounting the events from her own perspective, Joos claimed that she displayed a highly peaceful and cooperative attitude without any malicious intent in the train station square. She stated that she only expressed her desire not to leave a public space, but followed a police officer to retrieve her belongings after the officer forcefully took her phone from her hand. According to Joos, this action was later distorted and portrayed as an attempt to evade police control. Joos, who stated that she was subsequently pressed against a wall, handcuffed, and forced into a police vehicle, expressed that she only bit the police officer while trying to defend herself against excessive physical interventions after being handcuffed. This years-long legal battle stands out as a highly remarkable case where human rights and the limits of police authority are debated.