The indictment in the trial, which opened in the Kanta-Häme District Court on Wednesday, concerns incidents in May 2017 in the city of Hämeenlinna when women applying for asylum refused to remove their hijabs for police registration photos. Police and security guards then removed the women's scarves by force.
The police officers and guards involved are facing charges of assault, incitement to assault and breach of duty.
Seven individuals have been charged, including the inspector who ordered the removal of the scarves.
According to the indictment, an inspector of the Häme Police Department ordered his subordinates to remove the women's scarves, by force if necessary. He is charged with breach of duty and two counts of incitement to assault.
According to the prosecutor, the women resisted, and the accused pushed them against a wall, finally removing their scarves before taking photographs.
The women suffered injuries, leading to headaches, soreness and chafing on parts of their bodies.
The prosecution argues that the actions of the police and guards were a violation of basic human rights.
Defendants deny criminal actions
The defendants in the case deny having committed the offenses.
According to the defence, the inspector's order to his subordinates to remove the women's scarves was in accordance with instructions of the National Police Board.
"Police are not in the habit of questioning the legal interpretations included in the instructions issued and delivered by the National Police Board," the inspector's attorneys stated in a written filing.
According to that statement, the inspector ordered that the registration photos be taken without scarves and that the photos be taken by a female police officer. According to the defence, an essential point is that no instructions to police mandate that scarves worn for religious purposes should be allowed to be worn for registration photos.
The court will announce its verdict on the case during the autumn.