State Protection in Cases of Domestic Violence - An Examination of the Waiver of Police Intervention According to § 34a PolG NRW
PhD student: Marie Schrenk, M.Iur.
About one in four women in Germany experiences sexual or physical violence by her current or former partner at least once in her live. The expulsion from the home pursuant to Section 34a of the Police Act (PolG) is - in addition to the Federal Violence Protection Act - a significant means of combating domestic violence in North Rhine-Westphalia. The expulsion of the predator from the apartment by the police is intended to protect the life, physical integrity, and freedom of the person at risk.
However, police practice shows that in some cases the person to be protected can be quite opposed to the measures taken by the police. The dissertation therefore addresses the question of the extent to which the person at risk can waive the protection, afforded by the housing order.
First, the constitutional admissibility of the waiver of fundamental rights and, in particular, of the waiver of state duties to protect, as well as the prerequisites of such a waiver, are examined. The main part of the dissertation is devoted to the question of whether a waiver in cases of housing expulsion preserves the constitutional limits of the waiver of fundamental rights. Of particular importance are cases in which minors are involved either as victims or as observers.
Furthermore, it is considered whether the requirements to be met by a waiver are met in cases of domestic violence. The focus is on the possibility of voluntary waiver by victims of domestic violence. The voluntary nature of waivers is examined using. current psychological research findings. Also discussed will be the constitutional interpretation of § 34a PolG NRW and the effects of a waiver on any criminal consent.