The Berlin police have warned their officers to be careful and cautious in private chats and chat groups. Disrespectful statements, even if they are meant jokingly, could lead to problems with the employer or even be punishable, the police wrote in an “employee information sheet on the use of private messenger services”. “The exchange in chat groups does not take place in a legal vacuum.” According to the police, the circular email comes from 29. December. The “Tagesspiegel” reported about it on Tuesday.

The police referred to the Civil Service Status Act, Paragraph 34, in which it says about civil servants: “Your behavior inside and outside the service must do justice to the respect and trust that your profession requires.” Therefore, individual distancing from problematic statements in group chats is difficult. “Silence can be interpreted as consent.” Statements made by individuals could affect all chat participants. In addition, a chat history could easily get to the public, “which can damage both the reputation of individuals and the entire Berlin police force”.

No baseless letter In the past few years several problematic incidents of chatting police officers became known. Since October a chat group of police officers with 26 members has been investigated because, according to the public prosecutor’s office, several participants had exchanged messages with racist content or swastikas.

The police management has also wanted to monitor private profiles and publications by police officers on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter for a long time. It’s about financial income, but also about the form of the performances. Some younger police officers post photos of themselves on Instagram. Pictures show her alone or with colleagues in uniform, other photos show her in the gym, with a bare torso or in a bikini. Some have several thousand followers, one policewoman reaches tens of thousands of fans with her numerous photos.

( emw)