Levi must have killed himself: the height of the handrail. This, as building regulations required, was 3’2″ (96.5 cm).
Present building regulations in Europe require that handrail height be between 90 and 100 cm. In the US, handrail height is given as between 34 and 38 inches (86 to 97 cm). Levi was a small man (5’5″), hence the rail was proportionally high for him, well over half his height. Indeed, a handrail at navel height is a high handrail. Readers wishing to experiment without anxiety can try such a rail at ground level. They will find, as I did, that one has to climb to get to the other side. It is impossible to “fall” over it.
I call bullshit. It is easy to fall over something at navel height. I think we should kill sociologists until this is settled.