Prosecutorial Control of Searches Conducted in Urgent Cases (an Analysis Based on Court File Research)
Czasopismo Prawa Karnego i Nauk Penalnych Rok XXVII: 2023, numer 2
Journal of Criminal Law and Penal Studies Volume XXVII: 2023, No. 2
Michał Wojciech Basa - mgr, Katedra Postępowania Karnego, Uniwersytet Wrocławski, asesor sądowy w Sądzie Rejonowym dla Wrocławia – Śródmieścia we Wrocławiu / M.A., Chair of Criminal Procedure, University of Wrocław, assistant judge in District Court for Wrocław-Śródmieście; ORCID: 0000-0002-5120-5693; e-mail: michal.basa@uwr.edu.pl.
Karol Mariusz Jarząbek - mgr, Katedra Postępowania Karnego, Uniwersytet Wrocławski, asesor sądowy w Sądzie Rejonowym w Lwówku Śląskim / M.A., Chair of Criminal Procedure, University of Wrocław, assistant judge in District Court in Lwówek Śląski; ORCID: 0000-0003-3754-3124; e-mail: karol.jarzabek@uwr.edu.pl.
Full text in PDF (open access)
Keywords
Search conducted in urgent case, prosecutorial control of search conducted in urgent case, search conducted in non–warrant mode, demand for prosecutor’s approval of search conducted in non–warrant mode, delusion of existence of prosecutorial control of search conducted in urgent case
Summary
The article is a result of the research grant “Justified search – between the effectiveness of prosecution and the rights of the individual” financed by the National Science Center under the leadership of Professor Karolina Kremens (No. 2018/30/E/HS5/00338). The conclusions of the study are based on the case file research conducted in the years 2020–2021 concerning the crimes of possession of drugs, theft, and burglary. The research was conducted in district courts of four appeal districts: Wrocław, Łódź, Gdańsk, and Lublin. 853 cases were investigated, in which a total of 1340 searches were found. The article discusses issues related to the prosecutor’s control of the legality, legitimacy,and correctness of a search carried out in an urgent case. In the article, the authors, referring to the concept of conditionally legal activities, approve the view expressed in the legal doctrine that a search carried out in urgent cases becomes legal only when at least the first level of control appointed by the legislator passes positively. The authors point out that the quality of prosecutorial control of searches conducted without the prosecutor’s prior decision, due to the practical universality of this mode of conducting searches (97.7% of cases), is of key importance for assessing the degree of respect for the rights of individuals in the criminal process. In the article, the correctness of prosecutorial supervision of searches conducted without prior notice is analyzed at the level of the method of documentation of the search, the practice of submitting applications by police officers for approval of search activities, as well as the analysis of the justifications of prosecutorial decisions on approvals. The data collected in the course of the study were subjected to both quantitative and qualitative analysis. The analysis of these data led the authors to believe that as much as 94% of the justifications analyzed, i.e. 1087 out of 1158 examined decisions, did not meet the requirements provided by the Code of Criminal Procedure for the motivational part of the decision, which, in combination with the small percentage of applications for approval of the search, as well as the low quality of prosecutorial justifications, allowed to demonstrate the thesis that the prosecutor’s control of activities carried out under Article 220 § 3 of the Code of Criminal Procedure does not function.
Bibliography
Gudowski J., Rzucidło I., Funkcje uzasadnienia, w: Uzasadnienie orzeczenia sądowego, red. I. Rzucidło, LEX/el. 2020.
Jasiński W., Nielegalnie uzyskane dowody w procesie karnym. W poszukiwaniu optymalnego rozwiązania, Warszawa 2019.
Koper R., Przeszukanie w wypadkach niecierpiących zwłoki, „Prokuratura i Prawo” 2014, nr 11–12.
Kremens K., Przeszukanie, w: System prawa karnego procesowego. Tom VIII. Dowody, cz. 2, red. J. Skorupka, Warszawa 2019.
Sakowicz A., Przeszukanie mieszkania a prawa do poszanowania prywatności jednostki. Uwagi na marginesie przepisów Konstytucji RP oraz umów międzynarodowych,w: Teoretyczne i praktyczne problemy współczesnego prawa karnego. Księga jubileuszowa dedykowana Profesorowi Tadeuszowi Bojarskiemu,red. A. Michalska-Warias, I. Nowikowski, J. Piórkowska-Flieger, Lublin 2011.
Skorupka J., Czynności legalne warunkowo w postępowaniu karnym, „Prokuratura i Prawo” 2015, nr 1–2.
Waltoś S., Proces Karny. Zarys Systemu, Warszawa 2009.
