Poland's Constitutional Tribunal files complaint against prosecutor, police over assembly incident

Poland's Constitutional Tribunal (TK) has lodged a formal complaint against prosecutors and police officers, accusing them of exceeding their authority and attempting to obstruct the court's functions. The complaint targets individuals involved in an incident that occurred during a planned assembly of TK judges on July 14.

The tribunal stated that the intervention, which involved a prosecutor and seven police officers entering the TK building, was an attempt to "disrupt the proceedings" and create a "chilling effect" on the court. The TK asserts that the prosecutor, Andrzej Piaseczny, wrongly assessed the situation as a crime when individuals appointed by the Sejm (parliament) were denied entry.

The incident occurred when the TK's General Assembly of Judges was scheduled to discuss the court's budget for the upcoming year. The assembly was ultimately disrupted when two judges, Magdalena Bentkowska and Dariusz Szostek, who were among six individuals elected by the Sejm in March, left the session, breaking the quorum. The remaining four elected individuals, Krystian Markiewicz, Marcin Dziurda, Maciej Taborowski, and Anna Korwin-Piotrowska, were initially invited to attend as guests, not as judges.

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The prosecutor leading it, Andrzej Piaseczny, formulated a categorical assessment of a crime involving the non-admission to the Tribunal building of individuals elected by the Sejm to the positions of TK judges, although such an event did not take place.

However, Dziurda and Markiewicz were subsequently denied entry to the building. In response, they called the police, leading to the arrival of a prosecutor from the National Prosecutor's Office. Markiewicz stated that he was prevented from entering the building, emphasizing that participation in the General Assembly is a duty for every TK judge.

The TK's complaint aims to clarify why the prosecutor and police appeared at the tribunal during the assembly, the nature of the procedural action they intended to conduct, and who planned it. The tribunal seeks to determine if the intervention was intended to pressure the TK's President into changing a decision regarding who was authorized to participate in the assembly.

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If I was prevented from entering the Tribunal building in connection with the Assembly, and – as I emphasize – every TK judge has an obligation to participate in the General Assembly.