Rights to defense and criminal liability under art. 233§1a k.k. – observations through the prism of selected decisions of courts of first and second instance

Abstract

The article presents the practice of law enforcement authorities and courts in the interpretation and application of Art. 233 § 1a k.k. The article points to discrepancies in the scope of the rights of defense following the 2016 amendment. What is more important, the work emphasises that this heterogeneity translates into relativism of criminal liability according to the views of a particular authority on the understanding of Art. 233 § 1a of the k.k. Law enforcement authorities, as well as courts on the same appeal, often present different view of the issue. The work also draws attention to the increasing phenomenon of violations of Art. 313 k.p.k., in connection with the content of Art. 233 § 1a k.k., which in some cases becomes an instrument for verifying the truthfulness of suspects questioned as witnesses. The article also draws attention to the increase in criminalisation of secondary criminal liability under Art. 233 § 1a k.k., for the offence originally committed.