The Rise of Police Stops as a Public Issue in Twenty-First Century Poland

The chapter describes the history and legal framework of the Police stops in Poland, as well as the current state of public discussion on this topic. Long absent from the media and political debate, within the last 5 years Police stops have gained increasing interest due to some watershed events, connected with widely commented cases of Police malpractice (Igor Stachowiak’s case) and—above all—freedom of assembly and directing practice of mass ID checks against peaceful protesters. The discussed problems pertain mostly to the boundaries of Police powers to conduct ID checks: whether this power may be enforced without a particular reason and how to delimit an ID check from an arrest. The main participants to the debate on Police stops in Poland are NGOs and Ombudsman; the government and its agencies have mostly engaged so far by supporting the status quo. The fact that Police stops have been noticed by the public opinion opens up prospects for practice or legislative changes and research activity in the future.