I place quotes over the phrase "officers of the law" not because of my lack of respect for the police but because the treatment of the priest in the democratic country leaves a lot to be desired. I would like to use the treatment of suspects in the United States as an example of how those arrested should be treated.
Yes, I am aware that recently, both Canada and the United Kingdom had similar cases of mistreatment of Christian clergy. However, these should be viewed as unfortunate incidents and not a new standard.
I have never heard of a 15-hour interrogation of the suspect of any crime here in the US, even murder or assassination attempt, especially without legal representation. Maybe I am wrong or just naive, but as far as I know, it is simply not allowed, but apparently not in Poland.
Here is a translation of the report (I will bolden essential parts):
Notice regarding the correct treatment of Fr. Michał O. (Olszewski)
The Office of the Ombudsman conducted an investigation into the correctness of the treatment of Fr. Michał O. by officers of the Internal Security Agency and the Police during his arrest, taking him to rooms for detained persons, staying in these rooms, and carrying out procedural activities with his participation, correctness of his treatment by Prison Service officers during his stay in pretrial detention and ensuring the right to defense. During the proceedings, the validity of the allegations made in the criminal proceedings was not examined, as this would exceed the competencies of the Commissioner for Human Rights.
The Ombudsman investigated the case using all available and obtainable documents and information. However, he could not rely on the material from the surveillance recordings because when the media information appeared, and the Commissioner for Human Rights took up the case, the statutory period for storing them had already passed. The detainee's lawyers could have applied to secure the recordings in due time, but they did not, so the recordings were permanently deleted.
The activities carried out during the investigation of the case did not provide grounds for concluding that Fr. Michał O. was subjected to torture within the meaning of the Constitution of the Republic of Poland and international law. However, they showed that inhumane treatment and other violations of rights and freedoms occurred:
- The findings confirmed the validity of the allegation that ABW officers had conducted procedural activities involving the priest Michał O for a long time - continuously for 15 hours, without providing him with the opportunity to rest, without providing him with a meal, with the continuous use of handcuffs, even while staying in safe rooms ensuring protection and under the supervision of officers of the Internal Security Agency; the intensity of the oppressive conditions justifies the conclusion that in this respect there was inhumane treatment of the detainee;
- The accusation of excessive preventive use of direct coercive measures in the Warsaw-Służewiec Remand Center was found to be justified by introducing additional restrictions, consisting in the use of handcuffs each time leaving the cell and other rooms (e.g. common room) - when in relation to all pre-trial detainees handcuffs were not used when taking people for a walk, to the common room or to the baths; There were no grounds for applying this type of restrictions, because no circumstances indicated that Fr. Michał O, through his attitude or behavior, posed a greater threat to the safety of the unit and the Prison Service officers than other pre-trial detainees;
- The findings confirmed the validity of the accusation of using excessive and unjustified means of direct coercion by police officers while escorting Fr. Michał O. for procedural activities, when, in addition to handcuffs, legcuffs were used; the use of this measure was inconsistent with the principles of necessity, minimization of discomfort and proportionality to the degree of risk;
- A violation of the right to unrestricted use of sanitary facilities in the cell was found by placing the priest. Michał O. in a residential cell in which the sanitary corner was not covered in a way that prevented people entering the cell from seeing the inmate during activities requiring privacy;
- A violation was found in the form of failure to implement the recommendation to medically check the inmate once a month, formulated in connection with the inmate's special protection;
- A violation was found in the form of shortcomings in keeping documentation (regarding the lack of sufficient justification for the decisions issued, the inclusion of unclear and imprecise formulations in these decisions, the use of an outdated legal basis);
- A violation was found in the form of failure to equip the transit cell, in which the pretrial detainee was staying, with an electric kettle.
- A violation was found in the form of a long wait for a temporarily detained person to receive dietary food.
- not allowing the detained person to contact his lawyer immediately after being detained;
- delays in allowing defense counsel access to the proceedings files;
- delays in consenting to the defense lawyer's visit to the detainee;
- preventing defense lawyers from participating in the proceedings;
- failure to recognize the defense attorney's request to exclude prosecutors conducting the investigation;
- failure to provide information about the rights and obligations of a person placed in PdOZ;
- failure to provide meals during the stay at PdOZ;
- unjustified special protection in the Warsaw-Służewiec Remand Center in conditions of increased isolation and security;
- unjustified monitoring of behavior in a residential cell;
- disturbing night rest during the stay in the Detention Center.
Verification was impossible concerning some of the allegations, mainly due to the lack of monitoring records. These were the allegations:
- unjustified exposure to public view while being escorted by ABW officers;
- failure to provide PdOZ with a set of items for nighttime;
- issuing water in a used bottle at PdOZ;
- refusing to be taken to the toilet in PdOZ;
- not allowing you to take a bath during your stay at PdOZ;
- method of carrying out preventive checks at PdOZ;
- poor condition of the transit cell at the Warsaw-Służewiec Remand Center;
- failure to provide a meal on the day of admission to the Detention Center.
