Poland plans to increase hate crime prosecution units from 13 to 49 and prosecutors from 30-45 to 100 amid rising case numbers.
Initial Proposal Criticized
The original draft regulation designated 13 units to handle hate crimes with 30-45 specialized prosecutors. This division, particularly the selection of units, was criticized by almost all prosecutors, especially those in Warsaw who complained about excessive caseloads.
Rising Case Numbers in Warsaw
According to Ministry of Justice data updated in the new proposal, Warsaw region handled 763 prejudice-motivated proceedings in 2025. By comparison, Krakow had 247 and Rzeszow had 66. In 2015-2024, Warsaw averaged 404 cases annually, showing a continuous increase.
Expanded Network of Prosecution Units
The new designates Warsaw-Ursynów Regional Prosecutor’s Office and Warsaw District Prosecutor’s Office to handle hate crimes, with the latter receiving cases from nationwide if justified by severity, nature, or complexity. Two additional Warsaw units—Żoliborz and Praga Południe—were added. Nationally, 49 units were selected instead of 13.
Addressing Logistical and Cultural Challenges
The proposal aims to address concerns about cooperation between prosecutors and services when they’re located tens or hundreds of kilometers from the crime scene. With more units, transport, digital, economic, linguistic and cultural challenges will be avoided, the Ministry argues.
Increased Prosecutor Numbers
The previous version planned for 30-45 prosecutors; the current proposal increases this to 100. They will handle all hate crimes and other cases where prejudice appears to be a factor based on the content of reports or established circumstances.
Standardization and Expertise
The Ministry believes specialized teams will create uniform standards for prosecuting hate crimes, leading to more effective enforcement. The expertise needed for these cases exceeds standard prosecutor training and cannot be covered in brief guidelines, while training all 4,000 regional prosecutors would be practically impossible given past neglect of these issues.