Retired prosecutor Jan W. has been charged with committing a communist crime. During Poland’s martial law period, he prosecuted a man for mocking the Military Council of National Salvation (WRON) and contributed to his conviction, which resulted in an 18-month prison sentence. Despite this, Jan W. has continued to be regarded as an authority within the legal community. As recently as last year, he was teaching trainee prosecutors at the National School of Judiciary and Public Prosecution (KSSiP). Yet the most striking events occurred only a few days ago.
Just over a week ago, from June 17 to 19, the 20th National Forensic Science Seminar was held in Zbąszyń, western Poland.
“The event was organized by the Regional Prosecutor’s Office in Zielona Góra and held under the honorary patronage of the Minister of Justice and the National Prosecutor. The seminar was titled ‘Forensic Sciences – The Past Quarter-Century and Future Prospects,'” the organizers stated.
Among the participants was National Prosecutor Dariusz Korneluk, while the opening lecture was delivered by Prof. Piotr Girdwoyń, Director of the National School of Judiciary and Public Prosecution (KSSiP). The official report published on the website of the Regional Prosecutor’s Office in Zielona Góra was authored by Jan W., who also appeared in the program as both a moderator and a KSSiP lecturer.
Why is this significant? At the very time the seminar was taking place, an indictment against Jan W. had already been filed with the Military Garrison Court in Poznań. He stands accused of committing a communist crime and a crime against humanity.
Did Korneluk know? That may be difficult to establish. However, Girdwoyń certainly did. A journalist from Niezalezna.pl had questioned him about the case before the seminar took place.
Bodnar’s “Broom”
After the coalition government took office in late 2023 and Adam Bodnar became Minister of Justice, sweeping personnel changes were introduced throughout Poland’s courts, prosecution service, and institutions connected with the justice system.
The National School of Judiciary and Public Prosecution (KSSiP), headquartered in Kraków, was no exception.
Particular controversy surrounded the appointment of the school’s new director. Ultimately, Prof. Piotr Girdwoyń, an attorney who had finished second in the competition, was selected and remains in office today. In June 2024, then-judge Waldemar Żurek, now Poland’s Minister of Justice, became KSSiP’s Deputy Director for Organizational Affairs.
The leadership changes also affected the school’s teaching staff. Within a short period, dozens of judges and prosecutors were removed from teaching positions. According to the article, professional qualifications were irrelevant—mere suspicion of links with the previous government was sufficient.
As vacancies emerged, they had to be filled. Among the new lecturers was retired prosecutor Jan W., a figure well known in legal circles, although somewhat forgotten by the broader public.
Jan W. joined the prosecution service in the 1970s. He previously headed district prosecution offices in Nowa Sól and Zielona Góra, worked at the Appellate Prosecutor’s Office in Poznań, and served as a KSSiP examiner. He has long been regarded as a forensic science expert. More than a decade ago, he received the “Meritorious for Lubusz Province” distinction from Elżbieta Polak, then Marshal of the Lubusz Voivodeship and now a member of parliament from the Civic Coalition.
Until now, however, little had been said publicly about his actions during martial law.
Prison Sentence for Mocking WRON
According to findings by Niezalezna.pl, the investigation into Jan W. was conducted by the Kraków Branch Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation of the Institute of National Remembrance (IPN). The investigation concerned allegations that he had committed a communist crime.
“The case involved the unlawful deprivation of liberty of Stanisław K. during martial law,” prosecutor Łukasz Gramza confirmed.
In January 1982, Jan W. served at the Military Garrison Prosecutor’s Office in Zielona Góra. He charged Stanisław K. with “publicly ridiculing the Military Council of National Salvation” and ordered his pre-trial detention.
What had Stanisław K. done?
He had attached to the bumper of his car a handmade cardboard cap displaying a fascist eagle clutching, within a wreath, a five-pointed red star bearing the Gothic inscription “WRONA” (the Polish acronym for the Military Council of National Salvation, literally meaning “crow”).
“Prosecutor Jan W. concluded that, through this act, Stanisław K. had insulted and mocked what he regarded as the supreme governing body of the People’s Republic of Poland—the Military Council of National Salvation,” Gramza explained.
He added:
“The Military Council of National Salvation was neither the supreme state authority nor any other lawful organ of state power. Under the legislation then in force, this was beyond dispute. Consequently, it was not protected under Article 270 §1 of the Criminal Code. This was later confirmed by the Supreme Court, which, following Poland’s democratic transition, acquitted the victim, ruling that his actions did not constitute a criminal offense.”
During proceedings before the Military Garrison Court in Zielona Góra, prosecutor Jan W. sought an unconditional prison sentence of two years.
Stanisław K. was ultimately sentenced to one year and six months in prison.
Indictment for Communist Crimes
During the IPN investigation, prosecutors concluded that Jan W.’s conduct “constituted an act of repression against a person who (…) protested the unlawful imposition of martial law in Poland and the deprivation by the unconstitutional Military Council of National Salvation of citizens’ fundamental rights and freedoms.”
The Supreme Court’s Chamber of Professional Responsibility approved lifting Jan W.’s immunity, allowing criminal charges to be brought against him. He was subsequently charged and questioned as a suspect.
In mid-March 2026, the indictment was filed with the Military Garrison Court in Poznań.
According to prosecutor Gramza:
“The defendant has been charged with two acts constituting communist crimes and crimes against humanity. The first concerns the unlawful deprivation of Stanisław K.’s liberty through pre-trial detention for conduct that did not constitute a criminal offense (…). The second concerns inciting the judges of the Military Garrison Court in Zielona Góra to find Stanisław K. guilty and impose a two-year prison sentence, which ultimately resulted in Stanisław K. being sentenced to one year and six months of imprisonment.”
Still Listed as a KSSiP Lecturer
We asked whether Jan W. continued to teach future prosecutors at the National School of Judiciary and Public Prosecution.
After a lengthy wait, Prof. Piotr Girdwoyń responded:
“He retains the status of a lecturer at the National School of Judiciary and Public Prosecution, like at least several hundred other individuals. This status does not automatically mean that he conducts classes or has any entitlement to do so. I would also point out that the Director of KSSiP has no legal authority to remove someone from the list of lecturers on his own initiative.”
We also learned that Jan W.’s last classes took place from February 25 to 27, 2025, during the 13th training session of the 15th class of prosecutor trainees. He taught practical exercises involving case files and legal scenarios in forensic medicine and criminalistics.
“On April 3, 2025, Mr. Jan W. informed me of his procedural status in the proceedings you refer to. On that same day, I decided not to assign him any further teaching duties, just as I do in analogous cases,” Prof. Girdwoyń stated.
He Knew About the Indictment
For the record, our questions regarding Jan W.’s situation were sent to the Director of KSSiP on June 3. One of them asked:
“Were you aware of the investigation conducted by the Commission and of the filing of the indictment? If so, since when?”
The response quoted above was received on June 18—while the seminar in Zbąszyń was already underway and attended by National Prosecutor Dariusz Korneluk, Prof. Piotr Girdwoyń, and the indicted prosecutor Jan W.