Why did Antoni Macierewicz protect himself with immunity again? He took advantage of the legal loophole

Vice-president of PiS and former Minister of National Defense Antoni Macierewicz became president on December 10, 2024 stopped for a road check by policemen after celebrations Smolensk Monthly. The reason was supposed to be parking with a parking ban, which – what? he informed afterwards Jacek Dobrzyński, spokesman for the Ministry of Interior and Administration – “reported by a citizen”. However, the inspection ultimately did not take place because “the MP claimed immunity and refused to undergo a road traffic stop and a sobriety test“The officers therefore refrained from taking further actions and only prepared appropriate documentation of the event, which may constitute the basis for future steps against Macierewicz.

READ MORE: Macierewicz has 31 penalty points and is still allowed to drive

And since the Warsaw Police Headquarters had previously informed that Macierewicz had already accumulated a total of 31 penalty points and would only be allowed to drive a car until December 17, the PiS MP's compliance with traffic regulations was commented on in the Sejm by politicians on December 11. When asked by a TVN24 reporter, Polish People's Party MP Marek Sawicki said: “We know perfectly well that he (Antoni Macierewicz – ed.) is neither a naive nor a novice and he knows perfectly well what the 31 penalty points he has collected mean.” According to Sawicki, the driving license of the PiS vice-president “is invalid.” However, later in the conversation, Sawicki said:

“Why did the police respect and accept this immunity, so to speak, in this case? They should know. I guess these officers were not fully trained,” added the PSL MP.

Movie published on December 10 by one of the witnesses of this scene – when the police check Macierewicz's ID and then let him drive away – caused disbelief and questions from Internet users: “How did they let him go?”; “The police allowed people to break the law? They should prevent further driving”; “But they let him drive the car?”

Indeed, a few years ago, the Sejm adopted changes regarding parliamentary immunities and traffic offenses – but Antoni Macierewicz could still invoke immunity in the situation described. We explain.

The provisions on parliamentary immunities are in setting on the exercise of the mandate of a deputy and senator. Its art. 10 states: “A deputy or senator may not be detained or arrested without the consent of the Sejm or Senate, except when he is caught in the act of committing a crime and if his detention is necessary to ensure the proper course of proceedings.” These provisions also apply to offenses, including road traffic offences.

However, in this last issue, the Sejm introduced changes a few years ago. In July 2015, it was adopted almost unanimously amendment of several acts – including the Act on the exercise of the mandate of a deputy and senator – and allowed for a situation in which a parliamentarian may accept a criminal mandate for committing a traffic offense without waiving his immunity. The provision added to the act read:

Therefore, if an MP, caught by the police for driving too fast, wants to immediately accept a ticket from the police, from September 2015 – when the regulations came into force – he can do so without the consent of the Sejm. Previously, he could also consent to being held accountable, but only during the parliamentary procedure of depriving him of his immunity.

However, this does not mean – contrary to what MP Sawicki said – that immunities for road traffic offenses have been abolished by the Sejm. Dr. Piotr Uiębło from the University of Gdańsk confirms in an interview with Konkret24 that MPs can accept tickets for traffic offenses, “but if they refuse, this immunity applies“. The same information is available on the Sejm website: “If the MPs (…) do not accept the mandate or do not pay the mandate in absentia, the current procedure of depriving them of their immunity will be applied.”

Antoni Macierewicz took advantage of the loophole provided by the amended act and did not submit to a road inspection. Therefore, the police prepared appropriate documentation, which may in the future be the basis for initiating the procedure to deprive a PiS MP of his immunity. Marek Sawicki's statement that “in matters related to the participation of parliamentarians in road traffic, we have abolished immunity”, prof. He calls Uiębło a “far-reaching simplification”.