DUCHOWNY JAKO BIEGŁY W POLSKIM PROCESIE KARNYM
Clergyman as Expert Witness in Polish Criminal Proceedings

Summary/Abstract: In certain categories of criminal offences, it is necessary for the judicial authority conducting the criminal proceedings to call upon expert evidence to establish and judge them correctly. A clergyman, with his special knowledge of his religion, objects and places of worship and veneration, can be of considerable assistance to the trial authority in establishing the facts relevant to the determination of such a case. However, his procedural role is only to share his special knowledge with the judicial authority and other participants in the criminal proceedings (primarily the parties to the proceedings). In Polish criminal proceedings, an expert may be any person (except for the clergy) who is known to have relevant knowledge in a particular field. The subject of the analysis is the participation of a clergyman in the role of an expert in Polish criminal proceedings, the question of his appointment to this procedural role, the requirements as to the subject and scope of his opinion and its aposterior evaluation as evidence from a personal source.

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