When a judgment imposing a custodial sentence is passed, the convict is obliged to serve it. However, in the event of obstacles, the Executive Penal Code provides solutions aimed at mitigating the negative consequences. After the commencement of serving a sentence of imprisonment, the penitentiary court may grant an obligatory or optional break in its further execution.
Obligatory:
- Occurrence of mental illness or other serious illness that prevents the execution of the sentence. In this case, the break lasts until the obstacle stops.
- For important family or personal reasons. The duration of the break cannot exceed one year. The phrase „important family or personal reasons” used in the provision is not a concept defined in the Executive Penal Code, which makes it difficult to apply in practice. It is worth quoting here an example judgment of the Court of Appeal in Kraków of June 28, 2017, ref. no. act II AKzw 565/17 Important family reasons, as a condition for granting a break in the execution of the sentence, are circumstances justifying the recognition of the life situation of the convict’s immediate family as difficult, which can only be improved by the presence of the convict and his personal efforts.
During the break, the court may oblige the convict to make efforts to find gainful employment, to report to a designated Police unit at specified intervals, to undergo appropriate treatment or rehabilitation, to undergo therapeutic interventions or to participate in correctional and educational programs.
An application for a break may be submitted by the convict himself or through an authorized legal advisor or attorney. It is worth emphasizing that this right is also granted to the director of the prison and the professional probation officer. The court competent to hear the case is the penitentiary court in whose district the prison in which the convict is detained is located
