The (new) general infringement authority and the pandemic

Abstract

Aim: The area of infringement law has undergone significant changes in the last year and a half. The most significant is that from 1 March 2020, the police became the general infringement authority. Within the police, the branch of the administrative police service performs the duties of an offense authority. These one and a half thousand people work with a huge number of cases, which has been further increased by the pandemic that hit our country in early 2020. The aim of the study is to show how the pandemic has influenced the infringement legislation, what difficulties it has caused for law enforcement bodies, and how the new and increased tasks have been solved and contributed to the effective protection of our country against the pandemic.
Methodology: The author examines the subject through the eyes of a former practitioner, a university lecturer and a police officer actively involved in the defence. The study was was carried out through the monitoring of changes in legislation, analysis of statistical data, personal experience and consultations with offence rapporteurs.
Findings: Experts working in the police’s administrative police departments have earned invaluable merits in enforcing the measures taken to prevent the pandemic. The tasks of defense had to be solved at the same time as the increased tasks due to becoming a general infringement authority. Despite the fact that this increased the workload of the already overburdened staff by 70% (!), the staff on duty in the area of infringements carried out their duties with a high level of professionalism and precision.
Value: The study highlights the novelty of the legislation, the problems encountered and possible solutions. This is important because when the present lines are written, the fourth wave of the COVID-19 epidemic is already reaching our country.