In Hajdú-Bihar County, insults committed against police officers have increased, and official persons were insulted not only in Hungarian.
In the recent period, the Debrecen Public Prosecutor’s Office brought charges in several cases in which law enforcement officers were verbally abused. In the vast majority of cases, those against whom action was taken were in a drunken state and often lost their temper simply because of the fact of the action and scolded the police with obscene words.
In an indictment submitted in April 2023, the district prosecutor’s office charged a man with Romanian citizenship. The police took action against him because he was waiting with his car in the parking space reserved for people with reduced mobility. The man insulted the victims first in English and then in Hungarian.
Defamation is punishable by up to one year in prison. In practice, a lighter sanction than this can be imposed, typically a fine or community service, if the perpetrator has a criminal record.
Pursuant to the current criminal law provision, police officers are considered to be official persons during their service and in the performance of their duties.
In the above case, the Debrecen District Prosecutor’s Office filed charges against the Romanian man at the Debrecen District Court for 2 counts of defamation committed in connection with the performance of the victim’s job. In the indictment for issuing a criminal sentence, he proposed that the district court, based on the content of the documents, impose a fine on the defendant without conducting a trial.
Debrecen Court
