Abstract:

Public organizations are in a state of crisis at the moment of significant institutional changes in their structures, and the greater the number of people affected - the more the crisis in the organization is felt. In connection with the ordinance of the Minister of Health of 13 March 2020 (Journal of Laws of 2020, item 433), announcing the state of epidemic threat in the territory of the Republic of Poland, common units of the prosecutor's office faced a new challenge regarding quick and effective response to crimes arising in connection with the use of the state of emergency for unlawful purpose. Certainly, for people who act against the law this is a typical opportunity, a situation that can be used to generate spectacular profits. On the other hand, for law-enforcing organizations the  state of epidemic threat is, if not a crisis, certainly an emergency situation. Apart from the specific dichotomy that emerged as part of the analysis carried out for this article (the relationship between opportunity and crisis), it is worth presenting the actions taken in the public entity during the crisis caused by COVID-19. What is the purpose of this study? The study analyses the actions taken by the Polish public prosecutor's office in reaction to the crisis which aim to minimize the spread of not only the virus, but also criminal activity in Poland. The study consists of 4 parts. The first part is theoretical and describes the issues from management and quality sciences related both to crisis and emergency situation. The second part describes strategic and operational actions taken by organizations in crisis environment. Parts three and four are practical and describe the activities of the Polish public prosecutor's office in the face of the crisis caused by the emergence of COVID-19 in Poland.