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FILM BASED ON HISTORICAL MATERIALS AND EVENTS
SOME CHARACTERS AND CIRCUMSTANCES HAVE BEEN ALTERED OR INVENTED
PRESENTS
IN CO-PRODUCTION WITH
A POLISH FILM INSTITUTE CO-FINANCED PRODUCTION
A FILM BY
LEAVE NO TRACES
WARSAW, 1983
Stay alert!
What?
- Mother needs me at the salon. - What?
Are you shitting me?
- I just passed my finals. - Half of them.
- My old man will lose it. - As always.
Finals come about once.
You wish!
You shouldn't go there. You're useless with that hand.
Why take a risk?
They broke my hand, so that I wouldn't go there.
- Go where? - On Piwna to prepare packages.
- With one hand? - Just to sort them.
Brussels sent a truck.
And Jerzy wants to leave.
- My father will be furious. - He will be anyway.
- What's that? - He'll be furious anyway.
Just ask yourself.
Who's more important, me or your father?
Be honest.
- Will there be cigs? - Yes.
- For political prisoners. - Agnieszka can go.
I have a delivery to the Wrocław jail.
Marek is picking me up.
I'm going.
I'm here!
- Appetizers would be nice. - Jerzy wants to leave.
But finals come around just once!
One bottle's for you.
You can't go home drunk.
I'm going out.
No drinking, you hear?
Would you iron that blue skirt for me?
Sure.
Is Małgorzata here?
- In the kitchen! - I need some prescriptions.
Jerzy, get over here!
Yeah!
- Well? - Almost ready.
- My classmates will be there. - Where?
- In the Old Town. - It's a big place.
Why the long face?
- I got a call-up. - What date?
- Next week, the 17th. - That's my birthday!
- You're safe, man! - I don't know.
They let me off.
The son of Barbara Sadowska, a Solidarity revolutionary.
And they keep locking her up, so what are you worried about?
They let you off 'cause you're nuts!
- No fucking military service for me! - Keep it down!
Take it easy.
Dominik likes the smell of napalm in the morning.
You'll be fine, I guarantee it.
- Then it's Dębki for the summer. - You can't guarantee shit.
- Dębki and the sea! - Stop it!
Have you considered the possibility that you might not get into university?
- Of course not. - And what if you don't?
I haven't considered this because I will.
But what if you don't?
- Forget it. - You don't believe me?
- You don't! - I do.
- I believe you. - Okay.
And you?
The shipyard in Gdańsk is employing.
I could go there.
I'd be at the seaside, away from my folks.
I'd have a life.
We've walked across the entire Old Town.
They're not here.
Strange.
Great friends.
- Come on, I want a drink. - Let's go.
Stay alert!
On your feet.
Get up!
ID.
- On what grounds? - On such that he said so! ID!
Don't have mine.
- Come up here for a moment. - ID.
- No. - Here.
Your pals roughed it up badly the last time.
- I leave it at home. - Easy!
- Come on. - We can settle this right here!
- To the station! - Get in!
- Now! - Let go!
Fuck!
Get in! Sit! You hear?
Get out. Come on.
- Move it! - Go!
Come on!
Door!
Identity document.
I don't have to carry one.
ID!
Martial law's been suspended.
We have to teach the punk to carry an ID!
What a wiseass.
Think you're so smart?
His mother can bring his ID!
Now what?
Fucker!
Grab him!
Goddamn rookies!
Not on the back.
Hit the stomach, so you leave no marks.
- Grab him there. - Pick him up.
- Stand there! - Let him go...
Fuck!
Let him go, for fuck's sake!
- Let him go! - Again!
Easy!
Calm the fuck down!
Calm down!
- Easy! - Let go!
Let go!
Call an ambulance.
Mass in the cathedral is ending. Clear the station!
Yes, sir!
Tell them he's a psycho.
They'll just send orderlies without a doctor.
Sit your ass down!
Grzegorz!
- Good day. - Hello.
Goddamn bastards!
That's the mental?
Some junkie. We had to calm him down.
- What do you want us to do? - Just take the psycho.
He's no psycho! He's been badly beaten!
- Grzegorz, these are doctors. - Orderlies.
It will be okay. Just go with them.
- I'm coming too. - There's no room.
- How the fuck's that? - It's a small ambulance.
Where are you taking him?
- Where are you going? - Hoża Street.
Get out, please.
No need to pretend any more.
I'll get the doctor.
He dropped his ID.
Are you a doctor?
And who's asking?
Jerzy Popiel. A friend.
He's not a psycho. He's just been badly beaten.
Grzegorz!
Let go! I was in the Militia station!
They beat him so bad, he could hardly walk!
Lift your shirt.
No marks, Mr Popiel. But I can smell alcohol.
What do you mean? They kept kicking him!
With heavy boots!
They'll pump his stomach, and he'll feel better right away.
But he isn't drunk!
He isn't drunk!
Referral to the psych ward. Transportation.
And the observation room for now.
Sonny...
Sweetheart...
It's me, Barbara.
Can you hear me?
My son was beaten up.
You think electroshocks and stomach pumping
will help him get better?
You should have kept an eye on the snot.
The law states that
a patient can be referred to a psychiatric hospital
only upon the request of the patient, or his family member,
or upon a court or prosecution request.
- Got it? - Yes.
Eleventh floor!
Want a fresh compress?
No need. This one's still warm.
They messed me up real bad.
Not as they usually do, with batons.
They kept kicking me all over, and they elbowed me...
There was this... young blond guy there, my age.
Then this sergeant came out,
and started shouting at them not to leave marks.
- I'll rinse the towel. - But what do they care?
What do they care?
I should have brought him here yesterday.
Why did I take him home? Stupid me.
Stop it. He was in the ER.
Not your fault an idiot examined him.
He just got lucky with the conscription commission.
If he doesn't take his finals next week,
he won't go to university,
and he will be drafted.
What's the situation?
They are operating on him.
Was he there alone?
No.
We have to take down your statement.
Do you want to report the beating?
She does. Those fuckers have to pay.
Sorry to interrupt.
My name is Lenczewski, I assisted during surgery.
We finished the operation, your son was closed up.
We were unable to find an intact intestine section long enough
to create a fistula.
My son has school-leaving exams next week.
It's essential that he takes them.
Will it be possible?
No. It won't be possible.
Your son is dead, I'm sorry.
Here's the death certificate. Autopsy in a few days.
I wrote in the file, "Beaten by Militia officers."
Thank you.
Forget mass!
We should go out there and fuck them all up!
- Mass is good. - Just take it easy!
Take what easy?
Ever seen a friend vomit his own faeces?
Nothing to be easy about!
I just think we shouldn't provoke them.
Mass at Kostka's church? Given by the communists' worst enemy?
Mass! Really?
Father Popiełuszko would draw crowds.
Should more people die?
We can't be ashamed of this death.
Pretend it didn't happen.
If Grzegorz's parents approve, I will say mass.
This will end badly.
So we have to be smart about it.
We must preserve the truth, and hide Jerzy.
I'm not hiding.
You're the sole witness. Only you saw what happened.
No.
I did nothing wrong.
Remember what they told you last year?
That you were off the hook, but now they would get to your son.
Jerzy...
You must hide.
We will have justice only if you live.
Militia. Is Jerzy Popiel here?
- Am I being detained? - Where is he?
I will talk only to the prosecutor. If I'm not detained, then goodbye.
Militia, open up!
Małgorzata, they're here...
Right at my door.
I stepped out, but I'm afraid to go back.
Right outside the flat.
Yes. Please.
Hello?
Hi, Małgorzata.
Karol Małcużyński. Małgorzata called me.
This is my boss, Kevin Ruane. We work for BBC.
Gentlemen!
What are the legal grounds for your presence here?
Who's in charge here?
Why?
Would you answer a few questions for the BBC morning news?
Out!
It's this room.
You'll be safe here.
Let's wait for the world to find out.
Nothing!
Goddammit!
"Civic Militia officers detained two drunken
and disorderly men in Castle Square, Jerzy P., 23, and Grzegorz P., 19.
Considering Grzegorz P.'s aggressive behaviour
and his injuries, the officers called an ambulance..."
What fucking injuries?
This is nothing but lies.
They can't lie so openly like that.
And in a newspaper.
Barbara, what are you hoping for?
I hope the Prosecution will determine who killed my child,
and that this person will go to prison for a long time.
How many did they kill during martial law?
The Militia and the ZOMO. Forty? Fifty?
Do you remember any trials?
What did you think our papers would print?
What are you saying?
That I can't promise you a trial.
Much less any convictions.
Is General Kiszczak in?
So?
There is a possibility
that he sustained injuries at the Jezuicka station.
Possibility bordering on certainty.
Radio Free Europe is making noise.
Solidarity is rallying masses to attend his funeral.
He was a young boy, a high school graduate.
Son of Barbara Sadowska.
- Who's that? - A poet.
Solidarity. Primate Assistance Committee.
Injured in the row last week.
The opposition claims that we threatened
to beat up her son.
That we planned this.
- And did we? - Not in the Third Department.
Anywhere else?
Nothing suggests the Ministry had anything to do with this.
It must have just happened.
What do you suggest, comrade?
Comrade General,
let's give this to a prosecutor sympathising with the opposition.
It would look good.
We'd deal with this and clear the air.
We'd find sadists on the force, but that happens all over the world.
Grażyna Popiel?
Yes, what is it?
Is Jerzy Popiel your son?
Yes.
Is he home?
He's in Warsaw. What's wrong?
He's implicated in murder and wanted by the Militia.
Report him as soon as he returns home.
He'll show up.
They will find him.
Why can't I go?
What can happen at the funeral?
If the Security Service grabs you, you'll be gone.
Just like Grzegorz.
From Barbara.
When Bednarkiewicz says so, you'll go to the Prosecution to testify.
Good day, prosecutor.
Could this have happened earlier?
From a fall? An accidental hit?
Madam prosecutor...
Diffuse peritonitis. Ruptured liver.
Massive perforation of blind gut and ascending colon.
Mesenteric haematoma.
Necrosis of multiple sections of the small intestine.
Someone drove a truck over him, then put it in reverse,
and did it again.
Satan...
dared to commit a crime so horrible
that all of Warsaw was dumbstruck in terror.
In a bestial manner, he took away a mother's only son.
And a river of tears has opened to once again water
the spring of solidarity,
maybe in some cases already drying up.
My dearest...
You are angry about Grzegorz's death.
But don't let yourselves be provoked.
We will walk to the cemetery in silence.
Let this silence be the reflection of your strength.
- How many? - Hard to tell exactly.
How many?
Few thousand.
Fifteen, twenty thousand.
The underground writes that even sixty.
But this isn't a political matter.
It is now.
Comrade General, comrade General Beim is here.
Should I send him in?
It makes no sense to start a beating in broad daylight
with so many witnesses around.
But we'll check all possible threads.
There's a witness.
An uneducated drunken bum from Siedlce. That's a witness?
What do you suggest, commandant?
A task force.
Under Colonel Kmiecik's command.
It will investigate all possible versions of events.
The most likely version is that the boy was beaten up by orderlies.
In broad daylight? With even more witnesses?
We have be like fingers that make a fist.
Or hell knows how this could end for the ministry.
And each one of us.
Is this Barbara Sadowska's flat?
No, General Jaruzelski's.
- I need Barbara Sadowska. - Here.
Help yourselves, I'll make more. You must be very hungry.
Barbara Sadowska?
Yes?
Tadeusz Popiel, Jerzy's father.
Nice of you to drop by.
We're celebrating Grzegorz's birthday. He's turned nineteen.
Three days ago, to be exact.
I'm looking for my son.
Don't worry, Jerzy is safe.
But where is he?
He's hiding with a very good family.
Close acquaintances of Father Popiełuszko.
They can be fully trusted.
- Where would that be? - I'm sorry, I can't say.
I can pass a letter. That's all I can do.
Sorry, but the guests are waiting for food.
Here's a desk and some stationery. Jerzy will get your letter.
Next item on the agenda,
visit of Pope John Paul ll in Poland.
Comrade Secretary Milewski.
Before we move on to strictly organisational matters,
I believe we have a slight public image problem,
connected with the case of one Grzegorz Przemyk.
The Politburo has agreed to host the Pope's visit
to show that things are returning to normal.
I have here
some reports from Western media,
and there's nothing in them about the Pope.
But there's quite a lot about Grzegorz Przemyk.
"A young poet, son of an opposition poet,
battered by Civic Militia officers."
This scandal is the doing of external forces.
If you look at the photos from the funeral,
you will see thousands,
some would say ten of fifteen thousand people.
They couldn't have organised it themselves.
It's being controlled externally.
There you go.
No Polish word starts with the letter "V".
Apparently, there is an eyewitness, one Jerzy Popiel,
who claims that Przemyk had been battered at a Militia station.
Where did you get such information?
From his testimony at the prosecutor's office.
I asked to profile this person, and I wouldn't call him a witness.
This is a highly suspicious individual
who associates with tramps and thieves in Siedlce,
and maintains relations with prostitutes.
A common drug addict, as was Przemyk himself.
And a homosexual too.
Ask yourself, comrade, is that a witness?
Strange kind of homosexuality
that allows one to live with prostitutes.
Personally, I would never believe
that Przemyk was beaten up by our boys on Jezuicka.
Still, that would have to be proven.
But there is circumstantial evidence
that Przemyk was incapacitated at the station.
No wonder, since he was under the influence of drugs.
There is a thread we are checking,
that Przemyk's screams which allegedly were heard at the Militia station,
were not screams of pain,
only karate shouts, which he and his friends practised.
The injuries could have come from a training session.
Maybe they hurt themselves. There are many possibilities.
Comrades, let me stress that my ministry is without blame.
These boys, Kościuk and Babicki, are regular drafted soldiers.
All they can do is patrol and ID people.
If we truly wanted to deal with Przemyk, we'd send professionals.
Excuse my slightly emotional tone,
but this issue is causing great distress,
and I'm not sure how the Militia will behave the next time around.
Comrades...
let me propose a solution.
To prevent getting bogged down in details,
let us establish a coordinator for this matter.
I think that the right person for this would be
comrade Secretary Milewski, responsible for security.
And it is, I believe, a priority
to leave comrade General Kiszczak's ministry
to do their work
and investigate this matter thoroughly.
Thank you for your trust.
Barbara, please. Have some.
I don't want to.
Can you sit up?
I can't.
You have to eat something.
I don't want to.
Maybe you give it a try.
So...
Popiel is the only obstacle in our path
to an honest and thorough investigation of this case.
Operation "Junior" to which you have been assigned
aims to neutralise this obstacle.
A two-pronged approach.
Firstly, we'll be looking for a starting point,
any sort of dirt on Popiel or anyone in his family.
Secondly, just in case,
we're working on the proper version, the emergency room story.
The entire Security Service is at your disposal.
Criminal Investigations, Criminal, and Analytical bureaus.
Economic Crimes and Traffic departments.
The subject is heading for the hairdressing salon.
The subject is heading towards the farm.
She entered the salon.
Good morning.
Hi.
The lock is seizing up.
Jerzy, where have you been?
- Hi. - Where have you been?
Did you come alone?
What did you expect?
Sit down, eat something.
What are you so worried about?
I've been to the capital. Give me a break.
They came here for you.
It was in your letter.
I was hiding, but I no longer have to.
The most wanted man in Poland is the safest man in Poland.
Listen, I am your father.
I am responsible for your safety.
Eat up.
They'll leave me alone now.
I already testified at the Prosecution.
They will all go to prison soon.
I'll make sure of that.
I even have a lawyer.
I went into hiding for a few weeks.
Finally, someone told me to go to St. Martin's Church.
I met Barbara Sadowska there.
She said I was right to desert, and Solidarity would help me.
Solidarity, meaning who?
She told me to go on Smolna Street, to a legal office.
To barrister Bednarkiewicz.
- And you went there? - Well, yes.
And?
Bednarkiewicz said he'd find me a flat and give me some money.
Did he?
Well, yes.
Looks familiar?
Where's the recording clerk?
This is just an informal meeting.
I told him I had friends at the station on Jezuicka.
He said that he would like to question them.
Question them, barrister? Are you the court?
Do you have an arrest warrant?
Don't play inaccessible.
Informal meeting, remember?
I'm not playing, I am inaccessible.
Even from the opportunistic point of view,
you as a barrister shouldn't be interested in Przemyk's case.
You don't need it.
Barristers win cases. You don't think you can win?
- We'll see. - Right.
Forgive me, but this operation seems pointless.
If you lock me up, someone else will take over.
- Are you sure? - Will you lock up everyone?
Without you Barbara won't make a move.
If you tell her that the trial is senseless,
she'll back out.
Out of what?
You're starting to catch on.
The two of you harry the Prosecution.
And you're their guardians?
We try to work closely.
Tell me...
if the case is dismissed, you'll make a fuss about it
and call the CIA for help?
Can't we make a deal? And let life go on?
You'll have masses in the streets.
You overestimate yourself, barrister.
They doubled the number of fillers. Their uniforms are identical.
No talking to the witness.
Examine each face carefully. Take your time.
Investigation signature: I Ds 113/83.
Time of identity parade start: 11 :30 AM,
June 1, 1983.
Proceed.
Number 23.
Was he in contact with the victim?
He only came out of the guardroom
and shouted to beat him in such a way, as not to leave marks.
Him.
He's the one who arrested us at the Square,
and then raised his baton on Grzegorz and ...
then beat him at the station.
Are you sure?
I can't hear you.
Yes.
- It was okay. - Yes.
We'll see if it helps.
Bye. Take care.
Preliminary findings are such that the battery took place at the station.
And, for now, battery in the ambulance or the ER was ruled out.
Classification?
For now, art. 158.
Section one?
- Three. - Three?
I don't understand.
Battery resulting in death. A year to ten.
Don't count on ten.
So...
that will be the charge?
The indictment has to be approved by the General Prosecutor's Office.
But such will be my recommendation.
Is everything okay?
Fine.
Comrade Public Prosecutor General Franciszek Rusek.
I was sure the meeting was called for 2 PM.
You were called for 2 PM.
Sit.
Since the prosecutor general has joined us now...
Yesterday, my department received a memo for consultation,
which indicates that
the prosecutor's office intends to indict Militia officers only,
and that would be for battery resulting in death.
This is outrageous, comrade.
But why?
That would be considering just one version of events.
It lacks objectivity. Where's the ER version?
Firstly, the investigation isn't over yet.
Secondly, findings of the district prosecution
indicate that battery was possible only at the Militia station.
Findings or Jerzy Popiel's testimony?
Mainly Popiel's testimony.
Supported by a dozen or so expert opinions.
You intend to charge these boys based on the testimony of a bum?
A criminal, to be honest?
As comrade minister surely knows,
all Jerzy Popiel was sentenced for, were escapes from juvenile hall.
So, he was a criminal even as a snot. Wonderful witness.
Jerzy P. may be shady, but his testimony is solid.
He confirmed it numerous times.
His morality has nothing to do with this.
I sincerely doubt it that
he will have the nerve to repeat this rubbish in court.
As the Chief Commandant of the Militia,
I'd expect the indictment to address the emergency service version.
Prosecution's work is not based on expectations.
Only facts.
The entire Politburo demands
for the matter to be fully investigated by the Prosecutor's Office.
So does comrade Jaruzelski.
The district prosecution is leaky.
Details get through to the underground press.
Prosecutor Brzozowska regularly meets with Bednarkiewicz,
Barbara Sadowska's barrister,
and reveals investigation details.
It's her obligation. Under the Code of Criminal Procedure.
Which doesn't mean that Sadowska receives files from proceedings.
It seems to us that...
the complexity of this case qualifies it for transfer to the provincial office.
There's Wiesława Bardon there, investigation department director.
Under article 17.2 of the Code of Criminal Procedure,
such a transfer to a higher instance is fully justified.
Comrade minister and comrade commandant
would fully appreciate the fairness of the investigation.
Secretary Milewski supervises the Prosecution,
so, in fact, nothing would change.
The general prosecutor will see you.
Good day, comrade.
We were supposed to only talk about what happened.
Yes, but it's best to show.
There's the ambulance, so skip the fairy tales.
What fairy tales?
We didn't do anything.
I know that.
But we still have to prove it.
I don't know.
We should call a lawyer.
Yeah, right.
Only those who are guilty need lawyers.
And you guys didn't do anything.
Show me how you transported him.
Photographer!
Okay.
So, show me how you would beat him.
I would never hit a man, much less anyone in pain.
Just hypothetically.
How, with my hands on the wheel? We'd crash and die.
You could have stopped on the way.
It was a six-minute drive, when could we have stopped?
I can make a note that you didn't want to help.
That won't look good.
So? Time for a beating.
Photographer.
Start the beating.
Harder, with passion!
With all you've got!
Remove the headrests.
We never take them out.
What's the problem? Let's just take them out. There.
- This one doesn't come out. - It doesn't come out!
This one's out. Go again.
Harder!
Get him in the back.
- What? - The guy.
Right. Orderly, in the back!
I never ride in the back!
Don't try to lecture me.
Okay. Hit him!
Hit him hard!
Skip the warm-up. Hit him hard, with both hands.
Pound him!
Come on, with passion!
- Hit him, not the roof! - I am!
Well, the roof!
In '66-'68, Wrocław HQ led the "Prints" operational case.
Are you shitting me?
It pertained to craftsman certificates and diplomas forgeries.
The forgers were convicted. Here are case files.
This.
Grażyna Popiel's craftsman diploma. Issued in Wrocław in 1966.
Someone here has a brain. I'll take this.
Not like that.
Yes, use the big ones.
If you make just tiny curls, she will look like a sheep.
No offence.
- Grażyna Popiel? - Who's asking?
Provincial Militia HQ. Commercial Inspectorate.
We've been notified
that you are using a forged craftsman diploma, my girl.
I'm not your girl.
Grażyna...
Your diploma comes from the period of operation of a forger gang.
- Many people bought their papers. - So what?
Check with the Chamber of Crafts. The proper documentation is there.
Well, they can't find it.
But they are looking.
Hello, Małgorzata, Jerzy Popiel. Do you know if...
When?
The subject has left the flat.
There is no one inside. You can proceed.
- Where did you get this? - Popiel's flat.
An affair with her son's friend.
Better than nothing.
- Is this still going on? - We'll check that.
Probably not.
Sadowska was involved with him before he became friends with Przemyk.
- Do his parents know? - Taps are inconclusive.
I'd like to use this. Press, Television Daily News...
No. Hold it.
Too early for that.
Yes, sir.
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee,
blessed art thou among women,
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
- You promised. - Not hungry.
Force yourself to eat.
It's not as simple as that.
I'll cook for you. I'll move in, and I'll feed you.
Kiszczak would love that.
They've been hanging around here.
Militia and secret police.
They've probably bugged your flat.
Are they tailing you?
For later.
The Security Service nabbed mother. Said her diploma was forged.
They want to close her salon.
The Prosecution summoned me for today. I'll go with Bednarkiewicz.
You know what they told her?
That I should withdraw my testimony.
I'm here for Bednarkiewicz. We're going to the prosecutor's office.
He's not here. He's been detained.
Come with us.
Leave the cuffs on.
- I'll cuff him at the front. - No, thank you.
Jerzy... Popiel.
You got it all wrong, dumb broad.
I'm a witness, not a suspect.
And I'm the prosecutor,
and my duty is to investigate all possible event scenarios.
I refuse to testify.
You're a witness, not a suspect. You don't have that option.
Besides, I can fuck you up easily. Thank you.
Let's begin.
I spent the night in the slammer.
Who went through my stuff?
- What stuff? - I had some letters here.
I haven't seen them. But an interesting one came today.
Not for you for once.
So what happened to them?
What makes them so important?
Stop making a psycho out of me!
I've had enough of you. Ta" to your father.
What's this?
They held a search yesterday.
They found illegal rabbits in the other shed.
- Illegal, get it? - Not my fault.
Then whose fucking fault is it?
I'm sorry.
What good will your fucking apologies do?
One and a half million in back taxes!
What do you intend to eat
once they take away your mother's salon and my farm?
Sadowska's goddamn poems?
I'm doing this for Grzegorz, not her.
That's a good one!
She manipulates you, and you're too stupid to see it!
She's got you figured out! And you do whatever she says.
I'm doing this for Grzegorz! No one will help him now!
Fucking Commies wrote in the papers that he tripped over his laces!
Fucking Commies?
Like me?
Answer.
Just like me?
Just like fucking me?
You are my father.
Damn right, I'm your father.
So decide who is more important to you,
your family
or some hag in Warsaw.
Think hard about that.
Yeah. It's going great.
Lieutenant, do you have any small children?
I don't.
A mother with dementia?
- A wife in a wheelchair? - I'm all alone.
Then go to Siedlce.
You put a crack in this family.
- Time to finish the job. - Yes, sir.
I'll take care of you. I'll help with everything.
We are bound forever now. You and me.
I started writing again. I'll read you something.
Just a second.
"I have butterfingers
My hands can't hold The first tiny cherries
Of this year
I think I won't get them to you
My sonny boy."
Nice.
Maybe I'll publish something in spring.
I know it's difficult for you.
Everything rests on your shoulders.
You don't have to stay here.
You can run away from it.
Right after the trial.
Run away where?
Rusek says it's a courtesy.
A compromise, so to speak.
A compromise?
The officers have the same charges as the orderlies.
Innocent orderlies are being charged,
so it's a compromise, as Rusek claims.
Call him.
I have, he refused to come.
He'll accept comments in writing.
He also asked to convey
that the file was sent out of courtesy,
and only minor changes are acceptable.
The indictment will be sent to court as it is now.
Tell me something.
Why did we change the prosecutor?
The orderlies were indicted. That's a plus.
Before, there was no chance for that.
Maybe we...
replaced the wrong prosecutor!
What about the orderlies?
Maybe one of them should simply confess?
Yes, sir.
These are assignment cards of the 02 team.
This year's. 180 people.
We just need one to accuse Wysocki and the other one
of battery, theft, anything.
Enough to justify detainment. Pass this around.
We have to find dirt on those orderlies.
Tadeusz?
Zbyszek?
- You're in Siedlce? - I buy crystal for my store.
There's my car.
Here? Why didn't you look me up earlier?
I didn't want to impose. We served together years ago.
When are you leaving?
In a minute. I want to get to Wrocław before nightfall.
No way, you're staying with us.
We'll have a drink and talk.
I don't know.
She's playing him,
and Solidarity is playing her.
Thank you.
They just want to use Jerzy against the Militia.
They totally fucking possessed him.
Why is he set on this, goddamn punk?
Ten men at the station, lots of witnesses!
- How could they beat him there? - Right.
This doesn't make sense.
They'll ruin our boy.
Use him and spit him out.
He's young and stupid. Just doesn't see it.
I don't get you.
If it were my son...
But it's not.
Easier said.
What if you talked to them?
- To whom? - The Security Service.
To denounce my own son? Zbyszek!
Not denounce.
You won't say anything about Jerzy.
You want to defend your son from Solidarity,
and they can help you.
You'll play them, they won't play you.
I can't just let you in. Write a letter of request.
I have crucial information on Grzegorz Przemyk's case.
You can call their front office. Maybe they'll let you in.
I'm an officer of the Polish People's Army!
Good day.
Lieutenant Sajewicz. I'm working on Przemyk's case.
Let's not stand around here like some janitors.
Come on.
- Why are you in Siedlce? - Excuse me?
You mentioned Przemyk's case, so how come you're here?
Your son could be in danger. From Solidarity.
So we've been told.
Step inside.
Take a seat.
Something to wet your whistle?
No, thank you, I'm driving.
I'm not here to denounce my son,
only to get something done.
That's clear. I have two boys myself, I get it.
I'd even see the devil to help them.
Good morning, Mr Wysocki.
You're being detained.
You saw that we haven't done anything.
- Come in. - Good evening.
Good evening.
Thank you for letting me spend the night here.
Our group participates in the trials of various activists of the opposition.
This one is taking place in your city.
It means a lot to them
that someone is there at their trial. That they are not alone.
We stay out of politics.
This isn't politics, just regular thuggery.
The charges infringe their own Constitution.
I know that you are bearing the consequences
of Jerzy standing up in defence of my son's memory...
Yes, we are.
- I'm happy you see that. - Mum...
What?
On my part, I will try to help...
We don't need anyone's help. Thank you.
After the trial, they'll leave us alone.
All this will end soon.
Maybe...
something should have been done so it wouldn't even start.
What are you saying?
Maybe if the boy had a better upbringing,
hadn't run around drunk, accosting militiamen...
That's crap! No one accosted anyone!
Watch your tongue.
Maybe...
there was no father's hand.
It's easy to neglect a kid,
and then cry over a tragedy.
Barbara, here's a towel for you.
Michał, I talked to your wife.
She's very worried, you know?
- I don't, I don't see her. - That could change.
She said they keep asking her about you guys.
I talked with the people here.
I have to say... it's not good.
They won't bug off.
This could end badly. You have to help me,
or my hands are tied.
They could hurt your wife's career.
Dismiss your in-laws from their diplomatic post in Rome.
Even arrest your brother.
They also said...
They said
you might have to scrape your little boy off the road.
Oh my God!
Little Piotr, right?
You're on a hunger strike?
- Shall I get sugar? - No need. He's on a hunger strike.
Think it over.
I'm here to help.
Your colleague doesn't have such options.
But he didn't do it, right?
Give him a moment.
- You asked us to protect Jerzy. - Right.
I had it arranged.
Great.
Now, I have a proposal.
You can say no, but this is the moment
to convince Jerzy to change his testimony.
I'll talk to him.
The point is that you don't. Someone else will.
Someone who will seem impartial to him, and therefore trustworthy.
Someone like second lieutenant Łyko.
You planted the son of a bitch?
I came to you openly and you treat me like an idiot?
Take it easy.
He had to establish contact. You prefer if he knocked on your door?
Sit down.
I'm not finished.
Put Łyko in touch with Jerzy.
Not too aggressively. It has to look natural.
If you need money for anything, don't hesitate to ask.
I can manage if you only stop meddling with our lives.
The investigation concerning your wife was closed.
You should get the decision shortly.
Just a misunderstanding.
And don't worry about the taxes. I'll fix that.
Okay.
Guard!
Well, Mr Wysocki?
Thank you, Madam Prosecutor, for finding the time for me.
Hard to tell how many times before.
You see,
it's been eating at my conscience for a long time now...
Yes?
I've done a terrible thing.
Now, I've decided to remove that burden off of me and my family.
It was...
my fault that...
that boy...
It was me...
Maybe let's take a break to let him calm down.
- He's clearly very shaken. - Yes, very.
Let's go.
This is my son Jerzy.
Jerzy!
Meet Zbyszek.
My friend from army times.
Mum is out, but supper's on the table.
Join us.
Good evening.
- Call me Zbyszek. - Jerzy.
I hear you're a hero.
I'm just saying how it went down.
How did it go down?
Leave the boy alone. He's had enough already.
I'm just curious.
Forgive me, friend. I won't force you.
There's not much to say.
They beat him to death in front of me.
But did you really see it?
It happened five metres away from me.
He fell to the floor, they picked him up, and continued.
Why didn't you help him?
I tried to, but...
they kept me away from him.
One guy pinned me to a chair.
Horrible.
How many were there in total?
Six guys.
Seven!
You got one guy in trouble.
How's that, sir?
You didn't see who did the beating.
You didn't see who struck the fatal blow.
There were six of them, maybe seven.
- What if that guy didn't touch him? - They all beat him.
You weren't fucking there.
Maybe they got him at the ER? Who knows?
You weren't there, right?
I didn't mean to upset you.
Just don't hurt anyone with your testimony.
Or even worse, don't make yourself look like an idiot in court.
The trial begins soon, right?
Yes, that's right.
I gotta hit the can.
I'm sorry about him. He's needlessly pushy.
- It's okay. - No, it's not.
I'll ask him to leave. That was uncalled for.
You have enough problems.
Remember, no matter what,
you can always come to me and talk.
Remember, always.
Thanks, dad.
Thanks.
Remember what we discussed?
You know the script?
We wrote it together, remember?
Don't mess it up this time.
Show it to him again.
How did you step on him?
How was it?
Which foot?
Remember?
There, finally. Good.
Ready?
- Płatek? - What now?
How am I to take the blame
when there are witnesses who won't confirm it?
Don't worry ahead. Haven't had enough stress?
Our people will handle the witnesses.
We have a big team of professionals.
Come on.
Can we continue?
So...
It was my fault that
that boy died in May.
Grzegorz Przemyk.
He was trashing around when we led him into the elevator at the ER.
And...
he fell on his left side,
and I stepped on his stomach with my right foot.
Right foot on his stomach.
On his stomach.
I am guilty of Grzegorz Przemyk's death.
Łyko said you've done well.
Jerzy is beginning to crack.
He's finally starting to trust me.
For the first time ever.
Whatever I say, he takes at face value.
That's good.
Good for you.
Get "Trybuna Ludu" tomorrow.
Front page. Show it to Jerzy.
ORDERLY ADMITS TO PRZEMYK BATTERY
Those orderlies didn't touch him.
You weren't there with them.
They didn't let you in the ambulance. Now you know why.
I saw it with my own eyes how the Militia beat him!
He howled like a beast!
They're killing the case. These are lies!
The man confessed!
Fuck that confession! He stepped on his stomach?
Guard!
Breathe!
Come on. Guard!
You surely realise
that Wysocki didn't do anything to Przemyk.
He claims otherwise.
Even if we accept his admission was spontaneous and not coerced,
it is impossible for the injuries to have resulted from
an accidental stepping on the abdomen.
- The abdomen! - Nine experts support that claim.
Two stated otherwise.
Finding them must have been a challenge.
Are you insinuating something?
- How many times did you question him? - Can't recall.
Three times.
First,
he claimed it was the other orderly who kicked Przemyk repeatedly.
Later, that he himself kicked him in the lift.
The problem was the lift operator, one Zychowicz,
who denied it in five subsequent interrogations.
It seems, that cost him his job.
Then, Wysocki got a third idea,
and claimed he stepped on Przemyk by accident,
when leading him from the ambulance to the lift.
Didn't you find that suspicious?
I figured these changes reflected the progress in the investigation.
Besides, the suspect was interrogated daily by the Militia.
I saw no sense in doubling interrogations.
You represent the Militia
or the Prosecution?
The court sided with me!
Courts can be wrong. That's why there are appeals.
Appeal to the Supreme Court
against the decision to supplement the investigation.
All this is, is a waste of my time.
You don't know where you live.
Wysocki confessed. What's the problem?
Which confession is comrade general referring to?
Withdraw your complaint, and we'll forget the whole affair.
Supplement the investigation.
Change the charges against our boys to 158 section 1,
and we're done.
No one is denying the need to respect the law.
But Przemyk's case has to be viewed from a political perspective.
Whose interests do you represent?
Of the Party, which made you general prosecutor,
or the Radio Free Europe and Solidarity?
The Constitution
which you're not familiar with or is are wilfully violating,
by treating the Prosecution as your branch.
Well...
Comrade, you're being ridiculous with your Constitution-waving.
The nine from Wujek,
Bogdan Włosik,
pacification in Lubin, you dismissed all those cases.
And now you're preaching about law and order?
You played this foolishly, comrades.
If not for your meddling,
a couple of hicks would have gone to prison,
and nobody would even remember Przemyk.
You created him yourselves.
Now deal with it.
Today, the State Council
recalled general prosecutor Franciszek Rusek
and appointed Józef Żyta in his place.
The Supreme Court ruled that
the Provincial Court was right to return the case file
linked with Przemyk's death to the Prosecution.
The ruling states there is suspicion that the indictment
exaggerates the blame of the Militia officers,
while overlooking the orderlies.
This was the news. And now, some music.
Hi, sonny.
What's wrong?
We're about to eat.
Who brought this?
The Internal Military Service.
For fuck's sake.
They gave me a deferment.
I'm not getting drafted.
It's not about the army. Only the mental hospital.
The examining psychiatrist will commit you.
No way.
They'll have to take me by force.
I'll fix this. But you have to cooperate.
Just change your testimony.
A security service guy I know can help.
What?
They just want you scared.
Change your testimony, and they'll bug off.
What security service guy?
I met up once with one of them. His name is Sajewicz.
I wanted to get them to leave us the fuck alone.
Once.
And it worked. They left us alone.
What did you tell them?
I'm not stupid. I have him figured out.
Did you snitch on your son?
- Did you snitch on your son? - I didn't tell him anything.
He talked, I listened. It was just so they'd leave you alone.
Did you talk about Barbara?
I did it for you, to keep you safe!
Did you fucking talk about her?
Fuck her! I was handling our business.
Stay the fuck away from me.
Did you know about this? We're living with a damn traitor!
Jerzy, calm down.
- You snitch on your son? - You're hysterical like some broad.
I'm never coming back to this house of traitors!
Don't talk to him like that.
You didn't keep your word. We had a deal.
If you can't handle your son,
maybe Barbara can help us.
But for old times' sake, I think you should see this.
What is it?
Sadowska's letters to your son.
Where did you get them?
Our agents sourced them.
You can't stay here.
What's the story with his draft?
We might be able to get a deferment.
At least until he testifies.
Later, they should let it go.
Eat up.
We have a long way to go.
We'll drive in circles and try to lose them.
You'll be safe with Gładysz.
Take care.
We're almost there.
Jerzy isn't here.
That's not why I came.
I'll keep it short.
Tell him to change his testimony.
That won't be possible.
You bamboozled him to testify, you can manage this as well.
Jerzy is an adult. He can't be bamboozled.
He does what he wants.
Maybe it's hard for you to understand.
You'll go to him,
or you'll pass a kite through your dossers,
and you'll tell him that this stupid operation is called off.
Dear sir,
I tried to treat you with respect because you are Jerzy's father.
But you are not worthy of respect.
You are simply a weak, stupid man.
Only such a man would report his son to the Security Service.
I don't want you in my home.
Do it, or I'll bring you down.
I'll reveal everything.
How for seven years you demoralised my son, a teenager.
Jerzy was of full legal age when we met. It's not your business.
I know that Jerzy wasn't the only one.
Maybe I should call a few other fathers?
What will people say once they read about it?
That the child went hungry
because mummy was busy with uncles. Prostitutes have more honour.
Get out of my house.
This is your last chance to save yourself.
Have him call off his testimony,
and you can live peacefully in this whorehouse of yours.
The choice is yours.
I'll go to the bishop.
We'll see if Popiełuszko continues to be such a great friend
once he finds out.
Before we begin, Mrs Sadowska has a formal request.
Approach.
Mrs Barbara Sadowska declares
that she decided to withdraw from the trial as a subsidiary prosecutor.
This whole year!
They rode me for a year.
A year.
My father sold me out to the Secret Service.
- This was a game to you? - You know it wasn't.
I fucking don't!
I don't.
"Jerzy, the truth is paramount.
Besides you, Grzegorz has no one!
The trial hangs on you!"
Now, you just woke up in the morning and changed your mind?
They will do whatever they want.
Since when, for fuck's sake, is this an argument?
I'm asking you.
Should I say I didn't see anything?
Jerzy...
It's your decision, not mine.
You're an adult.
I'm all worn out. Completely.
I would really just want to die
and be done with all this.
And Grzegorz?
This was all for him.
When I die, I'll be with him again.
I pray for that every day.
The next witness will be called in momentarily.
Aware of the significance of my words
and my responsibility before the law...
Aware of the significance of my words and my responsibility before the law...
I solemnly swear to tell the full truth.
I solemnly swear to tell the truth.
The full truth.
I solemnly swear to tell the full truth.
And not hide anything of what is known to me.
- The witness is yours. - Thank you.
You testified that
on May 12 you consumed alcohol in Barbara Sadowska's flat.
Wine.
How much wine did you have?
Not much. Maybe two glasses.
Wineglasses or regular glasses?
Wineglasses.
You drank from wineglasses?
No, from regular glasses, only small ones.
From vodka glasses?
If you want to convert this into glasses, I had one glass.
You could be facing prosecution for not telling the truth.
This is the full truth.
Private Kościuk testified that during your detainment you were drunk.
No, we were sober.
Then what was the reason for Przemyk's excitement and loss of balance?
We were happy that Grzegorz did well on his graduation exam.
Out of happiness,
Grzegorz Przemyk attacked a Militia officer at the station?
He didn't attack anybody.
An officer jumped at him. He defended himself.
Defended himself giving out karate shouts?
Nothing of the sort happened.
What were the shouts like?
Loud screams of pain.
Continuous or intermittent? In what key?
I don't understand.
Was it "aaaa"
or more "eeee"?
More like "e".
How many officers were there in the station that day?
I don't know.
You don't know that,
but you're sure that Przemyk didn't attack anyone?
Yes.
How many officers transported you to the station?
I don't remember.
You don't remember something so obvious?
I was upset.
At the station, you weren't upset any more,
since you claim you very well know who allegedly battered Przemyk.
I was upset, but I know what I saw.
So how many officers participated in the alleged beating?
At least three.
Can't you even give a specific number?
It happened very fast.
So fast that you say that three participated in the beating,
during the identity parade you recognised two,
but only one of the beaters?
I was shown 60 officers.
All were nearly identical.
Are you suggesting obstruction during the parade?
I'm just saying that...
not just the two I recognised were the beaters.
During the investigation you testified
that one of the officers said
to beat in such a way as to leave no marks.
At the same time, you said
that another officer held you down and your view was obscured.
From the other side.
The officer who said that was by the guardroom.
So you were looking behind you, not at the alleged beating?
I looked behind me when I heard about not leaving marks.
You didn't see the moment when these words were spoken?
Right when I heard those words
I turned my head and only Sergeant Denkiewicz was there.
So, you didn't see his lips moving?
No. But no one else could have said those words.
In the same way you deduced
that Private Kościuk did the beating, but you couldn't see anything!
I saw it!
I did.
I'm not sure if he elbowed him, held him, or punched him,
but I saw his moves.
From the distance of five metres?
At first, when they beat Grzegorz less aggressively, they were closer.
Later, they threw him around the corridor.
Out of those few beating officers,
you happened to remember Private Kościuk?
Quite a selective memory you have.
He nabbed us at the Square, that's why.
And that is the word of one person against the word of another!
Not one, but two.
At night, when Grzegorz woke up,
he said that the guy from the Square beat him the hardest.
Why would he lie?
If you are so sure that Grzegorz Przemyk was attacked,
why did you contact a barrister instead of the Prosecution?
Grzegorz Przemyk was beaten by the guy in the brown sweater.
Why did you contact a barrister instead of the Prosecution?
What were you hiding?
Przemyk was beaten by the guy in the brown sweater.
The bald guy said to leave no marks.
Why didn't you contact the Prosecution?
Grzegorz was beaten by the guy in the sweater.
The bald guy said to leave no marks.
You're in contempt! Answer the questions!
Grzegorz was beaten by the guy in the brown sweater.
The bald guy said to leave no marks.
Yes?
The verdict's in. Orderlies, 2 and 2.5 years.
Our boys were acquitted.
People who have the brass, equating the Militia with power...
MAY GOD JUDGE HIS MURDERERS
...decided to sacrifice truth for immediate gain,
compromise the judiciary system in Poland
with cynical manipulation,
which in a day to come will be textbook examples of injustice.
I don't expect that day to come quickly.
It will come at a time
when the systematic desecration of my son Grzegorz's grave
will be nothing more
than a disgraceful symbol
of today's reality.
SADOWSKA DIED OF LUNG CANCER IN 1986, AT 46,
THREE YEARS AFTER HER ONLY SON.
THEY ARE BOTH BURIED AT THE WARSAW POWĄZKI CEMETERY.
THE PERPETRATORS AND THOSE WHO COVERED UP THE CRIME
AVOIDED PUNISHMENT.
TRIALS CONCERNING THE MATTER
WERE REOPENED SEVERAL TIMES AND SENTENCES WERE REVOKED.
IN 2010, PRZEMYK'S CASE HAD FALLEN UNDER THE STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS.
DIRECTED BY
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