Forensic Tactics by Tadeusz Hanausek as a Method for Detecting Perpetrators of Crime

The aim of the article is to present the views of a classic forensic scientist prof. zw. dr hab. Tadeusz Hanausek, the founder of Cracow school of forensic science, who has shaped the Polish foundations of forensic tactics, which is currently one of the disciplines of forensic science. The presentation of professor Hanausek has been reflected in the implementation of his dogmatic point of view in the practice of law enforcement agencies and the justice system both during his life and after his death. Professor Tadeusz Hanausek determined the reasons for the initial underestimation of the role of forensic tactics despite the acceptance of this term, built a definition of forensic tactics and developed scientific research that allowed him to indicate a growing role of forensic tactics in the implementation of the functions of forensic science and the criminal procedure. The article presents the fundamental issues of Tadeusz Hanausek’s creative scientific interests, which he first defined and then consistently pursued and developed in his scientific and research activities. The pioneering scientific and research issues in question were passed on by professor Tadeusz Hanausek to the representatives of his Cracow school of forensic tactics and then developed, presented and widely discussed on the national, European and international forum. The subject matter of the article is also focused on the examples of practical application of the professor’s ideas in an effective detection of perpetrators of crime. In addition, the publication is based on the research findings of the judicial and prosecutorial records of one of the authors of this article, who is an active representative, popularizer and, above all, a continuator of professor Hanausek’s Cracow school of forensic tactics.