Behemoth’s Nergal And Co. Score Third Legal Victor…

Behemoth vocalist/guitarist Adam “Nergal” Darski is claiming another legal victory in relation to a past piece of Behemoth merchandise. You may recall that back in 2017, Darski, designer Rafal Wechterowicz, and Behemoth webmaster Maciej G. were charged with insulting the Polish coat of arms with a Behemoth merch design.

Since then, Darski and co. have been acquitted twice over that matter. Now a third appeal has been struck down, with a re-analysis of the design in question being found to be an artistic expression that at most referred to the aforementioned country’s court of arms. The merch item that was alleged to have insulted the coat of arms can be seen below:

An official statement regarding this latest development in the case from the Polish prosecutor’s office reads:

‘Article 28, section 1 of the Constitution of the Republic of Poland states that the emblem of the Republic of Poland is the image of a white eagle with a crown in a red field . The above provision is further specified in the Act of 31 January 1980 in Article 2, section 1, where it is stated that the emblem of the Republic of Poland is ‘the image of a white eagle with a golden crown on its head turned to the right, with spread wings, a golden beak and talons, placed in a red field of the shield’. Referring the above, very precise definition of the emblem to the disputed graphic, the Prosecutor found that the disputed graphic is an artistic creation, but is not the emblem of the Republic of Poland.

Thus, in this case, there is no subject matter that could be affected by the accused’s alleged causative act. In other words, the accused could not have insulted the coat of arms of the Republic of Poland, because the graphic in question was not the coat of arms. It should also be emphasized that the analysis of the creative process of the disputed artistic installation has shown beyond any doubt that the discussed product was not created as a result of transforming the coat of arms of the Republic of Poland, and at most refers to the coat of arms.’

Back in 2021, after countless run-ins with the religiously minded authorities in his native Poland, Darski launched his ‘Ordo Blasfemia’ legal crowdfunding campaign, raising £49,705. Those funds have been directed towards fighting back against Poland’s anti-blasphemy laws. Speaking on this latest ruling today, July 26th, via social media, Nergal commented:

“Remember ORDO BLASFEMIA and your MASSIVE support to my call? It’s STILL paying off… in my favor.

ANOTHER victorious battle of common sense against superstitious conservative mindset under the belt! I’m honestly relieved… 8 years of struggle is fuckin’ OVER!

The Regional Prosecutor’s Office in Gdansk has withdrawn the indictment in which we were accused of allegedly insulting the Polish emblem. After eight years, the prosecutor’s office decided that the rule of law required it and that freedom of speech and art are values in a democratic society.

Once all the formal procedures are over @behemothwebstore will restart the print of this remarkable design!

Once again, THANK YOU for undying support and keeping the spirit.

Hail Satan
Hail Freedom”