Iași Tribunal annuls police recruitment contest over external source dispute

The Iași Tribunal has annulled the results of a police recruitment competition for a psychologist position in Iași. The contest was officially advertised as recruitment from an ‘external source,’ but the winner, Amalia M., was revealed to be an active police officer transferred from the Vaslui County Police Inspectorate.

Two candidates reached the written exam stage: Georgiana H., who scored 8.80, and Amalia M., who scored 9.10. Following her appointment in December 2024, Georgiana H. discovered that her competitor was not an external candidate but an active officer.

During legal proceedings, the Romanian General Inspectorate of Police argued that ‘external source recruitment’ should not be interpreted strictly grammatically and that active officers are not prohibited from participating. However, judges rejected this interpretation, stating that allowing an active officer to win a direct recruitment contest for external sources removes the distinction between internal and external candidates and creates an unfair competitive advantage for civilian applicants. The decision to annul the validation of the candidates' files is not final and has been contested by the police authorities. The case is expected to continue at the Court of Appeal.