THIRD SECTION
DECISION
Application no. 28298/17
Sergey Aleksandrovich APRELKOV against Russia
and 2 other applications
(see appended table)
The European Court of Human Rights (Third Section), sitting on 25 June 2020 as a Committee composed of:
Alena Poláčková, President,
Dmitry Dedov,
Gilberto Felici, judges,
and Liv Tigerstedt, Acting Deputy Section Registrar,
Having regard to the above applications lodged on the various dates indicated in the appended table,
Having regard to the declarations submitted by the respondent Government requesting the Court to strike the applications out of the list of cases, and the applicants’ replies to these declarations,
Having deliberated, decides as follows:
FACTS AND PROCEDURE
The list of applicants is set out in the appended table.
The applicants’ complaints under Article 3 of the Convention concerning the inadequate conditions of detention were communicated to the Russian Government (“the Government”). In some of the applications, complaints based on the same facts were also communicated under other provisions of the Convention.
The Government submitted declarations with a view to resolving the issues raised by these complaints. They further requested the Court to strike out the applications.
The Government acknowledged that certain periods of the applicants’ detention were in violation of the guarantees of Article 3 of the Convention. In some of the applications, they further acknowledged that the domestic authorities had violated the applicants’ rights guaranteed by other provisions of the Convention. They offered to pay the applicants the amounts detailed in the appended table and invited the Court to strike the applications out of the list of cases in accordance with Article 37 § 1 (c) of the Convention. The amounts would be converted into the currency of the respondent State at the rate applicable on the date of payment, and would be payable within three months from the date of notification of the Court’s decision. In the event of failure to pay these amounts within the above-mentioned three-month period, the Government undertook to pay simple interest on them, from the expiry of that period until settlement, at a rate equal to the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank during the default period plus three percentage points.
The payment will constitute the final resolution of the cases.
The applicants informed the Court that they agreed to the terms of the declarations.
THE LAW
Having regard to the similar subject matter of the applications, the Court finds it appropriate to examine them jointly in a single decision.
The Court finds that, following the applicants’ express agreement to the terms of the declaration made by the Government, the cases should be treated as a friendly settlement between the parties.
It therefore takes note of the friendly settlement reached between the parties. It is satisfied that the settlement is based on respect for human rights as defined in the Convention and the Protocols thereto and finds no reasons to justify the continued examination of the applications.
In view of the above, it is appropriate to strike the cases out of the list as regards the complaints concerning the inadequate conditions of detention, insofar as they were covered by the unilateral declarations, and the other complaints under the well-established case-law (as listed in the appended table).
The applicants also complained about conditions of their detentions during other periods not covered by the Government’s unilateral declarations.
The Court has examined those complaints and finds that the applicants should avail themselves of the new remedy introduced in the Russian Federation, which the Court declared effective in its recent decision of Shmelev and Others v. Russia ((dec.), nos. 41743/17 and 16 others, 17 March 2020).
It follows that this part of the applications must be rejected in accordance with Article 35 § 4 of the Convention.
For these reasons, the Court, unanimously,
Decides to join the applications;
Decides to strike the applications out of its list of cases in accordance with Article 39 of the Convention as regards the inadequate conditions of detention, insofar as they are covered by the unilateral declarations, as well as the other complaints under the well-established case law (as listed in the appended table);
Declares the remainder of the applications inadmissible.
Done in English and notified in writing on 16 July 2020.
Liv TigerstedtAlena Poláčková
Acting Deputy RegistrarPresident
APPENDIX
List of applications raising complaints under Article 3 of the Convention
(inadequate conditions of detention)
No.
Application no.
Date of introduction
Applicant’s name
Date of birth
Representative’s name and location
Other complaints under well-established case-law
Date of receipt of Government’s declaration
Date of receipt of applicant’s acceptance
Amount awarded for pecuniary and non-pecuniary damage and costs and expenses per applicant
(in euros)[1]
28298/17
04/04/2017
Sergey Aleksandrovich APRELKOV
28/05/1982
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention -
29/09/2017
20/12/2017
9,000
26040/18
19/05/2018
Vitaliy Vladimirovich ILYIN
26/01/1991
Vinogradov Aleksandr Vladimirovich
Kostroma
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention -
10/01/2019
15/03/2019
1,000
27377/18
23/05/2018
Aleksandr Igorevich LEONOV
15/05/1956
Gayevskiy Aleksandr Sergeyevich
St Petersburg
25/01/2019
02/04/2019
3,555
[1] Plus any tax that may be chargeable to the applicants.
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