Communicated on 15 September 2016
SECOND SECTION
Application no. 45391/16
Ilija BABIĆ
against Croatia
lodged on 29 July 2016
STATEMENT OF FACTS
The applicant, Mr Ilija Babić, is a Croatian national, who was born in 1981 and lives in Opatija. He is represented before the Court by Mr B. Kozjak, a lawyer practising in Virovitica.
The circumstances of the case
The facts of the case, as submitted by the applicant, may be summarised as follows.
On 28 May 2011 the applicant was arrested in connection with his disturbance of public peace and order under the influence of alcohol.
He was allegedly ill-treated by the police during the arrest. According to an available medical expert report, the applicant suffered contusions in the area around the right eye, arms and legs as well as a broken rib.
On 15 July 2011 the applicant was convicted by the Virovitica Minor Offences Court (Prekršajni sud u Virovitici) on charges of verbally abusing the police officers while performing their duties, including the officer D.S., qualified as a minor offence of verbal abuse of an official person while performing his or her duties.
On 20 July 2011 the applicant was indicted in the Virovitica Municipal Court (Općinski sud u Virovitici) on charges of verbally abusing and attempting to attack the police officer D.S., which was qualified as a criminal offence of attacking a police officer in the performance of his or her duties.
During the criminal proceedings before the Virovitica Municipal Court the applicant contended that he had been ill-treated by the police during his arrest and that he had attempted to lodge a criminal complaint with the police concerning the event but that his complaint had been denied.
On 26 February 2013, following a hearing at which the representative of the competent State Attorney’s Office was present, the Virovitica Municipal Court found the applicant guilty as charged and sentenced him to a six months’ suspended sentence.
The applicant challenged his conviction by lodging an appeal before the Bjelovar County Court (Županijski sud u Bjelovaru). He argued that he had been prosecuted and punished twice for the same offence, first in the minor offences proceedings and then in the criminal proceedings. He also contended that he had been ill-treated by the police.
On 19 December 2013 the Bjelovar County Court dismissed the applicant’s appeal on the grounds that he had not been prosecuted in the minor offences proceedings on charges of attacking a police officer, for which he had been prosecuted and convicted in the criminal proceedings. The Bjelovar County Court also stressed that it was not for it to deal with the complaints concerning the applicant’s alleged ill-treatment during the arrest.
The applicant then lodged a constitutional complaint before the Constitutional Court (Ustavni sud Republike Hrvatske) reiterating his complaints of a breach of the principle of ne bis in idem and his ill-treatment during the arrest.
On 25 February 2016 the Constitutional Court dismissed the applicant’s complaint of a breach of the principle of ne bis in idem as unfounded on the grounds that he had not been tried in the minor offences proceedings for attacking a police officer. The Constitutional Court provided no reasoning concerning the applicant’s allegations of ill-treatment during the arrest.
COMPLAINTS
The applicant complains, under Article 3 of the Convention, that he was ill-treated by the police during the arrest and that there was no effective investigation in that respect.
The applicant also complains, under Article 4 of Protocol No. 7, that he was tried for the same offence, first in the minor offences proceedings and then in the criminal proceedings.
QUESTIONS TO THE PARTIES
1. Has the applicant been subjected to torture, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment during his arrest by the police, in breach of Article 3 of the Convention?
2. Having regard to the procedural protection from torture, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment (see paragraph 131 of Labita v. Italy [GC], no. 26772/95, ECHR 2000-IV), has there been an effective investigation meeting the requirements of Article 3 of the Convention concerning the applicant’s alleged ill-treatment by the police?
3. Has the applicant been tried and convicted twice for the same offence in the territory of the respondent State, as prohibited by Article 4 § 1 of Protocol No. 7?
The Government are requested to submit copies of all relevant documents concerning the applicant’s case.
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