FOURTH SECTION
CASE OF HANYECZ AND OTHERS v. ROMANIA
(Application no. 983/16 and 9 others -
see appended list)
JUDGMENT
STRASBOURG
12 July 2018
This judgment is final but it may be subject to editorial revision.
In the case of Hanyecz and Others v. Romania,
The European Court of Human Rights (Fourth Section), sitting as a Committee composed of:
Vincent A. De Gaetano, President,
Georges Ravarani,
Marko Bošnjak, judges,
and Liv Tigerstedt Acting Deputy Section Registrar,
Having deliberated in private on 12 June 2018,
Delivers the following judgment, which was adopted on that date:
PROCEDURE
1. The case originated in applications against Romania lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) on the various dates indicated in the appended table.
2. The applications were communicated to the Romanian Government (“the Government”).
THE FACTS
3. The list of applicants and the relevant details of the applications are set out in the appended table.
4. The applicants complained of the inadequate conditions of their detention. In application no. 47367/16, the applicant also raised another complaint under Article 3 of the Convention.
THE LAW
I. JOINDER OF THE APPLICATIONS
5. Having regard to the similar subject matter of the applications, the Court finds it appropriate to examine them jointly in a single judgment.
II. ALLEGED VIOLATION OF ARTICLE 3 OF THE CONVENTION
6. The applicants complained of the inadequate conditions of their detention. They relied on Article 3 of the Convention, which reads as follows:
Article 3
“No one shall be subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.”
7. The Court notes that the applicants were kept in detention in poor conditions. The details of the applicants’ detention are indicated in the appended table. The Court refers to the principles established in its case‑law regarding inadequate conditions of detention (see, for instance, Muršić v. Croatia [GC], no. 7334/13, §§ 96‑101, ECHR 2016). It reiterates in particular that a serious lack of space in a prison cell weighs heavily as a factor to be taken into account for the purpose of establishing whether the detention conditions described are “degrading” from the point of view of Article 3 and may disclose a violation, both alone or taken together with other shortcomings (see Muršić, cited above, §§ 122 ‑141, and Ananyev and Others v. Russia, nos. 42525/07 and 60800/08, §§ 149‑159, 10 January 2012).
8. In the leading case of Rezmiveș and Others v. Romania, nos. 61467/12 and 3 others, 25 April 2017, the Court already found a violation in respect of issues similar to those in the present case.
9. Having examined all the material submitted to it, as well as the Government’s objection concerning the continuous situations of the applicants’ conditions of detention in some of the cases, the Court has not found any fact or argument capable of persuading it to reach a different conclusion on the admissibility and merits of these complaints. Having regard to its case-law on the subject, the Court considers that in the instant case the applicants’ conditions of detention were inadequate.
10. These complaints are therefore admissible and disclose a breach of Article 3 of the Convention.
III. REMAINING COMPLAINTS
11. The applicant in application no. 47367/16 also raised another complaint under Article 3 of the Convention, concerning the lack of medical assistance in prison.
12. The Court has examined the application and considers that, in the light of all the material in its possession and in so far as the matters complained of are within its competence, this complaint either does not meet the admissibility criteria set out in Articles 34 and 35 of the Convention or does not disclose any appearance of a violation of the rights and freedoms enshrined in the Convention or the Protocols thereto.
It follows that this part of the application must be rejected in accordance with Article 35 § 4 of the Convention.
IV. APPLICATION OF ARTICLE 41 OF THE CONVENTION
13. Article 41 of the Convention provides:
“If the Court finds that there has been a violation of the Convention or the Protocols thereto, and if the internal law of the High Contracting Party concerned allows only partial reparation to be made, the Court shall, if necessary, afford just satisfaction to the injured party.”
14. Regard being had to the documents in its possession and to its case‑law (see, in particular, Rezmiveș and Others v. Romania, nos. 61467/12 and 3 others, 25 April 2017), the Court considers it reasonable to award the sums indicated in the appended table.
15. The Court considers it appropriate that the default interest rate should be based on the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank, to which should be added three percentage points.
FOR THESE REASONS, THE COURT, UNANIMOUSLY,
1. Decides to join the applications;
2. Declares the complaints concerning the inadequate conditions of detention, as set out in the appended table, admissible and the remainder of the application no. 47367/16 inadmissible;
3. Holds that these applications disclose a breach of Article 3 of the Convention concerning the inadequate conditions of detention;
4. Holds
(a) that the respondent State is to pay the applicants, within three months, the amounts indicated in the appended table, to be converted into the currency of the respondent State at the rate applicable at the date of settlement;
(b) that from the expiry of the above-mentioned three months until settlement simple interest shall be payable on the above amounts at a rate equal to the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank during the default period plus three percentage points.
Done in English, and notified in writing on 12 July 2018, pursuant to Rule 77 §§ 2 and 3 of the Rules of Court.
Liv TigerstedtVincent A. De Gaetano
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 name
Date of birth
Representative name and location
Facility
Start and end date
Duration
Sq. m. per inmate
Specific grievances
Amount awarded for pecuniary and non-pecuniary damage and costs and expenses per applicant (in euros)1
983/16
10/02/2016
Attila Hanyecz
14/07/1978
Oradea and Satu Mare Prisons, Colibași and Dej Prison Hospitals
09/08/2012 to
18/07/2017
4 years and 11 months and 10 days
1.03-17.83 m²
overcrowding (save for the periods from 09/06/2015 to 07/01/2016 and from 25/02/2016 to 19/01/2017 in Oradea Prison and while in Dej Prison Hospital), lack of fresh air, lack of or insufficient physical exercise in fresh air, lack of or insufficient natural light, lack of or insufficient electric light, lack or inadequate furniture, no or restricted access to shower, no or restricted access to warm water, mouldy or dirty cell
3,000
8402/16
12/04/2016
Iulian-Alexandru Toma
05/11/1989
Olt Police Arrest and Craiova, Drobeta Turnu Severin and Pelendava Prisons
10/12/2014 to
24/10/2016
1 year and 10 months and 15 days
1.30-4.99 m²
overcrowding (save for the periods from 10/12/2014 to 12/12/2014 in Olt Police Arrest and from 04/08/2015 to 24/10/2016 in Pelendava Prison), lack of or inadequate hygienic facilities, inadequate temperature, lack of or poor quality of bedding and bed linen, infestation of cell with insects/rodents, poor quality of food, lack or inadequate furniture, mouldy or dirty cell, lack of or insufficient physical exercise in fresh air, lack of privacy for toilet, restricted access to toilet, no or restricted access to shower, lack of fresh air
3,000
14263/16
01/06/2016
Livius-Iulius Amza
13/08/1978
Irina Maria Peter
Bucharest
Teleorman Police Inspectorate Arrest and Jilava, Colibași, Giurgiu, Rahova, Târgu–Jiu and Craiova Prisons
16/02/2011 to
16/02/2017
6 years and 1 day
0.96-11.54 m²
overcrowding (save for the periods from 17/02/2011 to 20/04/2011 in Teleorman Police Inspectorate Arrest and from 17/02/2012 to 02/07/2012, 12/02/2015 to 16/03/2015, 17/08/2016 to 26/09/2016, 23/04/2015 to 28/05/2015, 08/06/2015 to 30/07/2015 and 17/10/2016 to 16/02/2017 in Giurgiu Prison), inadequate temperature, lack or insufficient quantity of food, poor quality of food, no or restricted access to potable water, bunk beds, lack of or poor quality of bedding and bed linen, infestation of cell with insects/rodents, lack of or inadequate hygienic facilities, no or restricted access to shower, lack of or insufficient physical exercise in fresh air
5,000
15794/16
26/04/2016
Vasile Coman
25/12/1983
Irina Maria
Peter
Bucharest
Bucharest Central Arrest
18/01/2013 to
19/03/2013
2 months and 2 days
Rahova and Craiova Prisons
19/03/2013 to
07/11/2016
3 years and 7 months and 20 days
1.83 m²
1.72-4.09 m²
overcrowding, lack of or inadequate hygienic facilities, infestation of cell with insects/rodents, poor quality of food, lack or inadequate furniture, lack of or insufficient physical exercise in fresh air, lack of privacy for toilet, lack of fresh air
overcrowding (save for the periods in Rahova Prison from 29/10/2013 to 08/10/2014 and from 21/10/2014 - onward), lack of or inadequate hygienic facilities, infestation of cell with insects/rodents, poor quality of food, lack or inadequate furniture, lack of or insufficient physical exercise in fresh air
3,000
25954/16
31/05/2016
Dávid Bara
17/04/1984
Covasna Police Arrest and Codlea Prison
24/03/2015 to
17/01/2018
2 years and 9 months and 25 days
1.43-6 m²
overcrowding (save for the period from 24/03/2015 to 23/04/2015 in Covasna Police Arrest), no or restricted access to toilet, lack or inadequate furniture, poor quality of food, lack of or insufficient natural light, lack of or insufficient electric light, lack of fresh air, lack of or inadequate hygienic facilities, no or restricted access to shower, no or restricted access to warm water, lack of or insufficient physical exercise in fresh air
3,000
30168/16
07/07/2016
Constantin‑Leonaş Rizea
08/09/1973
Rahova, Ploiești, Găești
Prisons
21/01/2014 to
06/07/2016
2 years and 5 months and 16 days
1.33 - 4.63 m²
overcrowding (save for the period from 07/09/2015 to 06/07/2016 in Găești Prison), insects, dirty and mouldy cell, lack of furniture, inadequate sanitary facilities, bunk beds, lack of or poor quality of bedding and bed linen, poor quality of food
3,000
31442/16
22/06/2016
Cornel Alexandru Turungiu
08/05/1981
Bucharest Police Inspectorate no. 11 and Rahova, Colibași, Jilava
Prisons 20/04/2014 to
17/10/2017
3 years and 5 months and 28 days
1.9 - 9.79 m²
overcrowding (save for the periods from 20/04/2014 to 06/05/2014 in Bucharest Police Section no. 11, from 06/05/2014-27/05/2014, 19/12/2014-10/02/2015, 21/05/2015-22/05/2015 and 30/09/2015-02/10/2015 in Rahova Prison, from 05/10/2015-06/10/2015 and 06/04/2016-18/04/2016 in Colibași Prison and from 18/04/2016-18/01/2017 in Jilava Prison), dirty and mouldy cell, poor quality of bedding and bed linen, lack of furniture, bunk beds, lack of or insufficient physical exercise in fresh air, infestation of cell with insects/rodents, no or restricted access to running water, no or restricted access to warm water
3,000
34086/16
12/07/2016
Cătălin Bufnea
13/04/1972
Irina Maria
Peter
Bucharest
Giurgiu and Jilava Prisons
01/09/2012 to
09/12/2016
4 years and 3 months and 9 days
1.15-5.21 m²
overcrowding (save for the period from 15/05/2013 to 10/12/2016 in Giurgiu Prison), inadequate temperature, poor quality of food, lack of or inadequate hygienic facilities, infestation of cell with insects/rodents, lack of or insufficient physical exercise in fresh air, poor quality of potable water
3,000
47367/16
07/09/2016
Adrian Stan
18/12/1981
Bucharest Police Section no. 13, Rahova, Jilava, Găești Prisons
08/06/2011 to
13/12/2016
5 years and 6 months and 6 days
1.7-4.91 m²
overcrowding (save for the periods from 09/03/2012 to 08/01/2014 in Rahova Prison and from 11/06/2015 to 13/12/2016 in Găești Prison), infestation of cell with insects/rodents, no or restricted access to warm water, mouldy or dirty cell, lack or inadequate furniture, lack of or inadequate hygienic facilities, lack of fresh air, poor quality of food, lack of privacy for toilet, lack of or poor quality of bedding and bed linen
5,000
58797/16
12/12/2016
Ovidiu Marian Gavrilă
08/09/1982
Bucharest Police Section no. 12, Rahova, Jilava, Prisons
05/10/2011 to
11/08/2016
4 years and 10 months and 7 days
1.61-3.26 m²
overcrowding (save for the periods from 05/03/2012-29/03/2012 and from 28/09/2012-01/10/2012 in Rahova Prison), bunk beds, no or restricted access to warm water (save for the period from 16/12/2015 to 11/08/2016 in Jilava Prison), lack of or inadequate hygienic facilities
3,000
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