FOURTH SECTION
DECISION
Application no. 12711/20
Luis António CASTRO SOARES against Portugal
and 6 other applications
(see appended table)
The European Court of Human Rights (Fourth Section), sitting on 25 August 2022 as a Committee composed of:
Armen Harutyunyan, President,
Jolien Schukking
Ana Maria Guerra Martins, judges,
and Viktoriya Maradudina, Acting Deputy Section Registrar,
Having regard to the above applications lodged on the various dates indicated in the appended table,
Having regard to the observations submitted by the respondent Government and the observations in reply submitted by the applicants,
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 Portuguese Government (“the Government”). In some of the applications, complaints based on the same facts were also communicated under other provisions of the Convention.
THE LAW
Joinder of the applicationsHaving regard to the similar subject matter of the applications, the Court finds it appropriate to examine them jointly in a single decision.
Complaints under Article 3 of the Convention (inadequate conditions of detention)Conditions of detention concerning the last period of detentionIn the present applications, having examined all the material before it, the Court considers that for the reasons stated below, the complaints about the conditions of detention during the period as described below are inadmissible.
The applicants were detained in different prison facilities. During their last, most recent and/or current period of detention, the applicants were detained at Paços de Ferreira Prison (application no. 12711/20), Pinheiro da Cruz Prison (applications nos. 15580/20, 28896/20 and 28898/20) and Carregueira Prison (applications nos. 49915/20, 20073/21 and 24146/21).
Having regard to all of the available material and the parties’ arguments, the Court finds that it cannot be established that the applicants suffered in these prison facilities from severe overcrowding of the kind that could entail, on its own, a violation of Article 3 (see Muršić v. Croatia [GC], no. 7334/13, § 114, 20 October 2016). Nor can it be found that the cumulative effect of the other aspects of the detention which the applicants complained about reached the threshold of severity required to characterise the treatment as inhuman or degrading within the meaning of Article 3 (see Bokor v. Portugal, (dec.) no. 5227/18, §§ 32-34, 10 December 2020).
In view of the above, the Court finds that the complaints about these periods of detention are manifestly ill-founded and must be rejected in accordance with Article 35 §§ 3 and 4 of the Convention.
Conditions of detention before their last prison transferConcerning applications nos. 15580/20, 28896/20, 28898/20, 20073/21 and 24146/21, in light of the conclusion above, the Court finds that the applicants’ transfer to the last (most recent) prison facility interrupted the “continued situation” of their conditions of detention, and thus the complaints about the conditions of detention during the period prior to their last transfer are belated (see Ananyev and Others v. Russia, nos. 42525/07 and 60800/08, §§ 75-78, 10 January 2012) and must be rejected in accordance with Article 35 § § 1 and 4 of the Convention.
Complaint under Article 13 of the Convention (lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention)In applications nos. 12711/20, 28896/20, 28898/20, 49915/20, 20073/21, 24146/21, under Article 13 of the Convention, the applicants complained of the lack of an effective remedy to complain against the inadequate conditions of detention in Portugal. The Court notes that, according to the Court’s established case-law, Article 13 applies only where an individual has an “arguable claim” to be the victim of a violation of a Convention right (see Boyle and Rice v. the United Kingdom, 27 April 1988, § 52, Series A no. 131, and Narcisio v. Netherlands (dec.), no. 47810/99, 27 January 2005).
Having regard to the findings above in respect of the applicants’ complaints under Article 3 about the conditions of detention, the Court concludes that they did not have an “arguable claim”, and that therefore Article 13 is not applicable. It follows that this part of the applications must be rejected in accordance with Article 35 §§ 3 and 4 of the Convention.
For these reasons, the Court, unanimously,
Decides to join the applications;
Declares the applications inadmissible.
Done in English and notified in writing on 15 September 2022.
Viktoriya Maradudina Armen Harutyunyan
Acting Deputy Registrar President
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
Year of birth
Representative’s name and location
Facility
Start and end date
Duration
Sq. m per inmate
Specific grievances
Other complaints under well-established case-law
12711/20
28/02/2020
Luis António CASTRO SOARES
1960
Carreto Vítor
Torres Vedras
Paços de Ferreira Prison
04/02/2011 to
29/10/2012
1 year, 8 months and 25 days
***
Paços de Ferreira Prison (infirmary)
29/10/2012 to
04/12/2013
1 year and 1 month and
6 days
***
Paços de Ferreira Prison
04/12/2013 to
09/01/2020
6 years, 1 month and 5 days
1-2 inmates
3.11-10 m²
1 toilet
***
2 inmates
3.11 m²
1 toilet
***
1 inmate
5.5-10 m²
1 toilet
lack of fresh air, overcrowding, mouldy or dirty cell, lack or insufficient quantity of food, poor quality of food, lack of privacy for toilet, no or restricted access to warm water
***
idem
***
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention
15580/20
21/05/2020
Nelson TAVARES MOURA
1988
Lisbon Central Prison
23/06/2015 to
31/07/2018
3 years and 3 days
***
Pinheiro da Cruz Prison
31/07/2018
pending
More than 4 years and 4 days
3 inmates
2.4 m²
1 toilet
***
1 inmate
5.65 m²
1 toilet
infestation of cell with insects/rodents, inadequate temperature, stone beds, poor quality of food, overcrowding, mouldy or dirty cell, lack of requisite medical assistance, lack of emergency alarm in the cell
***
28896/20
07/07/2020
Mário José DOS SANTOS VIEIRA
1983
Carreto Vítor
Torres Vedras
Lisbon Central Prison
09/08/2012 to
18/12/2012
4 months and 10 days
***
Setúbal Prison
18/12/2012 to
18/02/2013
2 months and 1 day
***
Lisbon Central Prison
18/02/2013 to
29/09/2017
4 years and 7 months and 12 days
***
Pinheiro da Cruz Prison
29/09/2017 to
24/10/2017
26 days
***
Pinheiro da Cruz Prison
24/10/2017
pending
More than 4 years and
8 months and 5 days
2 inmates
3 m²
1 toilet
***
9 inmates
1.22 m²
1 toilet
***
2 inmates
3 m²
1 toilet
***
2 inmates
2.78 m²
1 toilet
***
1 inmate
5.55 m²
1 toilet
overcrowding, poor quality of food, mouldy or dirty cell, lack or insufficient quantity of food, lack of requisite medical assistance, lack of privacy for toilet, inadequate temperature, sharing cells with inmates infected with contagious disease
***
idem
***
idem
***
idem
***
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention
28898/20
07/07/2020
Malcides PEREIRA MOREIRA
1987
Carreto Vítor
Torres Vedras
Setúbal Prison
02/02/2018 to
15/03/2018
1 month and 22 days
***
Pinheiro da Cruz Prison
15/03/2018 to
28/03/2018
14 days
***
Pinheiro da Cruz
28/03/2018
pending
More than 4 years and
3 months and 1 day
9 inmates
1.22 m²
***
2 inmates
2.78 m²
1 toilet
***
1 inmate
5.5 m²
1 toilet
inadequate temperature, lack of fresh air, lack of privacy for toilet, lack of requisite medical assistance, lack or insufficient quantity of food, mouldy or dirty cell, overcrowding, sharing cells with inmates infected with contagious disease, poor quality of food
***
idem
***
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention -
49915/20
02/11/2020
Pedro Manuel MARTINS DA SILVA
1971
Carreto Vítor
Torres Vedras
Carregueira Prison
24/01/2020 to
31/01/2020
8 days
***
Carregueira Prison
31/01/2020 to
09/06/2020
4 months and 10 days
***
Carregueira Prison
09/06/2020 to
14/09/2020
3 months and 6 days
1 inmate
7.7 m²
1 toilet
***
6 inmates
5.12 m²
***
5 inmates
6.14 m²
1 toilet
poor quality of food, lack or insufficient quantity of food
***
idem
***
idem
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention
20073/21
05/04/2021
Jorge Manuel TEIXEIRA DUARTE
1967
Carreto Vítor
Torres Vedras
Silves Prison
14/02/2017 to
03/03/2017
1 month and 1 day
***
Carregueira Prison
03/03/2017 to
08/03/2017
6 days
***
Carregueira Prison
08/03/2017
pending
More than 5 years and
3 months and 21 days
5 inmates
3.5 m²
1 toilet
***
1 inmate
7.7 m²
1 toilet
***
5 inmates
5.12 m²
1 toilet
inadequate temperature, lack of fresh air, mouldy or dirty cell, poor quality of food, overcrowding, lack or insufficient quantity of food, lack of privacy for toilet
***
poor quality of food
***
idem
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention
24146/21
29/04/2021
André Carlos MONTEIRO TEIXEIRA LEITE
1985
Carreto Vítor
Torres Vedras
Angra do Heroismo Prison
01/05/2013 to
17/09/2014
1 year and 1 day
***
Carregueira Prison
17/09/2014 to
20/06/2021
6 years and 9 months and
4 days
***
Carregueira Prison
20/06/2021
pending
More than 1 year and 9 days
3 inmates
N/A m²
1 toilet
***
5 inmates
5.12 m²
1 toilet
***
1 inmate
9.9 m²
1 toilet
lack of fresh air, inadequate temperature, mouldy or dirty cell, lack or insufficient quantity of food, overcrowding, poor quality of food, lack of or poor quality of bedding and bed linen, lack of privacy for toilet, lack of or insufficient physical exercise in fresh air
***
lack of fresh air, poor quality of food
***
idem
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention