FOURTH SECTION
DECISION
Application no. 12492/21
Petru-Marius CHIPERI against Romania
and 10 other applications
(see appended table)
The European Court of Human Rights (Fourth Section), sitting on 21 May 2026 as a Committee composed of:
Anne Louise Bormann, President,
András Jakab,
Corinna Wissels, judges,
and Viktoriya Maradudina, Acting Deputy Section Registrar,
Having regard to the above 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,
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 PROCEDUREThe 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 Romanian Government (“the Government”). The applicants also raised additional complaints under other Convention provisions.
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)The applicants complained principally of the inadequate conditions of their detention. They relied on Article 3 of the Convention.
Having examined all the material before it, the Court considers that for the reasons stated below, the present complaints are inadmissible.
The Government argued that the applicants had failed to exhaust the available effective remedies for their complaints about the inadequate conditions of their detention, as the complaint with the judge responsible for supervising the deprivation of liberty (plângerea în fața judecătorului de supraveghere a privării de libertate), provided for by Article 56 of Law no. 254/2013, had become an effective remedy for grievances similar to those of the applicants.
The Court recalls that in Văscăuțanu v. Romania (dec.), no. 10120/23, §§ 47–59, 18 November 2025, it held that the remedy, which consists of lodging a complaint with the judge responsible for supervising the deprivation of liberty (plângerea în fața judecătorului de supraveghere a privării de libertate), provided for by Article 56 of Law no. 254/2013, constituted, as of 6 April 2023, an effective remedy enabling individuals who allege that they are being held in inadequate conditions of detention to put an end to their situation that they denounced as being contrary to Article 3 of the Convention.
In light of all the material in its possession, the Court observes that the applicants, who allege that they are being held in inadequate conditions of detention, did not indicate that they pursued the available remedy before the domestic courts or that the completed the process of exhaustion (see Văscăuțanu, cited above, § 65). Therefore, their complaints in that regard must be dismissed for failure to exhaust domestic remedies.
The Government also invoked other grounds of inadmissibility to argue that the present complaints must be rejected. Since it has already upheld the Government’s objection on the non-exhaustion of domestic remedies, the Court does not consider it necessary to examine further any other arguments raised by the Government.
In view of the above, the Court finds that the applicants’ complaints concerning the periods set out in the appended table must be rejected for failure to exhaust the domestic remedy laid down in Article 56 of Law no. 254/2013, in accordance with Article 35 §§ 1 and 4 of the Convention.
Remaining complaintsSome applicants also raised other complaints under various articles of the Convention.
The Court has examined the applications listed in the appended table 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, these complaints either do not meet the admissibility criteria set out in Articles 34 and 35 of the Convention or do 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 applications must be rejected in accordance with Article 35 § 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 11 June 2026.
Viktoriya Maradudina Anne Louise Bormann
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
Facility
Start and end date
Duration
12492/21
24/03/2021
Petru-Marius CHIPERI
1990
Bacău, Iași, Gherla, Arad, Vaslui, Botoșani Prisons; Târgu Ocna Re-education Centre
30/09/2011 to
04/12/2012
1 year(s) and 2 month(s) and 5 day(s)
Bacău, Iași, Gherla, Arad, Vaslui, Botoșani Prisons; Târgu Ocna Re-education Centre
15/12/2016 to
03/09/2019
2 year(s) and 8 month(s) and 20 day(s)
Bacău, Iași, Gherla, Arad, Vaslui, Botoșani Prisons; Târgu Ocna Re-education Centre
29/10/2019
pending
More than 6 year(s) and 3 month(s) and 28 day(s)
18044/21
16/07/2021
Petrică-Valentin ANGHEL
1993
Arad and Drobeta-Turnu Severin Prisons
17/09/2019
pending
More than 6 year(s) and 5 month(s) and 9 day(s)
29156/21
23/11/2021
Florin-Daniel BIBIRE
1982
Bacău County Police Station; Bacău, Miercurea Ciuc, Oradea, Mărgineni, Aiud, Tulcea, Iaşi, Bucharest-Rahova and Vaslui Prisons; Târgu Ocna and Dej Prison Hospitals
08/10/2017
pending
More than 8 year(s) and 4 month(s) and 18 day(s)
53700/21
22/02/2022
Gheorghiţă DULCIANU
1980
Iaşi County Police Station; Iaşi, Bucharest-Jilava, Bucharest-Rahova, Arad and Gherla Prisons; Bucharest-Rahova, Bucharest-Jilava and Colibași Prison Hospitals
12/01/2005
pending
More than 21 year(s) and 1 month(s) and 14 day(s)
57767/21
28/04/2022
Florin MELANIA
1979
Giurgiu, Arad and Bucharest-Rahova Prisons
23/09/2020
pending
More than 5 year(s) and 5 month(s) and 3 day(s)
39978/22
04/08/2022
Cătălin ANDREI
1980
Bacău and Arad Prisons
21/08/2020
pending
More than 5 year(s) and 6 month(s) and 5 day(s)
46655/22
09/02/2023
Adrian MIHAI
1980
Iași and Botoșani Prisons
05/05/2022
pending
More than 2 year(s) and 1 month(s) and 3 day(s)
46834/22
10/02/2023
Teodor-Narcis BOGDAN
1992
Mioveni and Craiova Prisons
23/10/2019
pending
More than 6 year(s) and 4 month(s) and 3 day(s)
47645/22
28/11/2022
Cornel-Toma FRUMOS
1971
Bistrița County Police Station; Bistrița and Gherla Prisons
01/04/2019
pending
More than 6 year(s) and 10 month(s) and 25 day(s)
49058/22
31/03/2023
Tudorel-Marian ADAM-TĂNĂSACHE
1985
Vaslui County Police Station; Bacău, Galați, Târgu-Ocna, Mărgineni, Craiova and Giurgiu Prisons
03/12/2019
pending
More than 6 year(s) and 2 month(s) and 23 day(s)
54971/22
25/01/2023
Constantin-Roberto POPOVICI
1994
Bacău, Iași and Giurgiu Prisons
12/12/2019 to
22/01/2020
1 month(s) and 11 day(s)
Bacău, Iași and Giurgiu Prisons
21/01/2021
pending
More than 5 year(s) and 1 month(s) and 5 day(s)