Information Note on the Court’s case-law 187
July 2015
Muršić v. Croatia (referral) - 7334/13
Judgment 12.3.2015 [Section I]
Article 3
Degrading treatment
Inhuman treatment
Alleged prison overcrowding: case referred to the Grand Chamber
In his application to the European Court, the applicant essentially complained about lack of personal space in the prison where he served a sentence of one year and five months. During his incarceration he was placed in four different cells where he had between three and just over seven square metres of personal space. On occasional non-consecutive short periods, including a period of twenty-seven days, his personal space fell slightly below three sq. m.
In a judgment of 12 March 2015 a Chamber of the Court, by six votes to one, found that there had been no violation of Article 3 of the Convention (see Information Note 183). In particular, it found that the conditions of the applicant’s detention, though not always adequate, had not reached the threshold of severity required to characterise the treatment as inhuman or degrading within the meaning of Article 3 of the Convention.
On 7 July 2015 the case was referred to the Grand Chamber at the applicant’s request.
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This summary by the Registry does not bind the Court.
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