FOURTH SECTION
DECISION
Application no. 18928/08
by Gheorghe STRAISTEANU
against Moldova
The European Court of Human Rights (Fourth Section), sitting on 6 July 2010 as a Chamber composed of:
Nicolas Bratza, President,
Lech Garlicki,
Giovanni Bonello,
Ljiljana Mijović,
Ján Šikuta,
Mihai Poalelungi,
Nebojša Vučinić, judges,
and Lawrence Early, Section Registrar,
Having regard to the above application lodged on 6 February 2008,
Having regard to the formal declarations accepting a friendly settlement of the case,
Having deliberated, decides as follows:
THE FACTS
The applicant, Mr Gheorghe Straisteanu, is a Moldovan national who was born in 1954 and lives in Chişinău. He was represented before the Court by Ms D. Straisteanu, a lawyer practising in Chişinău. The Moldovan Government (“the Government”) were represented by their Agent, Mr V. Grosu.
On 21 August 2006 the applicant was arrested on charges of threatening the mayor of his village with death by saying: “I will feed you to the fishes”. The applicant was remanded in custody until 22 September 2006 when the Court of Appeal ordered his release. After that date he continued to be detained in relation to other criminal proceedings pending against him.
On 14 September 2006 the criminal case against the applicant was transmitted to the Straseni District Court for examination.
Between 14 September 2006 and 17 April 2008 the Straseni District Court held twenty hearings in the case, fifteen of which were adjourned on grounds which were not imputable to the applicant. On 17 April 2008 the Straseni District Court noted in a decision that the prosecutor was responsible for the delay in the proceedings.
In the meantime the applicant was detained in Prison no. 3, where, according to him, the conditions of detention amounted to inhuman and degrading treatment.
COMPLAINTS
1. The applicant complained under Article 3 of the Convention about the inhuman and degrading conditions of his detention in Prison no. 3.
2. The applicant further complained under Article 6 § 1 of the Convention about the excessive length of the criminal proceedings against him.
3. The applicant complained under Article 8 of the Convention that some of the letters sent by him from prison did not reach the addressees and that some of the letters sent to him did not reach him.
THE LAW
On 21 May 2010 the Court received the following declaration from the Government:
“I, Vladimir Grosu, Agent for the Government of Republic of Moldova, declare that the Government of Moldova accepts that there has been a breach of Article 3 of the Convention and Article 6 of the Convention and offer to pay the sum of 4,000 (four thousand) euros to Mr Gheorghe STRAISTEANU with a view to securing a friendly settlement of the above-mentioned case pending before the European Court of Human Rights.
This sum, which is to cover any pecuniary and non-pecuniary damage as well as costs and expenses, will be converted into Moldovan lei at the rate applicable on the date of payment, and free of any taxes that may be applicable. It will be payable within three months from the date of notification of the decision taken by the Court pursuant to Article 37 § 1 of the European Convention on Human Rights. In the event of failure to pay this sum within the said three-month period, the Government undertake to pay simple interest on it, from expiry of that period until settlement, at a rate equal to the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank during the default period plus three percentage points. The payment will constitute the final resolution of the case.”
On 3 June 2010 the Court received the following declaration signed by the applicant:
“I, Gheorghe STRAISTEANU, note that the Government of Moldova accept that there has been a breach of Article 3 and Article 6 of the Convention in the present case and are prepared to pay me 4,000 (four thousand) euros with a view to securing a friendly settlement of the case pending before the European Court of Human Rights.
This sum, which is to cover any pecuniary and non-pecuniary damage as well as costs and expenses, will be free of any taxes that may be applicable. The sum in euros will be converted into Moldovan lei at the rate applicable on the date of payment. It will be payable within three months from the date of notification of the decision taken by the Court pursuant to Article 37 § 1 of the European Convention on Human Rights. From the expiry of the above-mentioned three months until settlement simple interest shall be payable on the above amount at a rate equal to the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank during the default period plus three percentage points.
I accept the proposal and waive any further claims against Moldova in respect of the facts giving rise to this application. I declare that this constitutes a final resolution of the case.”
The Court takes note of the friendly settlement reached between the parties. It is satisfied that the settlement is based on respect for human rights as defined in the Convention and its Protocols and finds no reasons to justify a continued examination of the application (Article 37 § 1 in fine of the Convention). In view of the above, it is appropriate to strike the case out of the list.
For these reasons, the Court unanimously
Decides to strike the application out of its list of cases.
Lawrence EarlyNicolas Bratza
RegistrarPresident
Full & Egal Universal Law Academy