THIRD SECTION
DECISION
Application no. 8584/17
Nikolay Nikolayevich UTYUZHNIKOV against Russia
and 22 other applications
(see appended table)
The European Court of Human Rights (Third Section), sitting on 14 May 2020 as a Committee composed of:
Alena Poláčková, President,
Dmitry Dedov,
Gilberto Felici, judges,
and Liv Tigerstedt, Acting Deputy Section Registrar,
Having regard to the above applications lodged on the various dates indicated in the appended table,
Having regard to the declarations submitted by the respondent Government requesting the Court to strike the applications out of the list of cases,
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 Russian 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
Having regard to the similar subject matter of the applications, the Court finds it appropriate to examine them jointly in a single decision.
The Government informed the Court that they proposed to make unilateral declarations with a view to resolving the issues raised by these complaints. They further requested the Court to strike out the applications in accordance with Article 37 of the Convention.
The Government acknowledged the inadequate conditions of detention. In some of the applications, they further acknowledged that the domestic authorities had violated the applicants’ rights guaranteed by other provisions of the Convention. They offered to pay the applicants the amounts detailed in the appended table and invited the Court to strike the applications out of the list of cases in accordance with Article 37 § 1 (c) of the Convention. The amounts would be converted into the currency of the respondent State at the rate applicable on the date of payment, and would be payable within three months from the date of notification of the Court’s decision. In the event of failure to pay these amounts within the above-mentioned three-month period, the Government undertook to pay simple interest on them, from the 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 cases.
The terms of the Government’s unilateral declarations were sent to the applicants several weeks before the date of this decision. The Court has not received a response from the applicants accepting the terms of the declarations.
The Court observes that Article 37 § 1 (c) enables it to strike a case out of its list if:
“... for any other reason established by the Court, it is no longer justified to continue the examination of the application”.
Thus, it may strike out applications under Article 37 § 1 (c) on the basis of a unilateral declaration by a respondent Government even if the applicants wish the examination of the cases to be continued (see, in particular, Tahsin Acar v. Turkey (preliminary objections) [GC], no. 26307/95, §§ 75‑77, ECHR 2003-VI).
The Court has established clear and extensive case-law concerning complaints relating to the inadequate conditions of detention (see, for example, Sergey Babushkin v. Russia, no. 5993/08, 28 November 2013), as well as other complaints under the well-established case-law covered by the unilateral declarations (see Tomov and Others v. Russia, nos. 18255/10 and 5 others, 9 April 2019).
Noting the admissions contained in the Government’s declarations as well as the amount of compensation proposed – which is consistent with the amounts awarded in similar cases – the Court considers that it is no longer justified to continue the examination of the applications (Article 37 § 1 (c)).
In the light of the above considerations, the Court is satisfied that respect for human rights as defined in the Convention and the Protocols thereto does not require it to continue the examination of the applications in the part covered by the unilateral declarations (Article 37 § 1 in fine).
Finally, the Court emphasises that, should the Government fail to comply with the terms of their unilateral declarations, the applications may be restored to the list in accordance with Article 37 § 2 of the Convention (Josipović v. Serbia (dec.), no. 18369/07, 4 March 2008).
In view of the above, it is appropriate to strike the cases out of the list as regards the complaints concerning the inadequate conditions of detention as well as other complaints raised under the well-established case-law, as listed in the appended table, and covered by the Government’s unilateral declarations.
The applicants in applications nos. 5874/18 and 36243/18 complained about other periods of detention, not covered by the Government’s unilateral declarations. With regard to those periods of detention, the applicants should avail themselves of the new remedy introduced in the Russian Federation, which the Court declared effective in its recent decision of Shmelev and Others v. Russia ((dec.), nos. 41743/17 and 16 others, 17March 2020).
It follows that this part of applications nos. 5874/18 and 36243/18 must be rejected in accordance with Article 35 § 4 of the Convention.
For these reasons, the Court, unanimously,
Decides to join the applications;
Takes note of the terms of the respondent Government’s declarations concerning the inadequate conditions of detention as well as the other complaints raised under the well-established case-law, as listed in the appended table, and of the arrangements for ensuring compliance with the undertakings referred to therein;
Decides to strike this part of the applications out of its list of cases in accordance with Article 37 § 1 (c) of the Convention;
Declares the remainder of applications nos. 5874/18 and 36243/18 inadmissible.
Done in English and notified in writing on 4 June 2020.
{Liv TigerstedtAlena Poláčková
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’s name
Date of birth
Representative’s name and location
Other complaints under well-established case-law
Date of receipt of Government’s declaration
Date of receipt of applicant’s comments, if any
Amount awarded for pecuniary and non‑pecuniary damage and costs and expenses per applicant (in euros)[1]
8584/17
01/03/2017
Nikolay Nikolayevich UTYUZHNIKOV
26/04/1980
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention
03/12/2019
-
5,175
10637/17
05/04/2017
Yevgeniy Nikolayevich SARAYEV
03/12/1981
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention
03/12/2019
-
5,625
33884/17
26/04/2017
Yevgeniy Aleksandrovich CHUKAYEV
27/04/1978
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention
03/12/2019
-
6,300
4131/18
29/11/2017
Aleksandr Sergeyevich VINOGRADOV
02/04/1976
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention
16/12/2019
-
9,000
5864/18
25/01/2018
Erik Sagatelovich ARUTYUNYAN
09/05/1986
Kiryushkin Andrey Vladimirovich
Dzerzhinsk
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention
16/07/2018
-
5,000
5874/18
25/01/2018
Sergey Viktorovich MINEYEV
23/02/1974
Kiryushkin Andrey Vladimirovich
Dzerzhinsk
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention
16/07/2018
-
5,000
6346/18
11/12/2017
Yuriy Fedorovich IVANOV
04/06/1976
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention
03/12/2019
-
9,675
15251/18
06/03/2018
Vitaliy Valeryevich NEVESELOV
28/09/1978
Matskevich Sergey Viktorovich
St Petersburg
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention
31/10/2019
09/12/2019
4,500
17004/18
17/03/2018
Stanislav Vasilyevich CHERNOV
03/05/1984
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention
25/01/2019
-
4,500
19843/18
10/04/2018
Vladimir Andreyevich SMIRNOV
02/12/1992
31/10/2018
15/03/2019
4,500
21636/18
08/04/2018
Sergey Yevgenyevich FEFILOV
06/09/1983
Prokofyeva Viktoriya Pavlovna
St Petersburg
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention
31/10/2019
12/12/2019
4,500
22561/18
20/06/2018
Andrey Gennadyevich SARAYEV
20/06/1980
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention
25/01/2019
-
4,500
22971/18
06/07/2018
Denis Vladimirovich KUZMIN
29/06/1980
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention
03/12/2019
-
5,400
23824/18
10/05/2018
Artem Rafailovich ARASLANOV
27/07/1983
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention
16/10/2018
-
4,500
27638/18
10/05/2018
Rafis Safargaliyevich VAGAPOV
22/05/1969
Art. 3 - inadequate conditions of detention during transport from 17/12/2017 to 26/01/2018; van, train, transit cells,
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention and inadequate conditions of detention during transport
25/01/2019
23/03/2019
5,500
28873/18
22/05/2018
Artem Aleksandrovich PROKHORENKO
01/07/1985
Art. 3 - inadequate conditions of detention during transport from 17/12/2017 to 26/01/2018; van, train, transit cells,
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention and of inadequate conditions of detention during transport
25/01/2019
21/03/2019
5,500
29325/18
14/09/2018
Vasiliy Vladimirovich POPOV
18/03/1978
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention
14/01/2020
-
4,500
29397/18
04/06/2018
Konstantin Vladimirovich IZMAYLOV
07/07/1984
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention
14/01/2020
-
6,750
31864/18
28/06/2018
Yevgeniy Mikhaylovich KIRICHENKO
03/03/1976
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention
05/02/2019
30/04/2019
4,500
31877/18
28/06/2018
Roman Valeryevich NEFEDOV
12/05/1979
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention
05/02/2019
08/04/2019
4,500
33307/18
29/06/2018
Ivan Sergeyevich LITVINOV
21/03/1989
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention
15/10/2019
09/12/2019
4,500
35573/18
16/07/2018
Sergey Nikolayevich KOTOV
24/11/1975
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention
14/01/2020
-
7,200
36243/18
19/10/2018
Nikolay Nikolayevich TSYPLYATKIN
11/02/1969
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention
14/01/2020
-
4,500
[1] Plus any tax that may be chargeable to the applicant
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