FOURTH SECTION
DECISION
Application no. 16082/15
Marian ZEVEDEI against Romania
and 9 other applications
(see appended table)
The European Court of Human Rights (Fourth Section), sitting on 9 July 2020 as a Committee composed of:
Stéphanie Mourou-Vikström, President,
Georges Ravarani,
Jolien Schukking, 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 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 Romanian Government (“the Government”).
THE LAWJoinder of the applications
Having 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 of the inadequate conditions of their detention. They relied on Article 3 of the Convention, which reads as follows:
“No one shall be subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.”
The Government pleaded that the applicants had lost their victim status due to the fact that they had benefitted from the remedy offered by Law no. 169/2017 amending and completing Law no. 254/2013 on the execution of sentences. They asked the Court to reject the present applications for being incompatible ratione personae with the provisions of the Convention.
The applicants disagreed claiming that the compensation awarded had not been sufficient.
The Court notes that, in its recent decision Dîrjan and Ştefan v. Romania ((dec.), nos. 14224/15 and 50977/15, 15 April 2020) the Court has examined similar applications as the ones in the present case and declared them inadmissible considering that the applicants had lost their victim status. The Court noted that Law no. 169/2017 amending and completing Law no. 254/2013 on the execution of sentences, adopted following the pilot judgment in the case of Rezmiveș and Others v. Romania (no. 61467/12 and 3 others, 25 April 2017) and in force between October 2017 and December 2019, had been an effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention in Romanian prisons. More specifically, the above law had set forth a compensatory remedy, available for periods of detention ranging from 2012 to 2019 and allowing the deduction of six days for 30 days spent in conditions of detention that fell short of standards compatible with Article 3 of the Convention (see Dîrjan and Ştefan, cited above, § 28). This benefit had impacted on the term of the prison sentences and had given detainees the opportunity of earlier release on parole.
Turning to the circumstances of the present cases, the Court has not found any fact or argument capable of persuading it to reach a different conclusion on their admissibility. The above-mentioned remedy was available to the applicants in the present applications and, indeed, they benefitted from it. Thus, on different dates, the domestic authorities, applying the provisions described in the abovementioned decision Dîrjan and Ştefan, awarded compensation, through the reduction of days, to the applicants for the entire period of detention spent in inadequate conditions of which they complained (for further details see the appended table). Furthermore, the applicants have been released from prison.
The Court is therefore satisfied that the applicants have been afforded adequate redress and can no longer claim to be victims of a violation of their rights under Article 3 of the Convention. It follows that the applications are incompatible ratione personae with the provisions of the Convention and must be rejected in accordance with Article 35 §§ 3 (a) and 4 of the Convention.
For these reasons, the Court, unanimously,
Decides to join the applications;
Declares the applications inadmissible.
Liv TigerstedtStéphanie Mourou-Vikström
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
Facility
Start and end date
Duration
Domestic compensation awarded (in days)
based on total period calculated
domestically
16082/15
15/04/2015
Marian ZEVEDEI
01/06/1966
Târgu Jiu Prison
10/04/2014 to 30/01/2018
3 year(s) and 9 month(s) and 21 day(s)
390 days in compensation for a total period of detention spent in inadequate conditions between 24/07/2012 – 30/01/2018
60880/15
26/04/2016
Raoul-Eduard VLAICU
26/04/1992
Maria-Magdalena Vlaicu
Prejmer
Codlea and Miercurea Ciuc Prisons
13/10/2014 to 24/01/2018
3 year(s) and 3 month(s) and 12 day(s)
276 days in compensation for a total period of detention spent in inadequate conditions between 21/08/2014 – 24/01/2018
5479/16
29/03/2016
Florin BRĂTIANU
03/02/1977
Rahova and Colibași Prisons
17/06/2014 to 01/09/2016
2 year(s) and 2 month(s) and 16 day(s)
240 days in compensation for a total period of detention spent in inadequate conditions between 07/06/2014 – 07/11/2017
10885/16
06/04/2016
Alexandra Paula Roxana ION
21/09/1986
Irina Maria Peter
Bucharest
Bucharest Police detention facilities no. 1 and Târgșorul Nou Prison
12/09/2014 to 18/10/2018
4 year(s) and 1 month(s) and 7 day(s)
288 days in compensation for a total period of detention spent in inadequate conditions between 12/09/2014 – 18/10/2018
13407/16
24/05/2016
Radu-Vasile HEGEDÜS
15/05/1985
Vasile Rareș Biro
Satu Mare
Bihor (Oradea) County Police Station and Oradea and Satu Mare Prisons
26/11/2014 to 28/08/2018
3 year(s) and 9 month(s) and 3 day(s)
264 days in compensation for a total period of detention spent in inadequate conditions between 25/11/2014 – 28/08/2018
20661/16
14/06/2016
Gheorghe-Ramiro ION
04/08/1972
Bucharest Police Station no. 12 and Rahova, Giurgiu and Jilava Prisons
25/10/2012 to 20/11/2018
6 year(s) and 27 day(s)
438 days in compensation for a total period of detention spent in inadequate conditions between 25/10/2012 – 20/11/2018
31333/16
28/05/2016
Cătălin VLAD
26/07/1992
Ionela Mărgărit
Bucharest
Galați Police Station and Galați and Brăila Prisons
21/08/2014 to 06/02/2018
3 year(s) and 5 month(s) and 17 day(s)
246 days in compensation for a total period of detention spent in inadequate conditions between 21/08/2014 – 06/02/2018
35047/16
08/06/2016
Lucian-Ilie FEKETE
04/09/1984
Ovidiu Kalman Mureșan Silaghi
Satu Mare
Oradea Prison
09/12/2015 to 06/11/2017
1 year(s) and 10 month(s) and 29 day(s)
270 days in compensation for a total period of detention spent in inadequate conditions between 09/12/2015 – 22/05/2019
38092/16
25/07/2016
Iulian-Jony SZÜCS
22/03/1988
Maramureș Police Station, Gherla and Baia Mare Prisons
08/05/2014 to 14/11/2017
3 year(s) and 6 month(s) and 7 day(s)
252 days in compensation for a total period of detention spent in inadequate conditions between 08/05/2014 – 14/11/2017
38176/16
21/07/2016
Alexandru Tiberiu HURDUGACI
09/07/1983
Irina Maria Peter
Bucharest
Rahova Prison
06/05/2016 to 22/09/2017
1 year(s) and 4 month(s) and 17 day(s)
132 days in compensation for a total period of detention spent in inadequate conditions between 06/05/2016 – 07/03/2018
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