7.  The applicant was born in 1948 and lives in Fougaron. 8.  On 12 June 1996 the Haute-Garonne Assize Court sentenced the applicant to fifteen years' imprisonment for armed robbery carried out as part of a gang, false imprisonment and fraud. He was detained in Lannemezan Prison (département of Hautes-Pyrénées). 9.  In late 1998 his health deteriorated. 10.  On 8 January 1999 a doctor from the Outpatient Consultation and Treatment Unit (unité de consultation et de soins ambulatoires – “the UCSA”) at Lannemezan Prison issued a medical certificate, which stated:
“This patient has a history of serious [medical] problems ...
He was recently found to have B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukaemia, with some evidence of tumour ...
The leukaemia is currently not accompanied by any alteration of the other cell lines; in particular, there is no sign of anaemia or thrombocytopenia.
However, bilateral axillary adenopathy is present, predominantly on the right-hand side.
This certificate has been issued at the patient's request and handed to him in connection with an application for parole on medical grounds.” 11.  On 30 September 1999 a further medical report stated:
“This patient has chronic lymphocytic leukaemia, which has caused severe asthenia. Furthermore, there are signs of orthopaedic disorders as a result of an injury to the left knee and the left ankle causing osteoarthritis of the left patellofemoral and tibiofemoral joints and making it painful for him to remain for long periods in a seated position with his legs bent.
In addition, on account of the orthopaedic disorders observed in his left lower limb, the patient has to use a walking stick to move about.
His condition is not compatible with the use of restraints on his lower limbs.” 12.  On 6 December 1999 the UCSA doctor advised against applying restraints to the applicant's lower limbs. 13.  The applicant applied to the French President for a pardon on medical grounds, but his application was refused on 7 March 2000. 14.  On 31 March 2000 International Prison Watch (IPW) issued the following press release:

“No early release for prisoners with serious illnesses
On 7 March 2000 the Minister of Justice refused applications for a pardon lodged on behalf of a prisoner suffering from a rapidly progressive disease.
52-year-old Jean Mouisel is currently in Lannemezan Prison. He was diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia in November 1998. Jean Mouisel has served two-thirds of his sentence. If remissions of sentence are taken into account, he will be due for release in 2002. On 24 February 2000 a doctor from the UCSA at Lannemezan Prison drew up a certificate attesting that the disease was transforming into lymphoma and that an extended course of cancer treatment involving chemotherapy was therefore necessary. This prisoner is taken to hospital once a week and has to endure his illness while in detention. He is allowed only one visit a week from his relatives, in accordance with the prison's rules.
His doctor and various associations applied for a pardon on his behalf. The Ministry of Justice, which centralises such applications and takes an initial decision, did not see fit to refer his case to the President's Private Office.
IPW wishes to stress that 'no one shall be subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment' (Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights).” 15.  On 12 May 2000 the UCSA doctor drew up a further medical certificate, which stated:
“This patient has chronic lymphocytic leukaemia, which was diagnosed in November 1998 and is currently transforming into lymphoma.
The lymphoma was diagnosed in early February 2000 during a check-up at the haematology department at Purpan Hospital in Toulouse.
Mr Mouisel's condition currently requires him to undergo cancer treatment in the form of chemotherapy sessions as a hospital outpatient every three weeks.
At the moment, he is receiving chemotherapy at Lannemezan Hospital's medical and surgical centre. The patient's haematological condition will need to be reassessed in early August 2000 once he has finished the chemotherapy he is currently receiving.
It is subsequently envisaged that he will begin oral chemotherapy, depending on the reassessment to be carried out at Toulouse University Hospital.
The compatibility of his condition with his continued detention remains to be determined by an expert.” 16.  On 3 June 2000 the applicant wrote to tell the prison governor about a chemotherapy session that had taken place at Lannemezan Hospital on 30 May 2000:
“... After an hour and forty-five minutes, the force of my drip was causing me too much pain. My suffering was so great that I had to lower the speed of the drip. That action was not appreciated by the warder in charge of my escort, Mr T., who came into the room red with anger, yelling and screaming. He told me that if the nurse had turned the drip on full, then I was not to touch it. As he put it, 'he and the other member of the escort were not going to spend all day at the hospital'.
I was surprised at how aggressive they were being towards me, and I wanted to pull out the drip. The pain was too intense; it was making me suffer and was becoming unbearable ... The intervention of the doctor and nurse ... persuaded me to end the chemotherapy session. After the doctor had gone, the chief escort officer told me that the matter would be dealt with when we got back to the prison.
At the end of the chemotherapy session, I felt worse than ever as the injection had made me feel much weaker ... I was duly handcuffed and dragged with brute force along the hospital corridors on a chain which the warder was holding, no doubt as a form of retribution. When we got back that morning, I was handcuffed in the usual way without force.
I am being treated for leukaemia, a cancer of the blood which is nothing like a mere case of the flu! In my case, unfortunately, there is no possible cure; the disease I have caught here at Lannemezan Prison is incurable.
I am therefore entitled to conclude that the prison staff who escort me to the hospital regularly ask the nurses to make sure that I am injected as quickly as possible so that they do not have to spend all day waiting around for me.
As there is currently no way of solving the problem on an administrative level, I shall have to give up the chemotherapy sessions for the time being. I am not refusing the treatment, but the conditions in which I am receiving it are not satisfactory ... This has been going on for several months and I cannot stand it any longer. My physical condition cannot allow it and my morale is getting lower every day. I am dying, but I would like to die peacefully and not in an atmosphere of conflict.” 17.  Following a further application for a pardon on medical grounds, the Ministry of Justice instructed an expert at the Pau Court of Appeal to assess the applicant's state of health, the treatment he required and the manner in which it should be administered, the likelihood of any changes (for example, regarding life expectancy), and whether his condition and the forms of treatment in progress or envisaged were compatible with detention in a specialist unit. The expert's report, completed on 28 June 2000, read as follows:
“... Recent developments
According to the certificate of 12 May 2000, Mr Mouisel has a form of chronic leukaemia which was diagnosed in 1998 and is currently transforming into lymphoma ...
His condition has necessitated an intensive course of chemotherapy administered following the insertion of a 'portacath'.
His condition has also required him to be taken to hospital in a non-emergency ambulance for chemotherapy sessions (at the outpatient department of Lannemezan Hospital's medical and surgical centre), initially every week and subsequently every three weeks ...
Clinical condition on the date of the examination
Functional symptoms complained of by the patient:
–  permanent asthenia and fatigue;
–  waking up in pain during the night;
–  ...
–  muscle fatigue and breathlessness;
–  alleged psychological impact of stress on his life expectancy and deterioration of his health (this condition has led to his being prescribed a course of antidepressants, which he is currently taking) ...
It should be noted that these functional symptoms are to a large extent attributable to the chemotherapy he has been undergoing ...
Particular mention should be made of a problem relating to the escort and supervision arrangements during visits to hospital for chemotherapy sessions. Indeed, since 20 June 2000 the patient has not consented to treatment.
Clinical examination
...
It should be noted that, according to the documents produced, Mr Mouisel's current degree of disablement was assessed at 80% by the COTOREP [Occupational Counselling and Rehabilitation Board] in a decision of 6 April 2000, and he was awarded a disabled adult's allowance for the period from 2 February 1999 to 2 February 2001.
Conclusion
By the date of the examination the applicant's health had deteriorated as a result of the progression of his haematological disorder, diagnosed in November 1998 as leukaemia ...
Mr Mouisel is currently undergoing intensive chemotherapy as an outpatient at Lannemezan Hospital, where he is taken for treatment every three weeks by medical transport (a non-emergency ambulance).
The cancer treatment, ... which is already scarcely compatible with imprisonment, is at present causing problems as a result of the position he has adopted recently in not consenting to treatment in the conditions in which he is currently being detained (this has lasted since 20 June 2000, the date scheduled for his treatment).
His not consenting to treatment, in spite of all the information received from the UCSA medical team in Lannemezan, is likely to bring about the rapid progression of the disorder observed recently and a reduction in his life expectancy.
Accordingly, he should be looked after in a specialist unit.” 18.  On 19 July 2000 the applicant was transferred as a matter of urgency to Muret Prison (so that he would be nearer to Toulouse University Hospital) and given a cell of his own. 19.  On 3 October 2000 the applicant applied to the département of Haute-Garonne's Health and Social Affairs Department for acknowledgment of a vaccination-related accident, claiming that he had contracted cancer as a result of a hepatitis-B vaccination. On 24 October 2000 he received a reply from the Ethics and Law Office of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Solidarity informing him that strict liability could not be imposed on the State except for damage sustained as a result of the compulsory vaccinations provided for in the Public Health Code. Hepatitis-B vaccinations were compulsory only for certain occupational groups exposed to a risk of contamination, and the applicant did not belong to any such group. 20.  On 14 November 2000 the applicant was notified of a reply by the Regional Director of the Prison Service to his complaints concerning the application of Article 803 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (“the CCP”) on the use of handcuffs or restraints (see “Relevant domestic law and practice” below):
“... The provisions of the Article do not establish an absolute prohibition on the use of handcuffs or restraints and do not expressly refer to the detainee's health. They leave the matter to the discretion of those responsible for laying down, and enforcing, security measures: gendarmes, police officers or prison warders.
Moreover, Article D 283 CCP provides that handcuffs or restraints are to be used solely in connection with 'precautions against absconding', except where a person is being brought before a judicial authority. Where a long sentence is being served for criminal acts causing bodily harm, the appropriate measures are applied.” 21.  On 20 November 2000 the Minister of Justice refused an application for a pardon lodged on the applicant's behalf by the Ligue des droits de l'homme (Human Rights League). 22.  On 24 November 2000 the applicant received a letter from the doctor who had treated him in Lannemezan:
“... As regards your condition, there does seem to be a change taking place at the moment ... I think it is always worth fighting an illness, whatever it may be; even if there is no possible cure, a remission in the disease is still possible, especially as Dr N. is offering you a new course of chemotherapy, which I would strongly advise you to agree to ...” 23.  A medical certificate issued on 21 February 2001 by a doctor from the haematology department at Toulouse Hospital reads as follows:
“Mr Mouisel has been treated by our department since February 2000 for chronic lymphocytic leukaemia, initially with tonsillar hypertrophy on both sides causing dysphagia, and substantial axillary adenopathy on the right-hand side (15 cm in diameter).
He was initially given chemotherapy once a week using the COP protocol, then once a month with CVP, and subsequently with chlorambucil.
The results obtained were satisfactory, but in November 2000 we noticed a renewed increase in the size of the right axillary adenopathy and therefore resumed monthly chemotherapy using the CVP protocol.
A biopsy of the lymph nodes in January revealed the presence of Hodgkin's disease. Three cycles of chemotherapy using the ABVD protocol are therefore envisaged, followed by additional radiotherapy.” 24.  In an order of 22 March 2001 the judge responsible for the execution of sentences at the Toulouse tribunal de grande instance released the applicant on parole until 20 March 2005, subject to an obligation to receive medical treatment or care:
“Admissibility
Mr Mouisel exercises parental responsibility over his daughter, born on 4 September 1993 ..., and no ancillary penalties have been imposed on him entailing the forfeiture of that right.
Article 729-3 CCP empowers the judge responsible for the execution of sentences to decide cases concerning prisoners who have less than four years of their sentence to serve and who exercise parental responsibility over a child under the age of 10.
Merits
It appears from the medical certificates adduced in evidence (dated 7 December 2000 and 3 January and 21 February 2001) that the applicant's condition has become incompatible with his continued detention, on account of the medical care he requires during regular visits to hospital.
It is therefore appropriate, notwithstanding his criminal record, to release the applicant on parole, subject to his staying at his wife's home (see the declaration of 30 January 2001) and receiving treatment in accordance with a medical protocol at Purpan Hospital. ...”


5.  The applicant was born in 1982 and is currently detained in the Cricova prison. 6.  At the time of the events, the applicant was serving a ten-year sentence and was detained in the same detention facility. In August 2008 a murder was committed there and the applicant was one of the suspects. In December 2008 he was taken to the Chişinău Central police station for questioning. According to him, he was told to confess to the murder and was ill-treated after refusing to do so. On 21 January 2009 the applicant was taken to the police station detention facility again. Since he refused to make a confession, he was subjected to such acts of violence as being struck and slapped all over, and was detained in a very cold cell. As a result, he attempted to commit suicide by cutting the veins in his wrist. On 23 January 2009 he was taken to hospital for medical treatment where, according to the documents in the case file, he was seen by a doctor and given stitches and a bandage. After returning from hospital the ill-treatment continued and intensified. According to the applicant, his arms and feet were tied together behind his back and he was suspended on a metal bar placed on two chairs. He was left in that position until he fainted. As a result, his right hand became numb and stopped functioning. He was also beaten on his lower back with a plastic bottle full of water. As a result, he suffered kidney pain and had blood in his urine. The Government disputed the applicant’s allegations concerning ill-treatment. 7.  On 28 January 2009 the applicant was seen by a medical assistant in the police station detention facility, who noted in his medical records that the applicant had complained of pain around his right bicep and that the tissue in that area was swollen. On 30 January 2009 the same medical assistant noted that the applicant had complained of numbness and tingling in his right arm. On 31 January 2009 the same medical assistant concluded that the applicant’s problem was a result of the self-inflicted laceration to his ligament. 8.  In the meantime, on 28 January 2009 the applicant’s family learned of his situation and employed a lawyer. As a result of the lawyer’s involvement, on 30 January 2009 the applicant was transferred back to Cricova prison. 9.  On 12 February 2009 the applicant’s state of health deteriorated and he was hospitalised in a prison hospital, where he was examined by a neurologist and diagnosed with severe radial neuropathy of the right arm (damage to the radial nerve running down the length of the arm, which controls movement in the triceps and is responsible for extending the wrist and fingers). He was released from hospital on 9 April 2009, but returned later on several occasions. 10.  In the meantime, the applicant’s lawyer complained to the prosecutor’s office that his client had been subjected to ill-treatment, but on 31 July 2009 the complaint was dismissed as ill-founded. The investigating authorities found the applicant’s allegations of ill-treatment to be ill-founded, in view of the absence of any physical evidence except for that resulting from his self-harm. In reaching this conclusion, the investigating authorities relied on the statements of the accused police officers, who denied ill-treating the applicant, and on the conclusion of the medical assistant from the police station detention facility (see paragraph 7 above). The findings of the doctors from the prison hospital (see paragraph 9 above) were not considered.


6.  The applicants, a married couple and their daughter, were born in 1948, 1953 and 1988 respectively. 7.  The first applicant arrived in Sweden on 26 January 2008 and applied for asylum two days later. The second and third applicants arrived in Sweden on 31 January 2008 and applied for asylum the following day. In support of their applications, the applicants submitted in essence the following. They were Christians and originated from Mosul and Baghdad. They had lived in a rented house in a predominantly Muslim neighbourhood in Baghdad for 13 years. The first applicant had run a shop selling car spare parts. In August 2006 five masked men, claiming to belong to an opposition group, had come to the shop and demanded that the first applicant pay 10,000 U.S. dollars as he was Christian. He had been able to pay only 700‑750 dollars and had been told that the men would return for the rest of the money. They had threatened to kidnap a member of his family if he failed to pay. The first applicant had never returned to the store, but when his son had gone back after a couple of days he had been kidnapped. The son had managed to flee from the boot of the car where he had been held when when the car had stopped at a traffic light. A few days later, a friend of the applicants had informed them that he had found a threatening message on the door to their shop. Shortly thereafter, the applicants had left the country for Syria. The family also claimed that it had not been possible to practise their religion where they had lived because of fear of terrorists destroying the church. The second and third applicants claimed that they had been forced to wear the veil. Moreover, while the two parents had higher education in economics and administration, their daughter had not been able to study since the family feared that she would be kidnapped as Christian women were often exposed to kidnapping, rape and murder on their way to university. 8.  On 20 September 2008 the Migration Board (Migrationsverket) rejected the applications. The Board held that the situation in Iraq as such, or the fact that the applicants were Christians, did not constitute grounds for asylum. It further considered that the blackmailing and kidnapping had had economic grounds rather than religious ones. Even if the family could be seen as a target because of their beliefs, the Board was of the opinion that the incidents were due to the general security situation in Baghdad and not the applicants’ religious affiliation. According to the Board, the other claims – the fear of terrorists and the forced use of the veil – were also connected to the general situation in Baghdad. The Board further pointed out that, at the time of its decision, more than two years had passed since the alleged incidents had taken place. In any event, it concluded that the incidents were not of such severity or intensity that there would be an individual threat against the applicants if they were to return to Iraq. 9.  The applicants appealed, adding to their story that their neighbour in Baghdad had informed them that someone had written “Christians are to be killed” and “Your blood should be spilled” on their house in September 2008. 10.  On 18 June 2009 the Migration Court (Migrationsdomstolen) upheld the decision of the Board. The court held that, having regard to the several years that had passed since the alleged incidents and to the improved security situation in Baghdad, the evidence did not suggest that there was an individualised threat against the applicants upon return. 11.  On 4 September 2009 the Migration Court of Appeal (Migrations-överdomstolen) refused the applicants leave to appeal. 12.  Subsequently, the applicants claimed that there were impediments to the enforcement of their deportation order. They stated that they were in a bad condition mentally and that the general situation in Iraq had deteriorated. 13.  On 9 March 2010 the Migration Board decided not to reconsider the case, finding that no new circumstances justifying a reconsideration had been presented. The Board’s decision was upheld by the Migration Court on 16 June 2010.


5.  The applicant was born in 1975 and lived until his arrest in Vladimir. 6.  On 23 October 2004 an investigator of the Vladimir prosecutor’s office instituted criminal proceedings against the applicant on suspicion of aggravated rape. 7.  The applicant was arrested on 25 October 2004. The arrest record was issued at 8.20 p.m. on the same day. It did not indicate the grounds for the applicant’s arrest, save for a reference to Article 91 § 2 of the Russian Code of Criminal Procedure. The applicant signed the arrest record, noting that he had been informed of his constitutional rights as an accused, including the right to remain silent and to be assisted by counsel. It appears that the investigator made a handwritten note in the arrest record, stating that the applicant had not been searched. 8.  After the investigator had drawn up the arrest record, he began questioning the applicant in the presence of his lawyer, Mr Bagryanskiy. The record shows that the questioning started at 9.35 p.m. The record bears the applicant’s signature after the paragraph stating that he was informed of the nature of the accusations against him, namely, that he was suspected of having participated in a gang rape on 23 October 2004. He was informed that his car, in which the rape had allegedly taken place, had been seized. The applicant made a handwritten entry in the record, noting that he had decided to make use of his constitutional rights and would remain silent. The applicant’s counsel, Mr Bagryanskiy, wrote in the record that the applicant had not been provided with details surrounding the alleged criminal offence and that therefore the reasons for his arrest had not been explained to him.
(a)  Authorisation of the pre-trial detention: detention order of 27 October 2004 9.  On 27 October 2004 the Leninskiy District Court of Vladimir authorised the applicant’s pre-trial detention, holding as follows:
“[The applicant] is employed [and] has a permanent place of residence.
However, he has a previous conviction; [the parties] did not provide the court with information showing that the criminal record had expired. [The applicant] is suspected of having committed a serious criminal offence against an individual; [the offence] is punishable by imprisonment. The victim identified [the applicant] as a perpetrator of the criminal offence against her. It follows that, if released, [the applicant] might influence the victim during the pre-trial and judicial investigation; therefore, the victim took part in the identification parade in conditions whereby [the applicant] was prevented from seeing [her].
Consequently, the court accepts the motion of the senior investigator of the Vladimir prosecutor’s office to place [the applicant] in custody.” 10.  The applicant’s lawyer appealed, arguing that the applicant had not been properly and promptly informed of the reasons for his arrest and that his detention was unlawful. Several days later the lawyer lodged an additional appeal, requesting the applicant’s release on bail or the application of an alternative, more lenient, measure of restraint. Relying on Article 3 of the Convention, the lawyer urged the Regional Court to take into account the appalling conditions of detention to which the applicant would be subjected. He also argued that the applicant had no criminal record and that the District Court had not had any information disputing that fact. 11.  On 5 November 2004 the Vladimir Regional Court upheld the detention order, endorsing the reasons given by the District Court. It noted, in particular, the gravity of the charges against the applicant and his previous conviction, as confirmed by police records presented by the prosecution authorities and undisputed by the applicant. As regards the lawyer’s argument concerning the conditions of the applicant’s detention, the Regional Court noted that it was not the courts’ task to deal with the matter in that set of proceedings.
(b) Extension of the detention: order of 22 December 2004 12.  On 22 December 2004 the Leninskiy District Court extended the applicant’s detention until 11 January 2005 inclusively, noting the applicant’s “personality”, the gravity of the charges against him and the likelihood that he would abscond, re-offend and pervert the course of justice. 13.  The applicant’s lawyer appealed, arguing that the detention was unlawful and excessively long. The lawyer also reiterated the arguments that he had put forward in his statement of appeal against the detention order of 27 October 2004. 14.  On 1 February 2005 the Vladimir Regional Court upheld the decision of 22 December 2004, holding as follows:
“Having examined the materials presented in the appeal statements, the court decides as follows.
While examining whether it was necessary to extend [the applicant’s] detention, the judge correctly took into account the gravity of the charges [and] the information on the accused’s character.
It follows from the materials presented that [the applicant] was held liable for an administrative offence.
The judge’s conclusion that [the applicant] is likely to abscond from the pre-trial investigation and judicial proceedings, to continue his criminal activities, and to pervert the course of justice is corroborated by the record of an additional interrogation of the victim, which is enclosed in the case file and from which it follows that the victim has been receiving insulting phone calls which frighten her and which she considers a way of applying mental pressure on her for having instituted the criminal proceedings.
The extension of [the applicant’s] detention is also connected to the necessity of carrying out investigative measures with a view to closing the pre-trial investigation.
The judge examined the possibility of applying another, more lenient, measure of restraint to [the applicant], as reflected in the decision, which states that applying a different measure of restraint to the accused cannot be justified.
...
By virtue of the requirements of the Russian Code of Criminal Procedure, when a judge examines an extension of detention issue, [he] does not have to take into account the conditions of [the applicant’s] detention, as raised by the lawyer in his appeal statement”.
(c)  Request for release: decision of 14 February 2005 15.  On 9 December 2004 the applicant’s counsel, Mr Bagryanskiy, submitted a request for the applicant’s release to the Leninskiy District Court, arguing that his arrest and subsequent detention were unlawful. 16.  According to the Government, two hearings scheduled for 23 December 2004 and 17 January 2005 were postponed following the prosecutor’s request for a stay in the proceedings or in view of his absence from a hearing. Another delay in the proceedings occurred when the prison transport service did not bring the applicant to the courthouse. The hearing on 1 February 2005 was rescheduled because the applicant’s lawyer did not attend. 17.  On 14 April 2005 the Leninskiy District Court discontinued the proceedings on the ground that the applicant had been committed to stand trial and that the first trial hearing had been scheduled for 8 February 2005. 18.  On 17 May 2005 the Vladimir Regional Court dismissed an appeal lodged by the applicant, upholding the District Court’s findings.
(d)  Detention from 12 January to 13 October 2005
i.  Decision of 25 January 2005 19.  In the meantime, on 12 January 2005 the period of the applicant’s detention authorised by the decision of 22 December 2004 expired. On the following day the applicant, having been served with the final version of the bill of indictment for charges of aggravated robbery and sexual assault in addition to aggravated rape, was committed to stand trial before the Frunzenskiy District Court. The court received the case file on 17 January 2005. 20.  At the preliminary hearing on 25 January 2005 the Frunzenskiy District Court, having noted that the applicant and his co-defendant were charged with a serious criminal offence, that the applicant had been held administratively liable and that there were reasons to believe that, if released, he and his co-defendant would abscond, threaten the victim and pervert the course of justice, concluded that there were no grounds for changing the measure of restraint. 21.  On 16 March 2005 the Vladimir Regional Court upheld the decision of 25 January 2005, finding that the lawyers’ arguments that the defendants had permanent places of work and residence in Vladimir and that they had no intention of absconding did not suffice to conclude that the District Court’s decision had been incorrect. The Regional Court also noted that there were no grounds for releasing the defendants after 11 January 2005 because they were considered to be detained “pending judicial proceedings”. In the Regional Court’s opinion, after the District Court had received the criminal case file, it had six months to examine the issue of the applicant’s detention.
ii.  Remittal for further investigation and request for release: decision of 27 April 2005 22.  In April 2005 a lawyer for the applicant, Mr G., asked the Frunzenskiy District Court to remit the case to the prosecutor’s office for further investigation because the investigators had committed various procedural violations and had breached the applicant’s defence rights. At the same time, the applicant’s counsel sought his release. 23.  On 27 April 2005 the District Court remitted the case for further investigation and noted that the measure of restraint applied to the applicant and his co-defendant “should remain unchanged”, as the circumstances which had served as the grounds for their arrest were still present and there were no reasons to authorise a change. 24.  On 28 June 2005 the Vladimir Regional Court upheld the decision, noting that it was well-founded. The Regional Court also found that the co-defendants’ detention was within the six-month period authorised by the provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
(e)  Extension of the detention until 13 October 2005: order of 7 July 2005 25.  On 7 July 2005 the Frunzenskiy District Court authorised the extension of the applicant’s and his co-defendant’s detention for an additional three months, until 13 October 2005. The District Court stated that the authorised period of the applicant’s detention would expire on 13 July 2005 because the District Court had received the case file on 13 January 2005. It concluded that the defendants had been charged with serous criminal offences and were likely to abscond, pervert the course of justice and threaten the victim. 26.  On 11 August 2005 the Vladimir Regional Court upheld the decision, reasoning as follows:
“Having discussed the arguments put forward in the appeal statement, the court considers that the decision [of 7 July 2005] is lawful and well-founded.
When the [District] court was taking the decision, [it] took into account the gravity of the three criminal offences which are punishable by more than ten years’ imprisonment and which are considered serious, posing a particular danger to society. The arguments laid down in the appeal statement were examined by the court and the respective findings were made. [It] was found that there were no grounds for changing the measure of restraint. The above-mentioned findings are reasoned and the reasoning should be considered convincing.
The courts of the first and second instances examined the complaints that the arrest on 25 October 2004 had been unlawful and that after 11 January 2005 [the applicant and his co-defendant] had been detained unlawfully, and found them to be unsubstantiated.”
(f)  Extension of the detention until 13 January 2006: order of 13 October 2005 27.  On 13 October 2005 the Frunzenskiy District Court extended the applicant’s and his co-defendant’s detention until 13 January 2006. The wording of the decision was identical to that issued on 7 July 2005. 28.  On 23 November 2005 the Vladimir Regional Court upheld the decision, endorsing the reasons given by the District Court.
(g)  Extension of the detention until 13 April 2006: order of 11 January 2006 29.  On 11 January 2006 the Frunzenskiy District Court, in a decision identical to those issued on 7 July and 13 October 2005, extended the applicant’s and his co-defendant’s detention until 13 April 2006. 30.  On 7 March 2006 the Vladimir Regional Court dismissed an appeal lodged by the applicant, concluding that the District Court’s findings were lawful and well-reasoned. 31.  On 10 April 2006 the Frunzenskiy District Court found the applicant guilty as charged and sentenced him to five years’ imprisonment and a fine. The judgment was not appealed against and became final. 32.  On 3 November 2004 the applicant was placed in detention facility no. IZ-33/1 in Vladimir. During the entire period of his detention, until 12 May 2006, he was kept in three different cells: nos. 50, 52 and 56. On 10 November 2004 he was held for several hours in cell no. 50. From 3 to 15 November 2004 and from 6 to 17 May 2005 he was kept in cell no. 56. For the remaining period of his detention he applicant was held in cell no. 52. 33.  Relying on certificates issued by the head of the detention facility in May 2009 and barely legible extracts from prison population logs for four days in 2004 and twelve days in 2005, the Government submitted that cell no. 50 measured 77.35 square metres, had had twenty-two sleeping places and housed between ten and twenty-two inmates. Cell no. 52 measured approximately 39.4 square metres, had ten bunks and accommodated from six to ten persons. Cell no. 56 measured approximately 58 square metres, had sixteen sleeping places and housed ten to sixteen persons. To the extent that it was possible for the Court to decipher the extracts from the prison population logs, the number of detainees housed in the cells on the relevant days corresponded to the highest number indicated by the Government for each cell. The Government also submitted that the applicant had always had an individual sleeping place. 34.  The Government further submitted that cell no. 52 had one window and the two other cells had two each. Each window measured 1.1 square metres. From 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. the cell was lit by two or four 80 watt bulbs. At night a 40 watt bulb lit the cell. Each cell had a properly functioning air conditioning system and a heater installed below the window. In addition, inmates were allowed to open a casing in the windows to give them access to fresh air. According to the Government, each cell was equipped with a tap and a lavatory pan, which were installed in a corner, more than 3 metres from a table. The lavatory pan was separated from the living area by a 1.9 metre-high partition. Inmates were allowed to take a shower once every seven days, for which they were afforded between fifteen and thirty minutes. The facility’s shower room was equipped with twelve shower heads. The Government supported their submission with a copy of the schedules of seven “shower days” for cell no. 52, in which the applicant was being held at the time. The schedules showed that the entire cell population had been afforded fifteen minutes to take a shower. According to the schedule lists, from eight to ten inmates had been taken from cell no. 52 to the shower room. 35.  Lastly, the Government stated that the sanitary conditions in the facility had complied with the existing legal requirements. The applicant had received an adequate quantity of food of proper quality. Medical assistance had been provided to him whenever necessary and free of charge. The Government also submitted black-and-white photographs of cells nos. 52 and 56 and of the shower room taken at the end of 2009 in facility no. IZ-33/1. 36.  In the additional observations submitted to the Court on 16 October 2009, the Government stressed that the information concerning the cell floor space and the number of sleeping places had been verified by the Federal Service for the Execution of Sentences. The representatives of the Service discovered certain discrepancies between the information provided by the head of facility no. IZ-33/1 and the actual situation. In particular, cell no. 50 measured 47.35 square metres and had thirty-three sleeping places. Cell no. 56 measured 58 square metres and had forty-two sleeping places. The information provided by the head of the facility about cell no. 52 was correct. The Government further submitted that it was impossible to establish the exact number of inmates detained together with the applicant, as the prison population logs had been destroyed prior to the expiry of the statutory time-limit. The official who had destroyed them had been sanctioned. The Government provided the Court with a certificate issued by a committee of the Federal Service for the Execution of Sentences as a follow-up to the inquiry into the incident. Having noted that the head of facility no. IZ-33/1 had provided the Government with incorrect information concerning the conditions of the applicant’s detention and that the Court would probably interpret that fact unfavourably for the Government, the members of the committee stated that it was impossible to establish who had provided the head of the facility with the misleading information. 37.  While the applicant had provided slightly different measurements of the cells, his main dispute was about the number of inmates held in each cell. In particular, he argued that cell no. 52 had twenty-one sleeping places and had usually housed twenty-five to thirty detainees. Cell no. 50, which was equipped with thirty-three sleeping places, housed approximately fifty detainees. Cell no. 56 housed between forty-five and fifty-five detainees. The applicant insisted that owing to severe overcrowding, he had not had an individual bunk. Inmates had had to take turns to sleep. He further pointed out that detainees had been kept in extremely cramped conditions. Part of the cell floor space was occupied by metal bunks serving as beds for the occupants. The rest of the space was taken up by a wooden table, a bench, shelves, a tap, and a lavatory pan. That arrangement had left inmates with literally no free space where they could move. There was a lavatory pan in the corner of the cell, just a few metres away from the wooden table and bunk beds, separated from the living area by a partition no more than 90 cm high. Given that the lavatory pan was installed on a 30 to 40 cm-high pedestal, the partition did not offer any privacy. A curtain which inmates hung to obtain some privacy was removed by the wardens. Furthermore, the facility administration did not provide inmates with cleaning fluids. The lavatory pan was always dirty and had no lid, allowing unpleasant odours to permeate the cell. 38.  The applicant further stated that the cells had had no air conditioning system. They had been damp, stuffy and dark inside. Inmates had been allowed to smoke in the cells, which had been unbearable for the applicant, who did not smoke. Detainees had also washed their clothes in the cells, creating excessive humidity. The cell windows had been too small and had not allowed sufficient light to enter the cells as they were covered by metal netting. The fluorescent lighting had been constantly on. The cells had been infected with bed-bugs, lice and cockroaches but the administration had not provided any insecticides. Inmates had not been provided with toiletries. They had been allowed to take a shower once every seven days. Fifteen minutes had been afforded to fifteen to twenty inmates, while only four to five shower heads had worked. Food had been very scarce and of low quality. Inmates had been allowed to have an outdoor walk for an hour a day in the facility courtyards. The courtyards had been covered by metal roofs, with merely a metre of empty space between the walls and the roof. 39.  The applicant supported his submissions with statements by two inmates: Mr Y. and Mr Z. Between 30 January 2004 and 1 July 2005 Mr Y. had been detained together with the applicant in cells nos. 52 and 56. Although Mr Z., the applicant’s co-defendant, had never shared a cell with the applicant, he had been housed in the facility at the same time as the applicant. Mr Z. had also been kept in cells nos. 50 and 52. Both detainees’ descriptions of the detention conditions were very similar to that given by the applicant. 40.  The applicant also submitted four colour photographs of a cell which he had shared with twenty-three other inmates. The photographs showed from eight to ten inmates in a very small and sombre room with a row of three-tier bunk beds installed along a wall. According to the applicant, the remaining inmates had been taken for their daily outdoor walk when those photographs had been taken. The photographs also showed a long table with two benches placed between the bunks and another wall. The remaining floor space not taken up by the furniture was only sufficient to allow the entire cell population to stand shoulder to shoulder. The bunks were not separated from each other. The inmates had hung linen and clothes on the bunks to get some privacy. There was dirty and worn-out bedding on the bunks, which were installed in such a way that they blocked the window. The window was covered with two rows of metal bars. The photographs also showed a heavily scratched floor and walls with peeling paint. The furniture was in a very dilapidated state. The bunks were rusty, and clothes had been hung on a rope below the ceiling. 41.  In addition, the applicant provided the Court with a copy of order no. 7 issued on 31 January 2005 by the Federal Service for the Execution of Sentences. The order dealt with the renovation programme of temporary detention facilities in Russia for 2006. It contained a list of temporary detention facilities and the conditions of detention therein which raised particularly serious concerns. Detention facility no. IZ-33/1 in Vladimir was among them. The order indicated that, with 1,009 detainees, the facility was housing twice its maximum capacity (507 places). It also indicated that inmates in that facility had less than 2.5 square metres of personal space. 42.  Lastly, the applicant presented copies of letters to the Vladimir regional prosecutor from the same head of facility no. IZ-33/1 on whose certificates the Government had relied in their submission to the Court. The letters concerned an inmate, Mr N., who had been detained in the facility from 13 April 2004 to 27 June 2006. Mr N. had also stayed in cells nos. 50 and 56. In his letters to the prosecutor, the head of the facility indicated that cell no. 50 measured 47.35 square metres, had thirty-three bunks and housed twenty-four to thirty-three inmates. Although he indicated the same size of cell no. 56 as in the certificate that he had submitted to the Government, the head of the facility noted that that cell had forty-two sleeping places and twenty-nine to forty-two persons had been detained there together with Mr N. 43.  The applicant lodged a number of complaints before various domestic authorities, including the courts, alleging that he had been detained in appalling conditions. The complaints were to no avail.


5.  The applicant was born in 1973 and lives in Helsinki. He was a journalist on the nationwide magazine 7 päivää. 6.  On 4 December 1996 A., the National Conciliator (valtakunnansovittelija, riksförlikningsmannen) at the time, and B., his female friend, entered late at night A.'s home where his wife was present. The situation escalated, the police were called and the incident, which subsequently involved also A.'s grown-up children, led to A.'s arrest. Following the incident, criminal charges were brought against both A. and B. on 18 December 1996. On 16 January 1997 the Helsinki District Court (käräjäoikeus, tingsrätten) sentenced A. to a four-month conditional prison sentence for resisting arrest and for criminal damage (vahingonteko, skadegörelse), and B. to a fine for assault. On 17 January 1997 the Council of State (valtioneuvosto, statsrådet) dismissed A. from his post as National Conciliator. On 25 June 1998 the Appeal Court (hovioikeus, hovrätten) upheld the judgment with respect to B. As regards A., the case was discontinued as he had died on 14 May 1998. On 15 December 1998 the Supreme Court (korkein oikeus, högsta domstolen) refused B. leave to appeal. 7.  On 6 February 1997 7 päivää magazine published two articles written by the applicant about A. and B. The first article was entitled “A. collects his female friend every day from work, the relationship continues” and it concerned A.'s and B.'s relationship. B.'s conviction as well as her workplace were mentioned as background information but the major part of the article concerned the journalist's eyewitness statements about how A. and B. spent their free time. The caption of the article stated that “A.'s female friend B. visits his home daily”. Also, several pictures of B. were published. The second article was entitled “The police laughed at the ex-national conciliator, A. arrested the journalists”. It was about A. and his behaviour in certain encounters with the media, and B.'s name was mentioned only in passing. The caption of the article stated that “A. requested executive assistance from the police in order to take his female friend secretly to his home”. Prior to these articles, B.'s identity had been revealed and her picture had been published in the media. 8.  In the spring of 1997 A. and B. requested that criminal investigations be conducted against journalists who had written about the incident of 4 December 1996 and the circumstances surrounding it. On an unspecified date they made such a request with respect to the applicant, claiming that the articles published in 7 päivää had invaded B.'s privacy. 9.  On 28 November 2001 the public prosecutor brought charges under Chapter 27, section 3(a), paragraph 2, of the Penal Code against the applicant as well as the editor-in-chief (see Jokitaipale and others v. Finland, no. 43349/05, 6 April 2010), in Vantaa District Court. The charges brought against the applicant clearly indicated that the applicant was charged only for having written the articles in question. He was not charged for having been responsible for the headings, pictures or in which part of the magazine the articles were to be published. 10.  B. concurred with the charges brought by the public prosecutor. She pursued a compensation claim jointly and severally against the applicant, the editor-in-chief and the publishing company, which was joined to the criminal charges. Charges brought against the other journalists of the magazine as well as the editor-in-chief were examined in the same proceedings. 11.  On 8 November 2002 the court, after having held an oral hearing, first decided to declare all parts of the case file secret for ten years except for the applicable legal provisions, the conclusions and the summary of the case. Additionally, B.'s identity was not to be revealed in the public parts of the case file. As to the merits of the case, the court accepted the statement of facts indicated in the charges and noted that the applicant was not responsible for the headings, pictures or in which part of the magazine the articles were to be published. It sentenced the applicant to pay twenty day-fines, amounting to 840 euros (EUR), for invasion of B.'s private life. Moreover, the applicant was ordered to pay B., jointly with the other parties to the case, EUR 4,000 plus interest for non-pecuniary damage as well as her costs and expenses. 12.  The District Court found that the facts mentioned in the articles were of a kind to which the protection of private life typically applied. The Supreme Court had already found in 2002 that the national television broadcast on 23 January 1997, in which B.'s name had been mentioned twice in the context of an interview with A., had invaded her private life. B. did not hold such a position in society that the exception in Chapter 27, section 3(a), paragraph 2 of the Penal Code was applicable. The fact that she was a friend of such a person and that she had been involved in the incident that subsequently led to the dismissal of A. from his post as National Conciliator did not justify revealing her identity. Nor was B.'s conviction of a kind that would justify revealing her identity. The Penal Code provision in question did not require that intent to harm be shown but it was sufficient that the dissemination of information about the private life of a person was capable of causing him or her damage or suffering. The applicant, therefore, had had no right to reveal facts relating to B.'s private life. 13.  By letter dated 9 December 2002 the applicant appealed to the Helsinki Appeal Court, requesting, inter alia, that an oral hearing be held and if not, that he be given a possibility to submit additional comments. Moreover, he claimed that the disclosure of a convicted person's name could not be considered as falling within the scope of private life, and that the District Court judge had had a fixed idea about the outcome of the case. 14.  On 12 October 2004 the Appeal Court, without holding an oral hearing, upheld the District Court judgment. The court balanced the freedom of expression against the protection of private life in the light of the Court's case-law. It found that, according to the preparatory works and the national and the Court's case-law, the facts mentioned in the articles were of a kind to which the protection of private life typically applied. The Supreme Court had already found in 2002 that B. was not a public figure, and the fact that she was a friend of such a person and that she had been involved in the incident that subsequently led to the dismissal of A. from his post as National Conciliator did not justify revealing her identity. Nor was B.'s conviction of a kind that would have justified revealing her identity. The fact that B.'s identity as A.'s friend had previously been revealed in the media did not justify the subsequent invasion of her private life. 15.  By letter dated 13 December 2004 the applicant applied for leave to appeal to the Supreme Court, reiterating the grounds already presented before the Appeal Court. Moreover, he claimed that the Appeal Court had not reasoned its judgment sufficiently, and that the judgment was written in a manner suggesting collective criminal liability. This conflicted with the presumption of innocence. Further, he claimed that the restrictions on freedom of expression were neither necessary nor justified in this case. 16.  On 15 August 2005 the Supreme Court refused the applicant leave to appeal.


5.  The applicant was born in 1950 and lives in Gribanovskiy, in the Voronezh Region. 6.  The applicant is suffering from partial deafness (also known as sensor neural hearing loss). 7.  On 17 January 2001 the applicant was arrested on suspicion of several counts of robbery, theft and unlawful possession of arms and taken to a police station for questioning. Following the interrogation, the applicant was remanded in custody pending trial in detention facility IZ-36/2 in Borisoglebsk, Voronezh Region. 8.  Upon the applicant’s arrest he retained a lawyer, Mr B. In March 2001 the applicant asked for Mr B. to be replaced by Mr S. Later the applicant again asked the court for permission to change his lawyer on two occasions, alleging ineffectiveness. It appears that during the trial hearing he was represented by Ms N. 9.  The trial was held on 12 November 2001. The Voronezh Regional Court convicted the applicant, along with nine other co-accused, of theft, aggravated robbery, hijacking, causing deliberate damage to property and possession of firearms, and sentenced him to ten years’ imprisonment with forfeiture of estate. The applicant appealed on the point of facts and law, contesting his involvement in several episodes and alleging that the sentence was too severe. 10.  According to the applicant, on 26 August 2002 he requested to be present in the courtroom in person for health reasons (partial deafness and weak eyesight) but his request was never examined by the court. 11.  According to the Government, the courts did not receive such a request. 12.  It appears that the applicant was not informed about the date and time of the appeal hearing in due time but learned about it on the day of the appeal hearing. The authorities submitted a certificate from the IZ-77/3 detention centre in Moscow, where the applicant was placed for the duration of the appeal proceedings, informing the Court that it was impossible to submit a copy of the summons to the appeal hearing due to the absence of the applicant’s case file. 13.  On 13 September 2002 the Supreme Court of Russia examined the applicant’s appeal, modified the qualification of his crimes and reduced the sentence to nine years and six months. The appeal hearing was held by video link. The applicant was brought to IZ-77/3 detention centre, which was equipped with the necessary facilities to broadcast the hearing. He was not represented by a lawyer. The prosecutor was present in person in the court room. 14.  According to the applicant, the quality of the video and audio transmission was very low. The applicant, who was suffering from partial deafness, could not follow the appeal hearing properly and when he asked the warders to increase the volume his requests were allegedly refused in a rude manner. He further alleged that he had twice been interrupted by the judge when trying to defend himself and was not able to proceed with the defence due to his confusion and the negative psychological effect caused by the judge’s attitude and the transmission by video link. He further alleged that the overall length of the hearing amounted to less than ten minutes. 15.  According to the Government, the applicant stated his case at the appeal hearing. He did not mention his illness during the appeal examination. The Supreme Court examined his arguments concerning the excessive severity of punishment. The court took into account the applicant’s family situation, his readiness to cooperate with the authorities and the factors which had induced him to commit the crime. 16.  On 19 July 2005 the Rossoshanskiy District Court of the Voronezh Region brought the applicant’s sentence into compliance with the amendments introduced into the Russian Criminal Code in December 2003 and reduced the applicant’s sentence to eight years and six months’ imprisonment. 17.  On 24 August 2005 the Supreme Court of Russia refused to review the judgment of 12 November 2001 and the appeal decision of 13 September 2002 by way of supervisory review, having found no violations. 18.  The applicant was held in the detention facility IZ-36/2 in Borisoglebsk from 22 January to 8 March 2001 and from 27 August 2001 to 12 July 2002. The applicant does not complain about the conditions of his detention in other detention facilities where he was held from 8 March to 27 August 2001. 19.  The Government submitted that the applicant was held in cells nos. 9 and 11 during the above-mentioned period. 20.  According to a certificate of 6 December 2007 issued by the facility administration, cell no. 9 measured 9.63 sq. m and cell no. 11 measured 14.58 sq. m Another certificate of the same date indicated that two inmates were held in cell no. 9 and three inmates were held in cell no. 11 at the relevant period. The personal space afforded to the applicant was consequently over 4 sq. m in each cell. The cell was equipped with heating, ventilation, a window that could be opened, a drinking water container and a lavatory. The windows were covered by metal security shields which were removed in 2003. The applicant had an individual sleeping place and bedding. He received food three times a day in accordance with standard norms. The applicant was given cutlery and personal hygiene items. He was able to shower once a week and exercise outside for one hour a day. 21.  The applicant contested these statements on account of personal space and sanitary conditions. He claimed that the cells were small, dirty and damp. The metal security shields covering the windows blocked access to natural light and fresh air, especially bearing in mind that the cells were located in a semi-basement. The artificial light was never switched off. Drinking water was of poor quality and was supplied in rusty containers. Due to overcrowding in the cells the applicant did not have an individual bed. The lavatory in the corner of the cell had no flush system and was not separated from the living area; the applicant had to use the toilet in front of his cellmates and the wardens who observed them through a peephole in the door. The detainees were given ten to fifteen minutes to take a shower. Two to five detainees had to share one shower and had to wash themselves and their clothes during this short time. 22.  According to the certificates of 6 December 2007 issued by the facility director and the warders, the applicant was held in cells nos. 3, 7, 13, 14 and 23 during the above-mentioned period. The cells measured 11.8, 16.4, 11.8, 17.7, and 12.6 sq. m and housed two, four, two, four and three inmates respectively. The Government submitted consequently that the applicant was afforded no less than 4 sq. m of personal space in each cell. 23.  As to the sanitary conditions, the Government submitted the same information as regards the period from 22 January to 8 March 2001 (see paragraph 20 above). 24.  In support of their allegations the Government provided several certificates issued by the chief of IZ-36/2 on 6 December 2007, statements by the warders (not dated), a copy of the applicant’s prison card stating that the applicant had been provided with bed sheets, cutlery and clothes, as well as a number of certificates concerning the food ration during the relevant period of time and disinfection activities conducted in the detention facility in 2002-2003. 25.  The applicant contested these statements. He claimed, in particular, that he had been held in cells 7, 10, 12 and 13; that the cells were small, dirty and damp. The metal security shields covering the windows blocked access to natural light and fresh air, especially bearing in mind that the cells were located in a semi-basement. The artificial light was never switched off. The cells were dimly lit by a 75-watt bulb, fixed in the ceiling and covered with metal mesh. Drinking water was of poor quality and was supplied in rusty containers. According to the applicant inmates were allowed two to four square metres per person in each cell, and he did not have an individual bed. The lavatory in the corner of the cells had no flush system and was not separated from the living area; it was allegedly located about one metre from the dining table; the applicant had to use the toilet in front of his cellmates and the wardens who observed them through a peephole in the door. The detainees were given ten to fifteen minutes to take a shower. Two to five detainees had to share one shower and had to wash themselves and their clothes during this short time. The applicant also complained about the appalling quality of nutrition, the large numbers of insects and rats, the lack of ventilation, the cold in winter (down to -10ºC in the corner cells) and the inadequate supplies of detergent. In detention the applicant contracted shingles and scabies. 26.  The applicant supported his allegations by statements from his four cellmates, Mr G., Mr K., Mr F. and Mr Sh. who were held in the same cells as the applicant during 2001-2002. Additional submissions supporting the applicant’s description of IZ-63/2 in respect of overcrowding and poor sanitary conditions were lodged by Mr Ka., who had been detained in cells nos. 7 and 9 in 2000, Mr. Ki. who had been held in cells nos. 10 and 13 in 2001, Mr. KH. who had been held in cells nos. 8, 12, 21, 13 and 5 in 2002‑2003 and Mr. G. who presented a general description of the detention building which had allegedly been built in the eighteenth century and not reconstructed since then. Although not all of the witnesses had been detained during exactly the same period of time as the applicant, their submissions relate to the same years and the same cells (nos. 7, 10, 12 and 13) and support the applicant’s allegations. 27.  The Government contested the statements of Mr G., Mr K., Mr F. and Mr Sh. as factually untrue, claiming that these statements were not supported by any evidence and reiterating their description of the conditions of detention. They did not dispute that the persons who had submitted their statements had been held in the same detention facility together with the applicant. 28.  On 23 January 2001 upon the applicant’s arrival in the detention facility the applicant was examined by doctors. Following this examination, he was diagnosed with chronic otitis of the middle ear and given the necessary treatment in the detention facility. 29.  On 27 August 2001 the applicant asked for medical help in the detention facility due to the same problem with his ears. The applicant was examined by a prison doctor and transported to the Borisoglebsk Central Hospital to consult an otolaryngologist where he was diagnosed with bilateral mesotimpanite, a type of chronic ear disease which causes partial hearing loss and periodic pus discharge from the ear. Anti-inflammatory treatment was prescribed to the applicant. 30.  The applicant again complained about his ear problem to the facility administration on 16 September, 9 November, 17 December 2001 and 21 March 2002. It appears that in all cases the applicant was provided with some form of medical treatment. 31.  While in detention, the applicant contracted scabies and shingles. In this respect he received the necessary medication from the facility’s doctor. 32.  After his arrival in the correctional colony IK-8 on 7 December 2002 the applicant received treatment for otitis. On 7 February 2003 at his request he was transported to a regional hospital of Voronezh where he stayed until 15 February 2003 and received anti-inflammatory treatment for his ears. Upon the medical examination conducted in the hospital the doctors diagnosed the applicant with bilateral chronic neural hearing loss. 33.  On 20 February 2003 a medical certificate was issued by the colony administration indicating that the applicant was suffering from hearing impairment in both ears (двусторонняя хроническая нейросенсорная тугоухость). 34.  The applicant submits that on the day of his arrest he had a construction business and was the owner of a house and three imported cars of good quality. 35.  Since the original judgment of 12 November 2001 provided for forfeiture of property, the applicant’s property was apparently confiscated when the judgment became final. Later, following the changes in the Russian criminal law introduced in December 2003, the part of the judgment concerning the forfeiture of property was quashed in the proceedings for bringing the sentence in compliance with these changes (see paragraph 16 above). In any event, it appears that upon the applicant’s release from prison his property was not available to him. 36.  No civil claim was apparently lodged with the domestic authorities for compensation or restitution of property. 37.  On an unspecified date in February 2001 the applicant’s mother died. According to the applicant, he asked the prison authorities to transport him to the funeral venue, which was just ten kilometres away from the prison. His request to attend the ceremony was allegedly refused. The applicant did not submit any decisions or further details in this respect.


5.  The applicant was born in 1976 and lives in Riga. 6.  The Department for the Combat of Organised Crime (Organizētās noziedzības apkarošanas pārvalde) received information regarding the applicant’s alleged involvement in the sale of drugs. The department initiated a covert investigative measure, namely a test purchase of drugs. This measure was carried out on 24 and 26 March 2004. 7.  After the test purchase on 26 March 2004 a police patrol unit working with officers from the Department for the Combat of Organised Crime stopped a vehicle being driven by S.I. in which the applicant was a passenger, at about 10 p.m. near Riga city centre. The applicant was apprehended and taken to State Police premises. 8.  The applicant submitted that he had been repeatedly hit on the head, hit several times on the back, knocked down on to the pavement and pushed, which had resulted in bodily injuries. He had not offered any resistance. 9.  In the Government’s version of events V.V., a police officer, opened the front passenger door and pulled the applicant out of the vehicle by his clothing. The applicant fell on to the edge of the pavement. He was then placed face down on the pavement and handcuffed. 10.  The Government noted that while on State Police premises the applicant had complained of chest pain, saying he had heart disease. 11.  At around 1.30 a.m. the applicant was transported from the premises of the State Police by the emergency medical service to the hospital. Head of the emergency medical service unit made an entry in form no. 573, as follows: “Abdominal contusion (sasitums). Acute gastritis? Facial contusion with skin abrasions (nobrāzumi).” 12.  The applicant was admitted to Riga no. 1 Hospital at 1.33 a.m. The applicant’s medical record indicated the following diagnosis on admission: “Head, thorax and abdominal contusion.” 13.  The entry made following the applicant’s examination by a surgeon at 1.35 a.m. indicated the same diagnosis and the applicant’s complaint: “The patient was beaten up during the arrest approximately one and a half hours ago.” 14.  Further, at 2.20 a.m. a neurosurgeon recorded that the applicant had an eyelid haematoma around his left eye. The doctor also noted that the applicant had said that during his arrest he had fallen and hit his head in the area of the right eyebrow. 15.  At 2.55 a.m. the applicant was referred to be tested for narcotic and psychotropic substances. The applicant was found not to be under the influence of alcohol, narcotic drugs or psychotropic substances. 16.  On the same day, between 4.35 a.m. and 5.00 a.m., I.K., a chief specialist from the Department for the Combat of Organised Crime questioned the applicant as a suspect. The applicant indicated that he wished to make a statement in the presence of a lawyer. 17.  At 5.51 a.m. the applicant was transferred to a temporary detention facility, where he stayed until 30 March 2004, during which time he did not seek any medical assistance. 18.  On 29 March 2004 between 1.30 p.m. and 1.55 p.m. I.K. questioned the applicant in the presence of a lawyer. The applicant made a statement, the record of the relevant part of which is as follows:
“... While being arrested on 26 March 2004 [the applicant] was pulled out of the vehicle, a jacket was pulled over [his] head and [he] was pushed on to the ground. [He] then received one to three blows to the head and one blow to the abdomen. [The applicant] does not recall the precise number of blows he received. [He] did not lose consciousness. The blows were [inflicted] with a hard, blunt object.” 19.  In the context of the interrogation of the applicant described above, the Government put to the Court that no complaints or requests had been raised by the applicant or his lawyer. Notwithstanding, a forensic examination of the applicant had been arranged. 20.  Accordingly, on 29 March 2004 I.K. ordered an expert report to ascertain what injuries had been sustained by the applicant, in view of the applicant’s statement that while being arrested he had been kicked on the body and head. The order stated that it had been issued as part of a criminal investigation of unauthorised acquisition, possession and sale of psychotropic substances. 21.  On the same day an expert examined the applicant. In the expert’s report the following information the applicant had provided was recorded:
“On 26 March 2004 during the arrest police officers in uniforms placed a jacket over [his] head, hit [him] on the head [and] abdomen with something [and he] fell down. It is impossible to tell with accuracy whether the abrasions on [his] legs were caused by the fall or a blow. [He] had nausea [but] did not vomit. [He] did not lose consciousness ...”
The expert’s report of 29 March 2004 described the applicant’s condition as follows:
“A haematoma 4 cm x 2.5 cm on the upper eyelid of the left eye ... an abrasion 0.2 cm x 0.1 cm in the middle area of the right cheek ... no visible injuries on the body found ... seven abrasions from 0.2 cm x 0.2 cm to 1.5 cm x 0.8 cm on the front surface of the left knee joint and on the front surface of the left lower leg ... a haematoma 5 cm x 4 cm on the front surface of the left lower leg.” 22.  On 29 March 2004 the expert recorded in her report that the applicant’s medical records should be requested from Riga no. 1 Hospital. On 30 March 2004 the Department for the Combat of Organised Crime issued a request to Riga no. 1 Hospital for the applicant’s medical records. 23.  On 2 April 2004 the expert added in the same report her conclusions based on the applicant’s examination and the data contained in his medical documentation. In particular:
“[The applicant] has the following injuries – a contusion on the head with subdermal haematoma and skin abrasion, and a contusion on the left leg with subdermal haematoma and skin abrasions.
These injuries could have been caused by hard, blunt objects.
The possibility cannot be ruled out that the injuries were caused in the circumstances indicated in the decision and by [the applicant], and on 26 March 2004.
The injuries ... are light injuries, which do not cause short-term health impairment for a period of time of more than six days.
The diagnosis of ‘head, thorax and abdominal contusion’ cannot be taken into account in the assessment of the gravity of the injuries, because it has not been affirmed by impartial clinical data, in-patient (stacionārā) inspection and examination (visible injuries are not described in the medical history and were not found in the course of the forensic examination).” 24.  The applicant stated in his appeal of 2 April 2004 to the Riga Regional Court (Rīgas apgabaltiesa) against his pre-trial detention that physical force had been applied to him during his arrest, following which he had requested medical assistance at Riga no. 1 Hospital. 25.  On 13 April 2004 officer A.Ž. gave a statement in the criminal investigation regarding the test purchase of drugs carried out on 24 and 26 March 2004, and stated that the applicant had been apprehended on 26 March 2004. A.Ž. gave evidence that the applicant had not been apprehended immediately after the purchase, because it was necessary to ascertain whether the applicant had been working with anyone else. 26.  On 30 April 2004 the Riga Regional Court rejected the applicant’s appeal against the pre-trial detention and decided to keep the applicant in custody. The Regional Court in the decision referred to the applicant’s argument contained in his appeal, including the following:
“... police employees beat up [the applicant] when they arrested him; as a result he needed hospital treatment ...
In court [the applicant] and his lawyer ... maintained the appeal ...” 27.  On 9 May 2005 the Vidzeme Regional Court (Vidzemes apgabaltiesa) found the applicant guilty of unauthorised acquisition, possession and transport of narcotic and psychotropic substances on a large scale, with intent to sell. He was sentenced to eight years and six months’ imprisonment, as an aggregated term, with confiscation of property and police control for two years. 28.  On 16 December 2006 the Criminal Cases Chamber of the Supreme Court (Augstākās tiesas Krimināllietu tiesu palāta) upheld the applicant’s conviction on appeal. Further, on 19 February 2007 the Senate of the Supreme Court (Augstākās tiesas Senāts) rejected the applicant’s appeal on points of law. 29.  On 12 March 2007 the applicant made representation to the Vidzeme Regional Court about ill-treatment during his arrest on 26 March 2004. The Regional Court transmitted the request to the Internal Security Office of the State Police (Valsts policijas Iekšējās drošības birojs).
(a)  Response of the Internal Security Office of the State Police 30.  The applicant submitted to the Court a copy of a letter from the Internal Security Office of the State Police, dated 25 April 2007. It was sent in response to the applicant’s submission of 12 March 2007, mentioned above. The letter stated that the human resources inspection division had requested information from the emergency medical service about the call made to them on 27 March 2004. However, the applicable regulations required records of emergency calls to be kept for a period of one year. It followed from the applicant’s medical records at Riga no. 1 Hospital that on 27 March 2004 the applicant had been diagnosed with head and thorax contusions and that he had told medical staff that he had fallen and hit his head while being arrested. While in the temporary detention facility between 27 and 30 March 2004 the applicant had not asked for medical assistance. 31.  The letter indicated as follows:
“... in accordance with section 22(2) of the Law on the Police a police employee could not be held responsible for pecuniary or physical harm, caused within the official authority, to an offender who did not comply or who resisted during arrest.”
The answer concluded that State Police employees had not violated the relevant statutes.
(b)  Inquiry and decision of the Internal Security Office of the State Police 32.  In April 2007 the Internal Security Office collected reports (ziņojumi) from D.M., A.Ž. and A.K., officers of the Department for the Combat of Organised Crime. 33.  D.M., in a report of 24 April 2007, indicated that on the day in question he had been working with a team of traffic police officers. Their task had been to intercept the applicant’s vehicle after the test purchase of drugs. Once they had received information about the vehicle with the applicant as a passenger inside, a traffic police employee had stopped the vehicle and invited the driver to step out. At this time other department officers arrived and arrested the applicant. D.M. could not remember the arresting officer or subsequent proceedings with respect to the applicant. 34.  The department officer A.Ž. stated in his report of 11 April 2007 that the applicant’s arrest had been carried out by V.V. He also indicated that the applicant had not been ill-treated. The applicant had complained of heart problems while on department premises and an ambulance had been called. An examination by a doctor revealed no health problems and the applicant was then questioned. 35.  In his report of 27 April 2007 department officer A.K. declared that he had arrived at the scene after the applicant had been arrested. A.K. could not remember who the arresting officer was. According to A.K. the applicant had been transported to department premises. Police officers had not ill-treated the applicant in A.K.’s presence and he had not seen any injuries. 36.  In addition to these reports, the Internal Security Office of the State Police obtained on 17 April 2007 evidence from the temporary detention unit. This indicated that the applicant had not requested medical assistance between 27 and 30 March 2004. On the same day that office also requested the applicant’s medical file from Riga no. 1 Hospital. 37.  Following the applicant’s request of 13 April 2007 to the Prosecutor General to submit information about ill-treatment, a prosecutor took a statement from him on 8 June 2007. The applicant indicated that he wished to provide more details about what had happened on 26 March 2004. The statement included the following:
“Late in the evening of 26 March 2004 ... [the applicant] was in the vehicle ... as a passenger ... The vehicle was stopped by traffic police ... [The applicant’s] colleague was invited to the police vehicle ... the passenger door on [the applicant’s] side opened and [he] received a hard blow to the head ... the blow pushed him towards the driver’s seat and [he] heard shouts not to move and received several blows on the back ... the same person who had hit [him then] grabbed [him] by [his] jacket and pulled [him] out of the vehicle. The jacket was placed over [his] head ... One of the blows knocked [him] off his feet, as a result of which [he] fell face down with his abdomen on the edge of the pavement. Thereafter a couple of blows followed on [his] body. Everything happened very fast ... [The applicant] heard people passing by saying ‘What are you doing?’ ... [he] was handcuffed ... in the police vehicle [he] was hit on the body ... [The applicant] would be able to recognise the police officer who inflicted the blows ... No physical ill-treatment was inflicted on him at the police station ... After some time ... [the applicant] felt ill ... [he] even lost consciousness in the police station ...” 38.  In the statement the applicant requested that an investigation be conducted and criminal proceedings initiated in respect of the infliction of the injuries, because there had been no reason to resort to violence during the arrest. 39.  The statement was sent for decision to the Internal Security Office of the State Police. 40.  On 18 June 2007 L.L., a senior inspector of the pre-trial investigation division of the Internal Security Office of the State Police, refused to initiate criminal proceedings. This decision, referred to by the Government, did not elaborate reasons for the refusal. 41.  The applicant appealed against the refusal to the Office of the Prosecutor General (Latvijas Republikas Prokuratūras Ģenerālprokuratūra). 42.  On 18 July 2007 V.Č., acting as chief prosecutor of the pre-trial investigation and oversight division, quashed the decision as ungrounded and ordered that the Internal Security Office of the State Police conduct an additional inquiry. His finding read:
“The decision has been adopted on the basis of an incomplete examination ... without requesting the expert’s report and without clarifying the possible circumstances in which the injuries observed on [the applicant] had been sustained.” 43.  On 7 August 2007 the Internal Security Office of the State Police requested information on the identities of the traffic police employees who had been on duty on 26 March 2004 around 10 p.m. and whether they had participated in the applicant’s arrest. It also asked those officers to attend the Internal Security Office. In response, the Internal Security Office was provided on 14 August 2007 with the information that officers B.M. and L.V. had carried out the arrest and that they had been advised to attend the Internal Security Office. 44.  During August 2007 the Internal Security Office of the State Police collected explanations (paskaidrojumi) from five officers, A.Ž., D.M. and V.V., officers of the Department for the Combat of Organised Crime, and B.M. and L.V., officers of the police patrol unit. 45.  In particular, further statements were taken from A.Ž. and D.M. on 20 August 2007. Their explanations were broadly the same as those they had made previously, on 11 and 24 April 2007 respectively. A.Ž. repeated, inter alia, that the applicant’s arrest had been made by V.V. and that the applicant had not been ill-treated. D.M. again gave evidence that he had no recollection of the identity of the arresting officer or of further proceedings with regard to the applicant. On 24 August 2007 V.V. gave his explanation as follows:
“On 26 March 2004 a covert measure of investigation was implemented ... Following the experiment [V.V.] received an instruction to apprehend [the applicant] ... when the traffic police officers stopped the vehicle ... [V.V.] approached the vehicle ... and opened the front passenger door. [The applicant] was just then reaching to close the driver’s door, which had been left open. A traffic police employee was at the driver’s door. [V.V.] identified himself as a police employee and invited [the applicant] to step out of the vehicle. [V.V.] does not remember exactly whether [the applicant] was handcuffed and which of the colleagues assisted in [the applicant’s] arrest. Following [his] arrest [he] was taken to the State Police ... but [V.V.] does not remember who took him there. [The applicant] was not subjected to any physical violence when he was arrested, because there was no need to apply physical force.” 46.  B.M. and L.V., officers of the police patrol unit gave explanations on 20 and 27 August 2007 respectively. They both stated that on 26 March 2004 they had been on duty and had been asked to drive to the State Police and work with officers of the Department for the Combat of Organised Crime. L.V. in his explanation of 27 August 2007 specified that department employees had briefed them that it was necessary to intercept a vehicle which might contain a person whose arrest was being sought. After receiving these instructions they had left the department, with department officers. Two of them had been in their own vehicle. At around 10 p.m. on the instruction of the department officers they had stopped a vehicle with a driver and a passenger inside. Both B.M. and L.V. stated that B.M. had approached the driver of the vehicle and asked him to present the necessary documents. The arrest had been made by department employees and no physical force had been used, either on the applicant or the driver of the vehicle. L.V. indicated that he had stayed inside the patrol vehicle while this was going on. B.M. declared that he had not seen the applicant since the arrest. The driver of the vehicle had been taken to the State Police and an administrative report that he had been driving without a licence was drawn up. L.V.’s account stated that both the applicant and the driver had been taken to the State Police.
(b)  Report of the Internal Security Office of the State Police 47.  On 3 September 2007 a senior inspector of the Internal Security Office of the State Police human resources inspection division issued a report on the results of the inquiry into the circumstances of the applicant’s arrest on 26 March 2004. 48.  The report stated that information from the emergency medical service and Riga no. 1 Hospital, and explanations from the officers A.Ž., D.M., V.V., B.M. and L.V. had been collected. An explanation could not be obtained from A.K., because he did not attend the Internal Security Office as agreed and later went on holiday and was unreachable by telephone. The Internal Security Office had requested S.I., the driver of the vehicle in which the applicant had been a passenger when he was arrested on 26 March 2004, to attend the office. S.I. had informed the office by telephone that he was unable to attend because of the expected birth of a child and because he was too busy. S.I. also said on the telephone that he had been questioned about the incident on several occasions, and that time had passed and he could not remember the precise circumstances of the applicant’s arrest. S.I. did not know whether physical force had been used on the applicant, because he had stepped out of the vehicle. No physical force had been used against S.I. 49.  The report further stated:
“Likewise, during the inquiry which was conducted no unequivocal and impartial evidence was obtained that police employees had used unjustified physical force on [the applicant] during his arrest. In this regard the police employees categorically deny any use of physical force on [the applicant], whereas [the applicant] alleges to the contrary. Therefore, the question whether the police officers used physical force on [the applicant] and to what extent (during arrest, transport for questioning, or questioning itself) is to be examined in the pre-trial investigation division of the Internal Security Office of the State Police (VP IDP Pirmstiesas izmeklēšanas nodaļa), by taking the necessary actions in criminal procedure (questioning and subsequent confrontation between the police employees concerned).” 50.  With regard to disciplinary liability the report indicated that in any event this would be barred by a period of statutory limitation.
(c)  Decision of the Internal Security Office of the State Police 51.  On 11 September 2007 the pre-trial investigation division of the Internal Security Office of the State Police refused to initiate criminal proceedings. 52.  That decision established:
“... on 26 March 2004 [the applicant] was justifiably arrested for a criminal offence ... All the police officers who carried out the arrest on 26 March 2004 indicated that more than three years had passed since the event and they could not remember precisely what had happened. The applicant did not, immediately after the arrest, express any complaints about the police employees’ conduct against him. [The applicant] could obtain the established light injuries, which do not cause short-term health impairment for more than six days, before or during the apprehension, when special measures were applied to him. It may not be asserted unequivocally that during [the applicant’s] arrest the police employees exceeded their authority by intentionally using unjustified force, thus committing a criminal offence as set out in section 317(2) of the Criminal Law.” 53.  On 21 September 2007 the applicant appealed to the Office of the Prosecutor General against the aforementioned refusal to initiate criminal proceedings. He argued that the existence of his injuries had not been disputed and had been confirmed by the expert’s report. He could not have sustained the injuries prior to the arrest because he had been arrested at 10 p.m. on 26 March 2004 and admitted to Riga no. 1 Hospital at 1.33 a.m. the next day. The applicant pointed out that a surgeon had noted on his record “was beaten up one and a half hours ago”. Further, the fact that police officers could not remember the circumstances of the arrest did not prove anything, and was not a justification. He also stressed that no one who could have given impartial information had been questioned. 54.  On 7 November 2007 J.K., a prosecutor responsible for the criminal case against the applicant in respect of drug sale, gave a report that the applicant had never complained of ill-treatment by police officers during the investigation or court hearings. 55.  On 8 November 2007 V.O., as chief prosecutor of the pre-trial investigation and oversight division, confirmed the decision of the Internal Security Office of the State Police of 11 September 2007. She noted that that office had questioned the police officers and had obtained the expert’s report and information from S.I. However, no unequivocal and impartial evidence had been obtained that the injuries had been caused during the arrest. V.O. added the following words to her decision:
“... [the applicant’s] account of 8 June 2007 that police officers on 26 March 2004 had hit [him] several times on the back has not been confirmed, because the expert’s report did not establish any injuries on the back ... [the applicant] gave a contradictory account of how the abdominal contusion had been acquired (not taken into account in the expert’s report as not affirmed by impartial clinical data). On 29 March 2004 [the applicant] stated that police officers had hit [him] on the abdomen during [his] arrest but [he] had not lost consciousness, however on 8 June 2007 [the applicant] stated that the abdominal contusion had been caused by a fall on asphalt and that [he] had lost consciousness on the State Police premises ... It has also been established that, after being taken to Riga no. 1 Hospital at 1.33 a.m. on 27 March 2004 and examined there by doctors, [the applicant] was taken to a temporary detention facility at 5.51 a.m. ... from which a medical report has been received that between 27 and 30 March 2004 [he] did not request medical assistance.” 56.  V.O. also indicated that there were no grounds to initiate disciplinary proceedings because no evidence had been obtained that State Police employees had exceeded their authority or abused their official position during the arrest. She also explained the period of statutory limitation for disciplinary proceedings. 57.  V.O. stated that this decision was final.