Lexploria

THIRD SECTION

CASE OF MERZLYACHENKO AND OTHERS v. RUSSIA

( Application no. 60839/13 and 7 others -

see appended list )

JUDGMENT

STRASBOURG

4 May 2017

This judgment is final but it may be subject to editorial revision.

In the case of Merzlyachenko and Others v. Russia ,

The European Court of Human Rights ( Third Section ), sitting as a Committee composed of:

Luis López Guerra, President, Dmitry Dedov , Branko Lubarda , judges , and Karen Reid , Section Registrar ,

Having deliberated in private on 30 March 2017 ,

Delivers the following judgment, which was adopted on that date:

PROCEDURE

1. The case originated in applications against Russia lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) on the various dates indicated in the appended table.

2. The applications were communicated to the Russian Government (“the Government”).

THE FACTS

3. The list of applicants and the relevant details of the applications are set out in the appended table.

4. The applicants complained of the inadequate conditions of their detention . Some applicants also raised other complaints under the provisions of the Convention.

THE LAW

I. JOINDER OF THE APPLICATIONS

5. Having regard to the similar subject matter of the applications, the Court finds it appropriate to examine them jointly in a single judgment.

II. ALLEGED VIOLATION OF ARTICLE 3 OF THE CONVENTION

6. The applicants complained principally of the inadequate conditions of their detention. They relied on Article 3 of the Convention, which reads as follows:

Article 3

“No one shall be subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.”

7. The Court notes that the applicants were kept in detention in poor conditions. The details of the applicants ’ detention are indicated in the appended table. The Court refers to the principles established in its case ‑ law regarding inadequate conditions of detention (see, for instance, Kud Å‚a v. Poland [GC], no. 30210/96, §§ 90 ‑ 94, ECHR 2000 ‑ XI, and Ananyev and Others v. Russia , nos. 42525/07 and 60800/08, §§ 139 ‑ 165, 10 January 2012). It reiterates in particular that extreme lack of space in a prison cell or overcrowding weighs heavily as an aspect to be taken into account for the purpose of establishing whether the impugned detention conditions were “degrading” from the point of view of Article 3 and may disclose a violation, both alone or taken together with other shortcomings (see, amongst many authorities, Karalevičius v. Lithuania , no. 53254/99, §§ 36–40, 7 April 2005).

8. In the leading case of Sergey Babushkin v. Russia, no. 5993/08, 28 November 2013, the Court already found a violation in respect of issues similar to those in the present case.

9. Having examined all the material submitted to it, the Court has not found any fact or argument capable of persuading it to reach a different conclusion on the admissibility and merits of these complaints. Having regard to its case-law on the subject, the Court considers that in the instant case the applicants ’ conditions of detention were inadequate.

10. These complaints are therefore admissible and disclose a breach of Article 3 of the Convention.

III. REMAINING COMPLAINTS

11. In applications nos. 60839/13, 63289/13, 63379/13, 63440/13, 63632/13 and 63638/13, the applicants submitted other complaints which also raised issues under the Convention, in accordance with the relevant well-established case-law of the Court (see appended table). These complaints are not manifestly ill-founded within the meaning of Article 35 § 3 (a) of the Convention, nor are they inadmissible on any other ground. Accordingly, they must be declared admissible. Having examined all the material before it, the Court concludes that they also disclose violations of the Convention in the light of its findings in Sergey Babushkin case (cited above, §§ 38-45).

IV . APPLICATION OF ARTICLE 41 OF THE CONVENTION

12. Article 41 of the Convention provides:

“If the Court finds that there has been a violation of the Convention or the Protocols thereto, and if the internal law of the High Contracting Party concerned allows only partial reparation to be made, the Court shall, if necessary, afford just satisfaction to the injured party.”

13. Regard being had to the documents in its possession, to its case ‑ law and the long delay for some of the applicants in filing the application , the Court considers it reasonable to award the sums indicated in the appended table.

14. The Court considers it appropriate that the default interest rate should be based on the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank, to which should be added three percentage points.

FOR THESE REASONS, THE COURT , UNANIMOUSLY,

1. Decides to join the applications;

2. Declares the applications admissible;

3. Holds that these applications disclose a breach of Article 3 of the Convention concerning the inadequate conditions of detention ;

4. Holds that there has been a violation as regards the other complaints raised under well-established case-law of the Court (see appended table);

5. Holds

(a) that the respondent State is to pay the applicants, within three months, the amounts indicated in the appended table, to be converted into the currency of the respondent State at the rate applicable at the date of settlement;

(b) that from the expiry of the above-mentioned three months until settlement simple interest shall be payable on the above amounts at a rate equal to the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank during the default period plus three percentage points.

Done in English, and notified in writing on 4 May 2017 , pursuant to Rule 77 §§ 2 and 3 of the Rules of Court.

Karen Reid Luis López Guerra Registrar President

APPENDIX

List of applications raising complaints under Article 3 of the Convention

( inadequate conditions of detention )

No.

Application no. Date of introduction

Applicant name

Date of birth

Representative name and location

Facility

Start and end date

Duration

Sq. m. per inmate

Specific grievances

Other complaints under well-established case-law

Amount awarded for pecuniary and non-pecuniary damage and costs and expenses

per applicant

(in euros) [1]

60839/13

13/09/2013

Aleksey Vasilyevich Merzlyachenko

01/04/1978

Gordeyeva Margarita Vladimirovna

Astrakhan

IK-2 Astrakhan

31/10/2012

pending

More than 4 year(s) and 5 month(s)

2.4 m²

Low temperature in the dormitory in winter time, 4 pans and 3-5 sinks for 100 inmates, drinking water is not freely supplied, poor quality of food, insects, rodents.

Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention -

15,300

63289/13

19/09/2013

Nikolay Georgiyevich Plokhutenko

20/07/1954

IK-30 Perm Region

28/12/2011 to

19/09/2013

1 year(s) and

8 month(s) and

23 day(s)

1.5 m²

No ventilation.

Insufficient space for outdoor exercise, 8 pans and 6 sinks for 130 inmates, no hot water, poor quality of food.

Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention -

5,000

63379/13

19/09/2013

Aleksey Mukharamovich Ismagulov

13/08/1979

IK-30 Perm Region

19/05/2011 to

19/09/2013

2 year(s) and

4 month(s) and 1 day(s)

1.5 m²

No ventilation, 8 pans and 6 sinks for 130 inmates, no hot water, 10 showers and 1 hour to use them for 130 inmates, poor quality of food, insufficient space for outdoor exercise.

Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention -

5,000

63440/13

18/09/2013

Aleksandr Yuryevich Pisanko

27/08/1986

IK-30 Perm Region

15/10/2011 to

18/09/2013

1 year(s) and 11 month(s) and 4 day(s)

1.5 m²

No ventilation.

8 pans, 6 sinks for 130 inmates, no hot water.

10 showers and 1 hour to use them for 130 inmates.

Poor quality of food.

Insufficient space for outdoor exercise.

Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention -

5,000

63632/13

19/09/2013

Firudin Ramazanovich Mekhdiyev

12/10/1981

IK-30 Perm Region

15/12/2011 to

17/09/2013

1 year(s) and

9 month(s) and 3 day(s)

1.5 m²

No ventilation, 8 pans, 6 sinks for 130 inmates, 10 showers and 1 hour to use them for 130 inmates, poor quality of food, insufficient space for outdoor exercise.

Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention -

5,000

63638/13

19/09/2013

Ivan Konstantinovich Moskaltsov

14/10/1951

IK-30 Perm Region

24/11/2011 to

18/09/2013

1 year(s) and

9 month(s) and

26 day(s)

1.5 m²

No ventilation, 8 pans and 6 sinks for 130 inmates, 10 showers and 1 hour to use them for 130 inmates, poor quality of food, insufficient space for outdoor exercise.

Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in respect of inadequate conditions of detention -

5,000

80928/13

29/11/2013

Sergey Nikolayevich Dolbin

14/02/1976

IK-7-28 Kirov Region

18/01/2012

pending

More than 5 year(s) and 2 month(s) and

13 day(s)

2.5 m²

Poor quality of water, almost no access to natural light.

15,300

38267/15

18/07/2015

Stepan Anatolyevich Derzibashev

10/02/1991

Alekseyeva Natalya Vasilyevna

Krsanoyarsk

IK-17 Krasnoyarsk

18/10/2010 to

21/07/2011

9 month(s) and 4 day(s)

IK-30 Norilsk Krasnoyarsk Region

25/07/2011 to

02/02/2015

3 year(s) and 6 month(s) and 9 day(s)

1.1 m²

No ventilation, lack of sanitary facilities.

No ventilation, high humidity, no privacy when using lavatory, the applicant ’ s bed was 1 m away from the lavatory, 5 sinks and 5 pans for

130-170 inmates.

5,000

[1] . Plus any tax that may be chargeable to the applicants.