Lexploria

FOURTH SECTION

CASE OF BALOGH AND OTHERS v. HUNGARY

(Application no. 26982/12 and 9 other applications – see appended list )

JUDGMENT

STRASBOURG

10 December 2015

This judgment is final . It may be subject to editorial revision.

In the case of Balogh and Others v. Hungary ,

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

Vincent A. De Gaetano, President, Egidijus Kūris , Gabriele Kucsko-Stadlmayer , judges, and Hasan Bakırcı Acting Deputy Section Registrar ,

Having deliberated in private on 19 November 2015 ,

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

PROCEDURE

1 . The cases originated in applications against Hungary 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 Hungarian Government (“the Government”).

THE FACTS

3 . The list of applicants, their representatives 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 and of the lack of any effective remedy in domestic law .

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 S 3 AND 13 OF THE CONVENTION

6 . The applicants complained of the inadequate conditions of their detention and that they had no effective remedy in this connection. They relied on Articles 3 and 13 of the Convention, which read as follows:

Article 3

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

Article 13

“Everyone whose rights and freedoms as set forth in this Convention are violated shall have an effective remedy before a national authority ...”

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 Varga and Others v. Hungary (nos. 14097/12, 45135/12, 73712/12, 34001/13, 44055/13, and 64586/13, 10 March 2015), 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 . The Court further notes that the applicants did not have at their disposal an effective remedy by which to submit their complaints concerning their conditions of detention.

11 . These complaints are therefore admissible and disclose a breach of Articles 3 and 13 of the Convention.

III . 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 and to its case ‑ law (see, in particular, Varga and Others v. Hungary, nos. 14097/12, 45135/12, 73712/12, 34001/13, 44055/13, and 64586/13, 10 March 2015), 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 s 3 and 13 of the Convention concerning the inadequate conditions of detention and the lack of an effective remedy ;

4. 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 10 December 2015 , pursuant to Rule 77 §§ 2 and 3 of the Rules of Court.

Hasan Bakırcı Vincent A. De Gaetano Acting Deputy Registrar President

APPENDIX

List of applications raising complaints under Articles 3 and 13 of the Convention

( inadequate conditions of detention and lack of any effective remedy in domestic law)

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

Amount awarded for non-pecuniary damage per applicant

(in euros) [i]

Amount awarded for costs and expenses per application

(in euros) [ii]

26982/12

24/04/2012

András BALOGH

08/05/1965

Karsai Dániel András

Budapest

Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén County Prison, Budapest Prison, Vác Prison and Márianosztra Prison

23/02/2006 to

26/03/2012

6 year(s) and 2 month(s)

1.6 - 2.1 m²

toilet not separated from the rest of the cell

20,500

300

131/13

17/12/2012

Zsolt TÓTH

30/05/1975

Turán Tünde

Budapest

Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg County Prison and Budapest Prison

29/01/2012 to

05/03/2012

0 year(s) and 2 month(s)

Budapest Prison and Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg County Prison

14/03/2012 to

23/07/2014

2 year(s) and 5 month(s)

Budapest Prison

23/07/2014

pending

1 year(s) and 3 month(s)

2 m²

2.6 m²

3.4 m²

toilet not separated from the rest of the cell, infestation of the cell with insects, only cold water in cell

13,500

300

6764/13

17/01/2013

László PATAKI

06/05/1979

Fahidi Gergely

Budapest

Budapest Prison, Block "A"

03/02/2011 to

20/04/2012

1 year(s) and 3 month(s)

Budapest Prison, Block "B"

20/04/2012 to

01/06/2012

0 year(s) and 2 month(s)

Budapest Prison, Block "A"

01/06/2012

pending

3 year(s) and 5 month(s)

2.6 m²

3.1 m²

3.25 m²

toilet not separated from the rest of the cell, shower only once a week, infestation of the cell with insects, lack of (adequate) heating, lack of (sufficient) natural light

infestation of the cell with insects, lack of (adequate) heating, lack of (sufficient) natural light, shower only once a week

shower only once a week, toilet not separated from the rest of the cell, infestation of the cell with insects, lack of (sufficient) natural light, lack of (adequate) heating

16,500

300

19712/13

06/03/2013

Zsolt NAGY

07/01/1971

Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg County Prison

23/04/2010 to

10/12/2012

2 year(s) and 8 month(s)

2 m²

shower only once a week, bedbugs

10,000

19892/13

11/03/2013

Csaba JÁRÓKA

22/09/1982

Turán Tünde

Budapest

Budapest Correctional Facility, Block III. (" Maglódi / Venyige ")

02/08/2010 to

23/09/2010

0 year(s) and 2 month(s)

Budapest Prison

23/09/2010

pending

5 year(s) and 1 month(s)

3.75 m²

2.6 m²

toilet not separated from the rest of the cell, lack of fresh air, only cold water in cell

17,800

300

37487/13

04/06/2013

János ZUSCHLAG

07/05/1977

Bács-Kiskun County Prison

02/09/2007 to

30/06/2008

0 year(s) and 10 month(s)

Állampuszta Prison

30/06/2008 to

30/08/2008

0 year(s) and 3 month(s)

Bács-Kiskun County Prison

30/08/2008 to

01/02/2012

3 year(s) and 6 month(s)

3 m²

2.5 m²

1.9 m²

toilet not separated from the rest of the cell, insufficient number of beds in the cell, only cold water in cell

insufficient number of beds in the cell, only cold water in cell

15,800

42486/13

21/06/2013

Tamás József BULENDA

18/09/1982

Németh Renáta

Budapest

Budapest Correctional Facility

15/09/2004 to

30/11/2004

0 year(s) and 3 month(s)

Pálhalma Prison

30/11/2004 to

20/09/2005

0 year(s) and 10 month(s)

Budapest Prison

20/09/2005 to

23/12/2012

7 year(s) and 4 month(s)

3.75 m²

2.5 m²

3.3 m²

infestation of the cell with insects

toilet not separated from the rest of the cell, infestation of the cell with insects

27,300

300

42808/13

20/06/2013

Attila FÖLDES-SZABÓ

18/11/1969

Csőzik László

Budapest

Budapest Prison

01/10/2012

pending

3 year(s) and 1 month(s)

3 m²

toilet not separated from the rest of the cell, infestation of the cell with insects

11,300

300

43610/13

01/07/2013

Kornél LELKES

02/04/1980

Cech András

Budapest

Budapest Correctional Facility

29/10/2009 to

16/11/2009

0 year(s) and 1 month(s)

Budapest Prison and Győr - Moson -Sopron County Prison

21/06/2010 to

17/10/2012

2 year(s) and 4 month(s)

Budapest Prison

01/02/2013 to

22/04/2013

0 year(s) and 3 month(s)

Budapest Prison

22/04/2013 to

29/06/2013

0 year(s) and 3 month(s)

3.75 m²

2.5 m²

3.1 m²

3.6 m²

shower only once a week

toilet not separated from the rest of the cell, shower only once a week

shower only once a week

10,800

300

43868/13

24/06/2013

László SANYÓ

24/02/1979

Hajdú -Bihar County Prison

08/06/2011 to

29/05/2012

1 year(s)

Budapest Prison

06/06/2012 to

20/12/2013

1 year(s) and 7 month(s)

2.7 m²

2.6 m²

lack of fresh air, shower only once a week

toilet not separated from the rest of the cell, infestation of the cell with insects

9,800

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

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