THIRD SECTION

Application no . 41317/08 Carlos IONESCU against Romania lodged on 5 August 2008

STATEMENT OF FACTS

THE FACTS

1 . The applicant, Mr Carlos Ionescu , is a Romanian national, who was born in 1969 and is currently detained in the Giurgiu Maximum Security Prison.

A. The circumstances of the case

2 . The facts of the case, as submitted by the applicant, may be summarised as follows.

1. The applicant ’ s health condition

3 . According to a medical report issued on 5 July 2006, on 12 May 2006 the applicant underwent an operation for the removal of his spleen.

4 . In May 2008, following his hospitalisation in the Bucharest Prison Hospital, the applicant was diagnosed with pulmonary tuberculosis with fibro nodular lesions, gastritis and hypertriglyceridemia.

2. The applicant ’ s requests for winter clothing

5 . For a certain period of time in the course of 2009 and 2010 the applicant was detained in Jilava Prison in Bucharest.

6 . On 15 and then on 29 December 2009, having no legal residence and no family, the applicant requested the Jilava prison administration to provide him with clothing adequate for the winter season. He underlined that he was suffering from tuberculosis, that he had only summer clothing and the cells were not heated during the winter.

7 . The applicant ’ s request of 29 December 2009 was registered by the prison administration with the mention that there was no available clothing at that moment in the prison ’ s storehouse. According to a mention on its back, the request was granted on 19 October 2010 when the applicant received two pairs of trousers, one T-shirt, one pullover and one coat. According to the applicant, the clothes were not his size and they were used. No shoes were provided to the applicant.

8 . On 3 February 2010 the applicant filed before the Bucharest District Court a complaint against the prison ’ s administration refusal to provide him adequate clothing but never received any summons for an eventual trial.

9 . In the course of the year 2010, the applicant had to appear before the courts to sustain another complaint he had previously submitted against the prison administration and also a criminal complaint for ill-treatment against private persons. He alleged that he felt humiliated to appear before the courts without adequate clothing and footwear.

B. Relevant domestic law

10 . The relevant part of Law no. 275/2006 on the execution of sentences reads as follows:

Article 34

The clothing of the convicted persons

“(...)

(2) In case the convicted persons do not have personal clothing, this is ensured for free by the prison administration.”

11 . The relevant part of the Regulation for the enforcement of the Law no. 275/2

006 published on 16 January 2007 read as follows:

Article 85

Equipment of persons deprived of liberty

“(1) The prison administration shall ensure the provision of clothing and footwear adequate to the climate and season to persons deprived of their liberty who have no personal clothing and footwear.

(2) The clothing provided by the prison administration, must not be humiliating or degrading. (...)

(5) The persons deprived of their liberty must be presented in decent clothing before the judicial authorities and other authorities or institutions (...).

(7) The clothing of the persons deprived of liberty shall be replaced at the end of its period of use ... and any time it is necessary due to its deterioration.”

12 . A description of the relevant legal provisions concerning the rights of detainees, namely Law no. 275/2006, as well as the national practice concerning domestic remedies with respect to complaints concerning the material conditions of detention in Romanian prisons are described in the cases of Cucu v. Romania (no. 22362/06 , § 56, 13 November 2012) and Porumb v. Romania (no. 19832/04, §§ 41-43, 7 December 2010).

COMPLAINT

13 . The applicant complains under Article 3 of the Convention that he had been subjected to inhuman and degrading treatment due to the failure of the Jilava prison authorities to provide him with adequate clothing for an entire winter without taking into consideration his state of health. He stresses that his sufferance was aggravated by the fact that the cells were not heated. He further complains that the clothing he received almost one year after his request was not adequate since it was used and did not fit his size. He also alleges that the authorities failed to provide him with adequate shoes. In addition, he felt humiliated when he had to appear before the courts to support his complaints without adequate clothing.

QUESTIONS TO THE PARTIES

1. Did Law no. 275/2006 on the execution of sentences provide an effective remedy with regard to the material conditions of detention in the applicant ’ s specific case? In this respect, the Government are invited to submit relevant domestic case-law.

2. Assuming that there was no effective remedy under domestic law, has the applicant been subjected to inhuman or degrading treatment, in breach of Article 3 of the Convention, on account of the conditions of his detention in Jilava Prison?

The Government are invited to submit information concerning the conditions of the applicant ’ s detention in Jilava Prison, with particular reference to the alleged lack of adequate clothing and footwear as well as the alleged lack of heating.