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You are here: BAILII >> Databases >> European Court of Human Rights >> LEBED AND OTHERS v. RUSSIA - 5136/19 (Article 3 - Prohibition of torture : Fourth Section Committee) [2024] ECHR 19 (11 January 2024) URL: http://www.bailii.org/eu/cases/ECHR/2024/19.html Cite as: [2024] ECHR 19 |
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FOURTH SECTION
CASE OF LEBED AND OTHERS v. RUSSIA
(Applications nos. 5136/19 and 46 others -
see appended list)
JUDGMENT
STRASBOURG
11 January 2024
This judgment is final but it may be subject to editorial revision.
In the case of Lebed and Others v. Russia,
The European Court of Human Rights (Fourth Section), sitting as a Committee composed of:
Branko Lubarda, President,
Armen Harutyunyan,
Ana Maria Guerra Martins, judges,
and Viktoriya Maradudina, Acting Deputy Section Registrar,
Having deliberated in private on 30 November 2023,
Delivers the following judgment, which was adopted on that date:
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 Russian Government ("the Government") were given notice of the applications.
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 about their confinement in a metal cage in the courtroom during the criminal proceedings against them. Some applicants also raised other complaints under the provisions of the Convention.
THE LAW
5. Having regard to the similar subject matter of the applications, the Court finds it appropriate to examine them jointly in a single judgment.
6. The Court observes that the facts giving rise to the alleged violations of the Convention occurred prior to 16 September 2022, the date on which the Russian Federation ceased to be a party to the Convention. The Court therefore decides that it has jurisdiction to examine the present applications (see Fedotova and Others v. Russia [GC], nos. 40792/10 and 2 others, §§ 68-73, 17 January 2023).
7. The applicants complained principally about their confinement in a metal cage in the courtroom during the criminal proceedings against them. They relied on Article 3 of the Convention, which reads as follows:
"No one shall be subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment."
Some applicants also complained that they had not had an effective domestic remedy in respect of their grievance under Article 3, contrary to Article 13 of the Convention, which reads as follows:
"Everyone whose rights and freedoms as set forth in [the] Convention are violated shall have an effective remedy before a national authority notwithstanding that the violation has been committed by persons acting in an official capacity."
8. The Court notes that the applicants were kept a metal cage in the courtroom in the context of their trial. In the leading cases of Svinarenko and Slyadnev v. Russia [GC], nos. 32541/08 and 43441/08, ECHR 2014 (extracts) and Vorontsov and Others v. Russia, nos. 59655/14 and 2 others, 31 January 2017, the Court already dealt with the issue of the use of metal cages in courtrooms and found that such a practice constituted in itself an affront to human dignity and amounted to degrading treatment prohibited by Article 3 of the Convention.
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' confinement in a metal cage before the court during the criminal proceedings against them amounted to degrading treatment.
10. These complaints are therefore admissible and disclose a breach of Article 3 of the Convention.
11. In view of the above findings under Article 3 of the Convention, the Court considers that there is no need to deal separately with the applicants' complaints under Article 13 of the Convention (for similar approach see Valyuzhenich v. Russia, no. 10597/13, § 27, 26 March 2019).
12. Some applicants submitted other complaints which also raised issues under the Convention, given the relevant well-established case-law of the Court (see the 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 well-established case-law (see Idalov v. Russia [GC], no. 5826/03, §§ 103-08, 22 May 2012; and Tomov and Others v. Russia, nos. 18255/10 and 5 others, §§ 92-156, 9 April 2019, concerning inadequate conditions of transport and the lack of an effective remedy in that respect, Dirdizov v. Russia, no. 41461/10, §§ 101-11, 27 November 2012, concerning the excessive length of pre-trial detention; Idalov, cited above, §§ 154-58, concerning lengthy review of detention; and Andrey Smirnov v. Russia, no. 43149/10, §§ 35-57, 13 February 2018, concerning restrictions on family visits in pre-trial detention facilities).
13. Regard being had to the documents in its possession and to its case-law (see, in particular, Vorontsov and Others, cited above), the Court considers it reasonable to award the sums indicated in the appended table.
FOR THESE REASONS, THE COURT, UNANIMOUSLY,
(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 11 January 2024, pursuant to Rule 77 §§ 2 and 3 of the Rules of Court.
Viktoriya Maradudina Branko Lubarda
Acting Deputy Registrar President
APPENDIX
List of applications raising complaints under Article 3 of the Convention
(use of metal cages and/or other security arrangements in courtrooms)
Application no. Date of introduction | Applicant's name Year of birth
| Representative's name and location | Name of the court Date of the relevant judgment | Other complaints under well-established case-law | Amount awarded for pecuniary and non-pecuniary damage and costs and expenses per applicant (in euros)[1] | |
24/12/2018 | Denis Alekseyevich LEBED 1987 | Vtorushin Nikolay Aleksandrovich Tyumen | Surgut District Court of Khanty-Mansy Region 14/08/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
18/12/2018 | Mikhail Sergeyevich LATYSH 1985 |
| Tsentralnyy District Court of Novosibirsk; numerous hearings, proceedings were pending on the date when the application was lodged with the Court |
| 7,500 | |
18/12/2018 | Nikita Vasilyevich RUSOV 1993 |
| Tsentralnyy District Court of Krasnoyarsk and Krasnoyarsk Regional Court from 14/09/2017 to 28/06/2018, and during the familiarising with his casefile in the courtroom of the Krasnoyarsk Regional Court on numerous occasions from 02/07/2018 to 28/01/2019 |
| 7,500 | |
17/01/2019 | Yelena Vyacheslavovna MAKSIMOVA 1972 | Sernovets Mariya Nikolayevna Moscow | Moscow City Court Video link from IZ-6, Moscow 09/04/2018 Skopinskiy District Court of the Ryazan Region Video link from Settlement Colony no. 4, Ryazan Region 07/11/2018 Skopinskiy District Court of the Ryazan Region Video link from Settlement Colony no. 4, Ryazan Region 20/12/2018 Ryazan Regional Court Video link from Settlement Colony no. 4, Ryazan Region 14/01/2019 Lyublinskiy District Court of Moscow Video link from Settlement Colony no. 4, Ryazan Region 01/02/2019 Ryazan Regional Court Video link from Settlement Colony no. 4, Ryazan Region 26/03/2019 |
| 7,500 | |
08/01/2019 | Sergey Nikolayevich SEVALNIKOV 1974 |
| Rudnichnyy District Court of Prokopyevsk, Kemerovo Region Court Kemerovo Regional Court (via a video link from a remand prison) 28/08/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
16/01/2019 | Yuliya Viktorovna AMAYEVA 1975 | Yezerskiy Aleksey Vladimirovich Samara | Samarskiy District Court of Samara (placement in metal cages during trial hearings since 13/07/2018; Samara Regional Court (via video link on 02/08/2018) Zheleznodorozhniy District Court of Samara, Samara District Court of Samara, Samara Regional Court and Administration of Justice Department of Samara Criminal proceedings leading to the final judgment on 02/08/2018 | Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of transport;
Art. 3 - inadequate conditions of detention during transport - numerous occasions of transport by prison van and detention in convoy cells from 22/09/2016 to 05/09/2018; from the detention facility to take part in court hearings; lack of fresh air, passive smoking, overcrowding, no or restricted access to toilet, poor quality of food, lack of or insufficient electric light, sharing cells with inmates infected with contagious disease;
Art. 8 (1) - restrictions on family visits in pre-trial facilities - lack of and restrictions on visits by applicant's family during her pre-trial detention from 02/07/2014 to 04/09/2018 in SIZO-3, Samara; SIZO-2 Syzran; SIZO-4 Tolyatti; IVS in Samara; refusal of short-term family visits, refusal of long-term family visits, limitation on the frequency of short-term family visits | 8,500 | |
13/01/2019 | Dmitriy Viktorovich FINOGEYEV 1988 |
| Oktyabrskiy District Court of Krasnoyarsk 28/08/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
08/08/2019 | Anton Dmitriyevich SIDOROVSKIY 1977 |
| Supreme Court of the Russian Federation (by means of video link from SIZO-3 Chelyabinsk) 13/02/2019 | Art. 3 - inadequate conditions of detention during transport - Inadequate conditions of transport in an overcrowded prison van on 29/05/2019 from SIZO-3 Chelyabinsk to IK-47 Sverdlovsk Region; insufficient number of seats, overcrowding, inadequate temperature;
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport | 8,500 | |
24/01/2019 | Kirill Vitalyevich MALUKHA 1993 |
| Moscow Region Court 16/10/2018 | Art. 3 - inadequate conditions of detention during transport - van: numerous occasions of transport from 03/02/2017 to 07/10/2018: overcrowding; inadequate temperature, poor quality of potable water, no or restricted access to toilet; train: from 25/10/2018 to 11/12/2018; 1 sq. m per person; overcrowding, lack of fresh air, no or restricted access to toilet | 8,500 | |
06/02/2019 | Natalya Lvovna ZUBOVA 1958 | Yezerskiy Aleksey Vladimirovich Samara | Samara District Court of Samara, Samara Regional Court; numerous court hearings concerning extension of the detention and appeals; including by video conferencing but at the same time in the metal cage; the the most recent hearing on 04/09/2018 | Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport;
Art. 3 - inadequate conditions of detention during transport - van - conditions of transport between the detention facilities and courthouses on numerous occasions from 22/09/2016 to 05/09/2018; overcrowding, passive smoking, no or restricted access to toilet, lack or insufficient quantity of food, no or restricted access to potable water, lack of fresh air, lack of or insufficient electric light, lack of or insufficient natural light, inadequate temperature | 8,500 | |
11/02/2019 | Roman Georgiyevich PETROV 1972 |
| Balakovskiy District Court of the Saratov Region 13/08/2018 | Art. 3 - inadequate conditions of detention during transport - train, 17/09/2018 - 19/09/2018; 0.3 m² per inmate; lack of fresh air; passive smoking; insufficient number of sleeping places; restricted access to toilet; dirty cell; insufficient quantity of food | 8,500 | |
08/04/2019 | Petr Anatolyevich GOLOV 1996 |
| Nefteyuganskiy District Court of the Khanty-Mansy Autonomous Region 02/11/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
26/04/2019 | Ivan Andreyevich TITOV 1995 |
| Leninskiy District Court of Krasnoyarsk and the Krasnoyarsk Regional Court 21/11/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
28/01/2019 | Igor Vladimirovich GUBKIN 1990 |
| Tugulumskiy District Court of Sverdlovsk Region 29/11/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
19/02/2019 | Artem Vitalyevich LUGOVOY 1989 | Lukyanova Svetlana Anatolyevna Khanty-Mansiysk | Nefteyuganskiy District Court of Khanty-Mansy 02/11/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
01/07/2019 | Stanislav Aleksandrovich KHALOSHA 1982 |
| Sverdlovskiy District Court of Krasnoyarsk 20/03/2019
Leninskiy District Court of Krasnoyarsk 02/04/2019 | Art. 3 - inadequate conditions of detention during transport - transit cell, van from 08/12/2018 till 20/03/2019 - 0.5 m² per person, lack of or insufficient electric light, no ventilation, no or restricted access to toilet, absence of handles and other means to secure oneself during transport | 8,500 | |
29/03/2019 | Vladislav Alekseyevich BELKOV 1998 |
| Oktyabrskiy District Court of Krasnoyarsk 12/10/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
18/02/2019 | Igor Nikolayevich MELEKHIN 1985 |
| Polevskoy Town Court of Sverdlovsk Region, Sverdlovsk Region Court 28/08/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
18/02/2019 | Stanislav Sergeyevich LAGUTIN 1982 | Lukyanova Svetlana Anatolyevna Khanty-Mansiysk | Leninskiy District Court of Tyumen 27/09/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
18/02/2019 | Vyacheslav Faritovich YUSUPOV 1990 | Lukyanova Svetlana Anatolyevna Khanty-Mansiysk | Leninskiy District Court of Tyumen - placement in a metal cage during the hearings between 05/10/2017 and 27/09/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
18/02/2019 | Vitaliy Andreyevich SEDYKH 1986 |
| Polevskoy Town Court of Sverdlovsk Region, Sverdlovsk Region Court 28/08/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
02/03/2019 | Yelena Valentinovna SELIVERSTOVA 1971 | Yezerskiy Aleksey Vladimirovich Samara | Samara Regional Court, Zheleznodorozhniy District Court of Samara, Cultural Centre of the Ministry of Interior of Samara, Administration of Justice Department of Samara Region Since 27/07/2016, proceedings pending on the date when the application was lodged with the Court | Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law and in respect of inadequate conditions of transport;
Art. 3 - inadequate conditions of detention during transport - from 05/03/2015 to 05/09/2018; overcrowding, passive smoking, no or restricted access to toilet
| 8,500 | |
04/03/2019 | Larisa Eduardovna DETS 1976 | Ovsyannikov Andrey Aleksandrovich Samara | Zheleznodorzhniy District Court of Samara, Samarskiy District Court of Samara (hearings held at Samara Regional Court, Culture Centre of the Samara Regional Department of the Interior, Judicial Department of Samara), Samara Regional Court via video link from SIZO-2 Syzran - multiple hearings held between 30/01/2014 and 04/09/2018 | Art. 3 - inadequate conditions of detention during transport - transport and detention in transit (convoy cells) on multiple occasions between 27/06/2016 and 04/09/2018: SIZO-3 Samara / SIZO-2 Syzran / SIZO-4 Tolyatti / PFRSI IK-5 Samara / IVS Samara / Samara Regional Court / Culture Centre of the Samara Regional Department of the Interior / Judicial Department of Samara; overcrowding, no or restricted access to toilet, lack or insufficient quantity of food, no or restricted access to potable water, inadequate temperature, lack of fresh air;
Art. 5 (3) - excessive length of pre-trial detention - from 29/01/2014 to 04/09/2018; for over 4 years, extended on standard repetitive reasoning; lack of diligence; the applicant was charged with fraud;
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport | 9,750 | |
04/03/2019 | Viktor Ilyich SEROBABA 1955 | Lukyanova Svetlana Anatolyevna Khanty-Mansiysk | Kogalym Town Court of the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Region 28/12/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
18/02/2019 | Aleksandr Pavlovich DOLGOPOLOV 1985 |
| Leninskiy District Court of Tyumen 04/12/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
27/02/2019 | Dzhamal Pirman Ogly BAYRAMOV 1990 |
| Roslavl Town Court of the Smolensk Region, Smolensk Regional Court 04/09/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
12/03/2019 | Ruslan Borisovich RAKHAYEV 1978 | Laptev Aleksey Nikolayevich Moscow | Supreme Court of the Karachay-Cherkessia Republic 12/09/2018 | Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport;
Art. 3 - inadequate conditions of detention during transport - transport by van and/or train, detention in a transit cell during the period from 15/06/2018 to 21/10/2018 / 0.3 sq. m. / overcrowding; no or restricted access to toilet, no or restricted access to running water, no or restricted access to warm water, lack of or insufficient electric light, lack of or insufficient natural light, inadequate temperature, insufficient number of sleeping places, lack of or poor quality of bedding and bed linen, no or restricted access to shower | 8,500 | |
12/03/2019 | Sergey Vyacheslavovich ZHUBARKIN 1975 | Kitayev Maksim Valeryevich Ivanovo | Ivanovo Regional Court (by means of video link from a remand prison) 14/09/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
15/03/2019 | Nikolay Dmitriyevich PARKHOMENKO 1989
| Mikhaylova Svetlana Viktorovna St Petersburg | Nevskiy District Court of St Petersburg, Leningrad Region Court (from 13/10/2017 to 18/10/2018) |
| 7,500 | |
23/04/2019 | Mikhail Aleksandrovich KUZMIN 1978 |
| Frunzenskiy District Court of St Petersburg; Kolpinskiy District Court of St Petersburg Video link from SIZO-1, St Petersburg; St Petersburg City Court Video link from SIZO-1, St Petersburg 27/02/2019 | Art. 3 - inadequate conditions of detention during transport between remand prison and courthouse (1) van; transport in a single-prisoner cubicle in a van, overcrowding, lack of fresh air, no handrails, no safety belts; sq. m per person - 0.2; 18/09/2017-27/02/2019; (2) transit cell; overcrowding, lack of or inadequate hygienic facilities, no or restricted access to running water, bad odour in cell, lack of privacy for toilet, no or restricted access to potable water; sq. m per person - 0.64; 18/09/2017-27/02/2019;
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect inadequate conditions of transport | 8,500 | |
08/08/2019 | Andrey Fanilevich NAZHMETDINOV 1988 |
| Krasnoyarsk Regional Court 08/04/2019 | Art. 3 - inadequate conditions of detention during transport - 12/02/2019-08/04/2019; van, transit cell; 0.1-1 sq. m of personal space; lack of or insufficient natural light, no or restricted access to toilet, lack of fresh air, inadequate temperature, mouldy or dirty cell
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport | 8,500 | |
03/04/2019 | Aleksey Aleksandrovich STEPANOV 1988 | Krikun Leonid Leonidovich St Petersburg | Leninskiy District Court of St Petersburg 10/01/2019
St Petersburg City Court 14/02/2019
|
| 7,500 | |
25/03/2019 | Olga Mikhaylovna FROLOVA 1980 |
| Oktyabrskiy District Court of Tambov, numerous hearings, pending on the date when the application was lodged with the Court | Art. 5 (4) - excessive length of judicial review of detention - extension order of 21/02/2019 was examined on appeal on 29/03/2019 by the Tambov Regional Court (36 days) | 8,000 | |
04/04/2019 | Igor Anatolyevich LUKYANCHIKOV 1972 |
| Oktyabrskiy District Court of Krasnoyarsk 08/10/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
18/04/2019 | Grigoriy Ulyanovich PIRUMOV 1962 | Kupriyanova Yelena Romanovna Moscow | Dorogomilovskiy District Court of Moscow 13/11/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
05/04/2019 | Andrey Aleksandrovich ZENKO 1985 |
| Oktyabrskiy District Court of Krasnoyarsk 31/10/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
20/04/2019 | Dmitriy Sergeyevich SHERSHEN 1988 | Pavlov Anton Sergeyevich Saint Petersburg | On numerous occasions before Kuybyshevskiy District Court 12/12/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
23/04/2019 | Andrey Petrovich NOVITSKIY 1981 | Koneva Nina Filippovna Khanty-Mansiysk | Nefteyuganskiy District Court of the Khanty-Mansi Region 13/11/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
12/04/2019 | Dmitriy Sergeyevich BOCHAROV 1993 | Urlashov Aleksey Mikhaylovich St Petersburg | Primorskiy District Court of St Petersburg 06/02/2019 | Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport;
Art. 3 - inadequate conditions of detention during transport - numerous occasions of transport from the detention facility to the courthouse from 19/01/2018 to 06/02/2019; by an overcrowded van (0.3 sq. m of personal space); poor quality of food, lack of or insufficient physical exercise in fresh air, inadequate temperature, mouldy or dirty cell, no or restricted access to toilet | 8,500 | |
15/04/2019 | Roman Vasilyevich KNYAZEV 1983 | Yegorov Dmitriy Anatolyevich Domodedovo | Istra Town Court of the Moscow Region; Moscow Region Court 16/10/2018 | Art. 3 - inadequate conditions of detention during transport - numerous occasions of transport by prison van to the courthouse from 03/02/2017 to 16/10/2018; overcrowding - 0.5 sq. m of personal space; detention in a convoy cell; ack of fresh air, lack of or insufficient electric light, no or restricted access to toilet | 8,500 | |
25/04/2019 | Denis Valentinovich BURCHENKOV 1978 | Malinin Viktor Ivanovich Kokhma | Palekhskiy District Court of Ivanovo Region 03/06/2020 Ivanovo Regional Court 18/09/2020 |
| 7,500 | |
29/04/2019 | Validzhon Dodikhudoyevich ISLOMOV 1993 | Isayev Ayndi Khamzatovich Krasnoyarsk | Leninskiy District Court of Krasnoyarsk 20/11/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
29/04/2019 | Dmitriy Aleksandrovich URBEL 1981 | Isayev Ayndi Khamzatovich Krasnoyarsk | Sovetskiy District Court of Krasnoyarsk (metal cages during trial hearings in person); Krasnoyarsk Regional Court (video link from a remand prison), 30/10/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
26/04/2019 | Yevgeniy Valeryevich SINELEV 1984
|
| Supreme Court of the Chuvashia Republic 01/11/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
23/04/2019 | Valeriy Mikhaylovich SKURLATOV 1989 |
| Nefteyuganskiy District Court of Khanty-Mansy Autonomous Region 13/11/2018 |
| 7,500 | |
29/08/2019 | Aleksandr Arturovich GELD 1972 |
| Sverdlovskiy District Court of the Krasnoyarsk Region 07/08/2019 |
| 7,500 | |
19/04/2019 | Andrey Vladimirovich NIZIKOV 1970 | Nevzorov Dmitriy Gennadyevich St Petersburg | Petrogradskiy District Court of St Petersburg; Smolnenskiy District Court of St Petersburg; Kuybyshevskiy District Court of St Petersburg St Petersburg City Court 31/10/2019 |
| 7,500 |
[1] Plus any tax that may be chargeable to the applicants.
