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6.10.2022
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FOURTH SECTION

DECISION

Application no. 20370/20
Rui Miguel ENES VINHAL against Portugal
and 7 other applications

(see appended table)

The European Court of Human Rights (Fourth Section), sitting on 6 October 2022 as a Committee composed of:

Armen Harutyunyan, President,

Jolien Schukking,

Ana Maria Guerra Martins, judges,

and Viktoriya Maradudina, Acting Deputy Section Registrar,

Having regard to the above applications lodged on the various dates indicated in the appended table,

Having regard to the observations submitted by the respondent Government and the observations in reply submitted by the applicants,

Having deliberated, decides as follows:

FACTS AND PROCEDURE

The list of applicants is set out in the appended table.

The applicants were represented by Vitor Carreto, a lawyer practising in Torres Vedras, Portugal.

The applicants’ complaints under Articles 3 and 13 of the Convention concerning the inadequate conditions of detention and the lack of an effective remedy in this respect were communicated to the Portuguese Government (“the Government”).

THE LAW

  1. Joinder of the applications

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

  1. Complaints under Article 3 of the Convention (inadequate conditions of detention)
    1. Conditions of detention concerning the last period of detention

In the present applications, having examined all the material before it, the Court considers that for the reasons stated below, the complaints about the conditions of detention during the period as described below are inadmissible.

The applicants were detained in different prison facilities. During their last, most recent and/or current period of detention, the applicants were detained at Carregueira Prison (applications nos. 20370/20, 24784/20, 26130/20, 26226/20, 40894/20, and 46242/20) and Pinheiro da Cruz Prison (applications nos. 28871/20 and 28908/20).

Having regard to all the available material and the parties’ arguments, the Court finds that it cannot be established that the applicants suffered in these prison facilities from severe overcrowding of the kind that could entail on its own, a violation of Article 3 of the Convention (see Muršić v. Croatia [GC], no. 7334/13, § 140, 20 October 2016). Nor can it be found that the cumulative effect of the other aspects of the detention which the applicants complained about reached the threshold of severity required to characterise the treatment as inhuman or degrading within the meaning of Article 3 (see Bokor v. Portugal, (dec.) no. 5227/18, §§ 32-34, 10 December 2020).

In view of the above, the Court finds that the complaints about these periods of detention (for further details see the appended table) are manifestly ill-founded and must be rejected in accordance with Article 35 §§ 3 and 4 of the Convention.

  1. Conditions of detention prior their last prison transfer

Concerning applications nos. 20370/20, 24784/20, 26130/20, 26226/20, 28908/20, 40894/20, 46242/20, in light of the conclusion above, the Court finds that the applicants’ transfer to the last (most recent) prison facility interrupted the “continued situation” of their detention, and thus the complaints about the detention conditions during the period prior to their last transfer are belated (see Ananyev and Others v. Russia, nos. 42525/07 and 60800/08, §§ 75-78, 10 January 2012) and must be rejected in accordance with Article 35 §§ 1 and 4 of the Convention.

  1. Complaint under Article 13 of the Convention (lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention)

Under Article 13 of the Convention, the applicants argued the lack of an effective remedy to complain against the inadequate conditions of detention in Portugal. The Court notes that, according to the Court’s established case-law, Article 13 applies only where an individual has an “arguable claim” to be a victim of a violation of a Convention right (see Boyle and Rice v. the United Kingdom, 27 April 1988, § 52, Series A no. 131, and Narcisio v. Netherlands (dec.), no. 47810/99, 27 January 2005).

Having regard to the findings above in respect of the applicants’ complaints under Article 3 about the conditions of their detention, the Court concludes that they did not have an “arguable claim”, and that therefore Article 13 is not applicable. It follows that this part of the applications must be rejected in accordance with Article 35 § 4 of the Convention.

For these reasons, the Court, unanimously,

Decides to join the applications;

Declares the applications inadmissible.

Done in English and notified in writing on 27 October 2022.

Viktoriya Maradudina Armen Harutyunyan
Acting Deputy 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’s name

Year of birth

Facility

Start and end date

Duration

Sq. m per inmate

Specific grievances

Other complaints under well-established case-law

20370/20

04/05/2020

Rui Miguel ENES VINHAL

1993

Lisbon Judicial Police Prison

27/01/2016 to

30/06/2017

1 year and 5 months and 4 days

Carregueira Prison

30/06/2017

pending

More than 5 years and 2 months and 10 days

2 inmates

2.5 m²

1 toilet

6 inmates

5.12 m²

1 toilet

inadequate temperature, infestation of cell with insects/rodents, lack of fresh air, lack of or inadequate hygienic facilities, overcrowding, poor quality of food, lack of or poor quality of bedding and bed linen

lack or insufficient quantity of food

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

24784/20

08/06/2020

José Carlos LOPES MIDÕES

1964

Lisbon Judicial Police Prison

04/01/2019 to

15/01/2019

12 days

Carregueira Prison

15/01/2019 to

17/08/2021

2 years and 7 months and 3 days

3 inmates

2.6 m²

1 toilet

6 inmates

5.12 m²

1 toilet

inadequate temperature, mouldy or dirty cell, lack of fresh air, poor quality of food, lack of or poor quality of bedding and bed linen, lack of privacy for toilet

lack of fresh air, lack or insufficient quantity of food

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

26130/20

16/06/2020

Veaceslav GANGAN

1962

Prison of Beja

21/11/2010 to

10/07/2012

1 year and 7 months and 20 days

Prison of Carregueira

10/07/2012

pending

More than 10 years and 2 months

9 inmates

2.1 m²

1 toilet

6 inmates

5.12 m²

1 toilet

lack of fresh air, overcrowding, poor quality of food, lack or insufficient quantity of food, mouldy or dirty cell

lack of fresh air, poor quality of food

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

26226/20

16/06/2020

Alfredo Manuel COELHO DA SILVA MERGULHÃO

1958

Lisbon Judicial Police Prison

23/06/2016 to

11/01/2017

6 months and 20 days

Lisbon Central Prison

11/01/2017 to

24/07/2017

6 months and 14 days

Carregueira Prison

24/07/2017

pending

More than 3 years and 1 month and 17 days

9 inmates

1,2 m²

1 toilet

2 inmates

3.5 m²

1 toilet

6 inmates

5.12 m²

1 toilet

lack of fresh air, mouldy or dirty cell, overcrowding, poor quality of food, lack or insufficient quantity of food

lack of fresh air, overcrowding, poor quality of food, lack or insufficient quantity of food, lack of requisite medical assistance

lack of fresh air, poor quality of food

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

28871/20

07/07/2020

Orleans AGUIAR CAVALCANTE

1975

Prison of Pinheiro da Cruz

31/10/2019

pending

More than 2 years and 10 months and 10 days

1 inmate

5.5 m²

1 toilet

inadequate temperature, sharing cells with inmates infected with contagious disease

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

28908/20

07/07/2020

Francisco António SERRA GOMES

1982

Montijo Prison

23/07/2009 to

05/07/2010

11 months and 13 days

Pinheiro da Cruz Prison

05/07/2010

pending

More than 12 years and 2 months and 5 days

13 inmates

0.8 m²

1 toilet

1 inmate

5.5 m²

1 toile

lack of fresh air, overcrowding

inadequate temperature, sharing cells with inmates infected with contagious disease

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

40894/20

07/09/2020

Michel SMAERS

1945

Silves Prison

14/06/2018 to

08/06/2019

11 months and 26 days

Carregueira Prison

08/06/2019 to

19/08/2021

2 years and 2 months and 12 days

13 inmates

1.8 m²

1 toilet

6 inmates

5.12 m²

1 toilet

overcrowding, poor quality of food, lack or insufficient quantity of food, mouldy or dirty cell

lack of fresh air, sharing cells with inmates infected with contagious disease

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

46242/20

13/10/2020

Delfim António OLIVEIRA FERREIRA

1979

Porto Judicial Police Prison

06/12/2013 to

09/12/2013

4 days

Custoias Prison

09/12/2013 to

08/04/2015

1 year and 4 months


Carregueira Prison

08/04/2015

pending

More than 7 years and 5 months and 2 days

3 inmates

2 m²

1 toilet

12 inmates

1.16 m²

1 toilet

6 inmates

5.12 m²

1 toilet

lack of fresh air, overcrowding

lack of fresh air, mouldy or dirty cell, overcrowding, poor quality of food, lack or insufficient quantity of food

lack or insufficient quantity of food, sharing cells with inmates infected with contagious disease

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