FIFTH SECTION
CASE OF CHERNOVA AND OTHERS v. RUSSIA
(Applications nos. 51892/19 and 32 others –
see appended list)
JUDGMENT
STRASBOURG
23 November 2023
This judgment is final but it may be subject to editorial revision.
In the case of Chernova and Others v. Russia,
The European Court of Human Rights (Fifth Section), sitting as a Committee composed of:
María Elósegui, President,
Mattias Guyomar,
Kateřina Šimáčková, judges,
and Viktoriya Maradudina, Acting Deputy Section Registrar,
Having deliberated in private on 2 November 2023,
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 Russian Government were given notice of the applications.
THE FACTS
3. A 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 detention during their transport. Some applicants also raised complaints under other Convention provisions.
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 of the inadequate conditions of detention during their transport. They relied on Article 3 of the Convention.
8. The Court notes that the applicants were detained in poor conditions during transport. The details of the applicants’ detention are indicated in the appended table. The Court refers to the principles established in its case‑law regarding cramped and defective conditions during the transit of prisoners (see Tomov and Others v. Russia, nos. 18255/10 and 5 others, §§ 124-27, 9 April 2019). It reiterates in particular that a strong presumption of a violation arises when detainees are transported in conveyances offering less than 0.5 square metres of space per person, regardless of whether such cramped conditions result from an excessive number of detainees being transported together or from the restrictive design of compartments (ibid., § 125). As regards longer journeys, factors such as a failure to arrange an individual sleeping place for each detainee or to secure an adequate supply of drinking water and food or access to the toilet seriously aggravate the situation of prisoners during transfers and are indicative of a violation of Article 3 (ibid., § 127).
9. In the leading case of Tomov and Others (cited above), the Court already found a violation in respect of issues similar to those in the present case.
10. 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 during their transport were inadequate.
11. These complaints are therefore admissible and disclose a breach of Article 3 of the Convention.
12. The applicants whose names are listed in the appended table also raised other complaints relating to the issues of the Court’s well-established case-law. 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 a violation of the Convention (see appended table for further details) in view of its findings in Svinarenko and Slyadnev v. Russia [GC], nos. 32541/08 and 43441/08, ECHR 2014 (extracts), concerning placement of applicants in a metal cage in courtrooms; Gorlov and Others v. Russia, nos. 27057/06 and 2 others, 2 July 2019, as to the permanent video surveillance of detainees in pre-trial or post-conviction detention facilities; Sergey Babushkin v. Russia, no. 5993/08, 28 November 2013, concerning conditions of detention in post-conviction facilities; and Andrey Smirnov v. Russia, no. 43149/10, §§ 35-57, 13 February 2018, concerning restrictions on family visits in pre-trial detention facilities.
13. 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.”
14. Regard being had to the documents in its possession and to its case‑law (see, in particular, Pukhachev and Zaretskiy v. Russia, nos. 17494/16 and 29203/16, 16 November 2017), 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 during the default period plus three percentage points.
Done in English, and notified in writing on 23 November 2023, pursuant to Rule 77 §§ 2 and 3 of the Rules of Court.
Viktoriya Maradudina María Elósegui
Acting Deputy Registrar President
APPENDIX
List of applications raising complaints under Article 3 of the Convention
(inadequate conditions of detention during transport)
No. | Application no. Date of introduction | Applicant’s name Year of birth | Representative’s name and location | Means of transport Start and end date | 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] |
51892/19 23/09/2019 | Galina Ivanovna CHERNOVA 1971 | Andrey Dzhambekovich Bous Saratov | van, transit cell 25/06/2018 - pending as of 16/09/2022 | 0.3 m²
| lack of fresh air, overcrowding
| Art. 8 (1) - lack of practical opportunities for or restriction on prison visits - IZ-1 Saratov, 27/04/2018 - 25/04/2019, restriction of visit of 3 minor daughters, multiple complaints, last time dismissed on 20/06/2019, Saratov Regional Court;
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of restriction on prison visits | 8,000 | |
3396/21 12/12/2020 | Timur Arkadyevich STAROSTIN 1998 |
| van 06/05/2019 to 15/07/2020 | 0.25 m²
| lack of fresh air, inadequate temperature, no or restricted access to toilet, passive smoking, lengthy transfers lasting 2.5 to 3 hours | Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport and in respect of placement in a metal cage during court hearings;
Art. 3 - use of metal cages and/or other security arrangements in courtrooms - Naberezhnyye Chelny Town Court, Republic of Tatarstan, 06/06/2019 - 13/07/2020 | 8,500 | |
10911/21 26/08/2021 | Sergey Vladimirovich KOTOV 1979 |
| van, transit cell 13/05/2021 to 25/09/2021 |
| overcrowding, poor quality of food, lack of fresh air
| Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport | 1,000 | |
37114/21 15/10/2021 | Danil Anatolyevich BUMAGIN 1994 |
| van 17/05/2021 to 17/05/2021 | 0.25 m²
| overcrowding, lack of fresh air, lack of or insufficient natural light, lack of handrails and seat belts, emergency exits sealed, 10 inmates per the compartment measuring 10 sq. m, transfer between correctional facilities lasting about 3 hours | Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport and in respect of permanent video surveillance in post-conviction detention;
Art. 8 (1) - permanent video surveillance of detainees in pre-trial or post-conviction detention facilities - KP-10 in Irkutsk Region, 13/03/2019 – pending on the date when the application was lodged with the Court; opposite-sex operators, detention in different cells with video surveillance | 1,000 | |
45963/21 18/08/2021 | Oleg Yuryevich ZELEYEV 1989 |
| train 01/01/2021 to 01/03/2021 | 0.2 m²
| overcrowding, insufficient number of sleeping places | Art. 3 - use of metal cages and/or other security arrangements in courtrooms – Justice of Peace of the Vologda Region, 06/10/2020 - 11/03/2021;
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport and in respect of placement in a metal cage during court hearings | 8,500 | |
46495/21 18/08/2021 | Pavel Vasilyevich GONCHAROV 1979 |
| train, van 25/04/2021 to 27/05/2021 |
| insufficient number of sleeping places, overcrowding, lack of or poor quality of bedding and bed linen, passive smoking | Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport | 1,000 | |
46543/21 26/08/2021 | Yevgeniy Sergeyevich BORODIN 1990 |
| van 14/05/2021 to 14/05/2021 | 0.25 m²
| overcrowding, inadequate temperature, lack of fresh air, lack of or insufficient natural light, lack of or insufficient electric light, no or restricted access to toilet |
| 1,000 | |
46605/21 28/08/2021 | Vladimir Valeryevich OTPUSHCHENNIKOV 1990 |
| van, train 26/03/2021 to 27/03/2021 | <0.5 m²
| insufficient number of sleeping places, overcrowding, no or restricted access to toilet, no or restricted access to potable water, long waiting at the station tied to a cable and visible to many other passengers |
| 1,000 | |
50024/21 01/11/2021 | Viktor Vladimirovich RUBLYA 1985 |
| van 19/11/2020 to 11/05/2021 | 0.6 m²
| applicant transported on numerous occasions, inadequate temperature, lack of or insufficient natural light, lack or inadequate furniture, no or restricted access to warm water, lack of seatbelts, no or restricted access to toilet | Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport | 1,000 | |
58083/21 09/11/2021 | Ilnur Ilsurovich GALIYEV 1992 |
| van 21/05/2021 to 21/05/2021
van 22/01/2022 to 13/02/2022 | 0.14 m²
0.35 m²
| inadequate temperature, lack of fresh air, lack of or insufficient natural light, lack of or insufficient quantity of food, no or restricted access to potable water, no or restricted access to toilet, overcrowding
bunk beds, overcrowding, inadequate temperature, lack of fresh air, lack of or insufficient natural light, lack of or insufficient electric light, no or restricted access to toilet, no or restricted access to potable water
|
| 1,000 | |
58140/21 24/10/2021 | Marat Azatovich MUZAFAROV 1986 |
| van 27/08/2021 to 27/08/2021 | <0.8 m²
| overcrowding, low ceiling, absence of safety belts, no or restricted access to toilet, lack or inadequate furniture, no or restricted access to warm water, absence of a ventilation system | Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport | 1,000 | |
61245/21 15/06/2022 | Aleksey Vladimirovich DOROFEYEV 1989 |
| van, train 13/01/2022 to 09/05/2022 | 0.3-0.4 m²
| overcrowding, insufficient number of sleeping places, lack of or insufficient natural light, lack of or insufficient electric light, lack of fresh air, no or restricted access to potable water, no or restricted access to toilet, lack of or insufficient quantity of food, lack of privacy for toilet |
| 1,000 | |
2152/22 08/02/2022 | Kirill Valeryevich CHERNUKHO 1989 |
| van, train (Stolypin) 28/10/2021 to 30/10/2021 | 0.4 m²
|
|
| 1,000 | |
3022/22 06/12/2021 | Dmiutriy Alekseyevich SUKHOV 1993 |
| van, train 19/06/2021 to 08/07/2021 |
| lack of fresh air, passive smoking, no or restricted access to toilet, lack of privacy for toilet, poor quality of food, overcrowding, lack of or insufficient quantity of food | Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport | 1,000 | |
7059/22 01/02/2022 | Aleksey Vladimirovich RUBCHAKOV 1982 |
| train 09/09/2021 to 10/11/2021 | 0.5 m²
| lack of or insufficient electric light, insufficient number of sleeping places, lack of or poor quality of bedding and bed linen, passive smoking, lack of fresh air, lack of or insufficient quantity of food, no or restricted access to toilet | Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport | 1,000 | |
10534/22 31/01/2022 | Sergey Ivanovich BURNASHOV 1988 |
| van (stakan), train 02/10/2021 to 26/10/2021 |
| overcrowding, inadequate temperature, lack of fresh air, lack of handles and seat belts, lack of or insufficient natural light, lack of or insufficient electric light, no or restricted access to toilet, lack of privacy for toilet, no or restricted access to potable water |
| 1,000 | |
10674/22 07/02/2022 | Yevgeniy Yuryevich FOMIN 1987 |
| train, van 23/08/2021 to 26/10/2021 | 0.36 m²
| applicant transported on numerous occasions, inadequate temperature, lack of fresh air, no or restricted access to potable water, lack or inadequate furniture, no or restricted access to toilet, overcrowding | Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport | 1,000 | |
13016/22 25/01/2022 | Kirill Igorevich MURASHOV 1984 |
| van 19/07/2018 to 18/11/2021 | 0.3 m²
| overcrowding, passive smoking, applicant transported on numerous occasions, inadequate temperature, lack of fresh air | Art. 3 - use of metal cages and/or other security arrangements in courtrooms - Lomonosovskiy District Court of the Leningrad Region; Leningrad Regional Court (including via the video link from SIZO‑1 Leningrad Region; 19/07/2018 - 01/12/2021. | 8,500 | |
14798/22 06/04/2022 | Andrey Anatolyevich PELTSER 1987 |
| train, van 27/02/2021 to 16/03/2022 | <1 m²
| overcrowding, applicant transported on numerous occasions, inadequate temperature, lack of or insufficient electric light, lack of or poor quality of bedding and bed linen, lack of fresh air, passive smoking, lack of or insufficient natural light, insufficient number of sleeping places, no or restricted access to toilet, lack of privacy for toilet | Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport | 1,000 | |
15692/22 27/02/2022 | Roman Aleksandrovich RODIONOV 1988 |
| van 25/06/2020 - pending as of 16/09/2022 | 0.25 m²
| applicant transported on numerous occasions, inadequate temperature, lack of fresh air, overcrowding
| Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport and in respect of placement in a metal cage during court hearings;
Art. 3 - use of metal cages and/or other security arrangements in courtrooms in the trial court (District Court) during the hearings in his criminal case - 25/06/2020 - pending on the date when the application was lodged with the Court | 8,500 | |
18077/22 11/03/2022 | Ivan Viktorovich ANASHKIN 1983 |
| train 15/01/2022 to 30/01/2022 | 0.45 m²
| insufficient number of sleeping places, lack of or poor quality of bedding and bed linen, lack of or insufficient electric light, no or restricted access to toilet, lack of privacy for toilet | Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport | 1,000 | |
20109/22 30/03/2022 | Sergey Pavlovich KONDRATYEV 1986 |
| van 14/04/2021 - pending as of 16/09/2022 | 0.2 m²
| applicant transported on numerous occasions, lack of fresh air, inadequate temperature, no or restricted access to toilet, lack of or insufficient electric light, lack of or insufficient natural light | Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport | 1,000 | |
20872/22 30/03/2022 | Radmir Germanovich MALAFEYEV 1995 |
| van, convoy cell 09/07/2021 to 30/11/2021 | 0.35 m²
| applicant transported on numerous occasions, inadequate temperature, lack of fresh air, no or restricted access to toilet, overcrowding | Art. 8 (1) - permanent video surveillance of detainees in pre-trial or post-conviction detention facilities - SIZO-1 Tver Region, 08/07/2021 - 06/01/2022, detention in different cells with video surveillance, opposite-sex operators | 1,000 | |
26132/22 29/04/2022 | Malik Muratdinovich ARABOV 1992 | Elik Yevgenyevich Abdrashitov Orel | train 06/12/2021 to 08/01/2022 | 0.3 m²
| insufficient number of sleeping places, lack of or insufficient electric light, lack of or insufficient natural light, lack of or poor quality of bedding and bed linen, no or restricted access to toilet |
| 1,000 | |
29110/22 15/05/2022 | Farit Azatovich SHARIFULLIN 1988 | Vadim Olegovich Ivanov Verkhneyarkeeva | van, convoy cells in courts 21/02/2020 to 28/04/2022 | 0.2 m²
| overcrowding, applicant transported on numerous occasions, inadequate temperature, lack of or insufficient natural light, lack of fresh air, lack of or insufficient electric light, lack of privacy for toilet |
| 1,000 | |
29584/22 10/05/2022 | Pavel Sergeyevich TYUKAYEV 1986 |
| train 21/11/2021 to 02/12/2021
a single-prisoner cubicle (“stakan”) 18/02/2022 to 18/02/2022 |
| applicant transported on numerous occasions, (duration of transport of 8-9 hours on each occasion), lack of or insufficient electric light, lack of or insufficient natural light, no or restricted access to toilet, insufficient number of sleeping places, inadequate temperature, lack of or insufficient quantity of food, no or restricted access to potable water, overcrowding, lack of or poor quality of bedding and bed linen
duration of transport of 2 hours, the applicant had a cast on his leg and was on crutches
| Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport | 1,000 | |
30055/22 25/05/2022 | Aleksandr Andreyevich POPOV 1984 |
| train 28/11/2021 to 29/11/2021 | 0.4 m²
| no or restricted access to toilet, no or restricted access to potable water, lack of privacy for toilet, lack of or poor quality of bedding and bed linen, lack of or insufficient quantity of food, insufficient number of sleeping places, overcrowding, passive smoking, lack of fresh air | Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport | 1,000 | |
30075/22 30/05/2022 | Vyacheslav Mikhaylovich GUZIYEV 1966 |
| van 17/04/2017 to 16/05/2022 | <0.4 m²
| applicant transported on numerous occasions, inadequate temperature, lack of or insufficient electric light, lack of or insufficient natural light, lack of fresh air, no or restricted access to toilet | Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport | 1,000 | |
34241/22 18/06/2022 | Pavel Borisovich KUZMICH 1978 |
| train, van 07/06/2021 to 25/01/2022 | no info m²
| lack of fresh air, lack of or insufficient electric light, overcrowding, lack of or poor quality of bedding and bed linen, insufficient number of sleeping places, passive smoking, lack of privacy for toilet, applicant transported on numerous occasions | Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport | 1,000 | |
35303/22 21/06/2022 | Agadzhan Sergeyevich AVANESOV 1976 | Nikita Aleksandrovich Tugov Moscow | van 29/10/2020 - pending as of 16/09/2022 |
| applicant transported on numerous occasions, lack of fresh air, no or restricted access to toilet, passive smoking
|
| 1,000 | |
41182/22 30/07/2022 | Rail Rafailovich ABDRAKHMANOV 1988 |
| van 11/11/2020 - pending as of 16/09/2022 | 0.7-0.5 m²
| applicant transported on numerous occasions, overcrowding, lack of or insufficient natural light, inadequate temperature |
| 1,000 | |
46233/22 15/09/2022 | Maksim Yevgenyevich STOPAREV 1980 | Andrey Yevgenyevich Golubenko Nea Skiony | van, train 03/04/2022 to 12/06/2022 | 0.3 m²
| overcrowding, lack of fresh air, passive smoking, no or restricted access to potable water, inadequate temperature, lack of or insufficient electric light, insufficient number of sleeping places, lack of or insufficient natural light | Art. 3 - inadequate conditions of detention – IK‑24 in Azanka, Sverdlovsk Region, 12/06/2022 - pending on the date when the application was lodged with the Court, 2 sq. m. per person, overcrowding, lack of or insufficient electric light, passive smoking, lack of fresh air, bunk beds, lack of privacy for toilet, lack of or insufficient physical exercise in fresh air, lack of requisite medical assistance | 6,700 | |
14334/23 04/07/2022 | Aleksandr Viktorovich EBERT 1984 |
| van 20/04/2020 to 27/06/2022 | 0.5 m²
| applicant transported on numerous occasions, overcrowding, inadequate temperature
| Art. 8 (1) - permanent video surveillance of detainees in pre-trial or post-conviction detention facilities - remand centre IZ-1 in St Petersburg from 27/04/2019 until at least 04/07/2022 (the date of the introduction of the application). The applicant was held in two different cells with video surveillance. The video surveillance was performed by operators of the opposite sex;
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport and in respect of permanent video surveillance in detention facilities | 1,000 |
[1] Plus any tax that may be chargeable to the applicants.