heir counsel of the time when and place where the supervisory review hearing would take place. Failing that, the above persons would be unable to state their position to the court.
23. A supervisory review court was not bound by the scope of the application for supervisory review and was under an obligation to review the criminal case in its entirety (Article 380). It could uphold, amend or quash any of the earlier judgments, vary the sentence, discontinue the criminal proceedings or remit the matter for a new consideration by the trial or appeal court. It could not, however, increase the sentence or re-categorise the defendant's actions as a more serious offence (ibid.).
THE LAW
I. Alleged violation of Article 3 of the Convention
24. The applicant complained under Articles 3 and 13 of the Convention that he had been beaten up on 21 September 2001 and that there had been no effective investigation into the matter. The Court will examine that complaint under Article 3, which reads as follows:
"No one shall be subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment."
25. The Government argued that the use of force had been accounted for by the applicant's attempt to impede the search in his cell and had not been disproportionate. They also contended that the applicant could not have complained before the Court about that on 10 September 2001 since the use of force had taken place on 21 September 2001. On the date he lodged his complaint the applicant had not had recourse to any domestic remedies.
26. The applicant submitted that no prohibited items had been seized in his cell and he had had no reason to resist some twenty officers present during the search on that date. Neither had there been any particular reason to bring a special-purpose squad in order to assist the colony officers in their routine search activities. A colony medical officer was not to be trusted, given his subordinate position {vis-a-vis} colony officers who were complicit in the beatings. According to the applicant, beatings by special-purpose squads had been a recurring problem in detention facilities in the Irkutsk Region.
27. The Court is mindful of the potential for violence that exists in penitentiary institutions and of the fact that disobedience by detainees may quickly degenerate into a riot which would require intervention by the security forces (see {Gomi} and Others v. Turkey, No. 35962/97, § 77, 21 December 2006). Nevertheless, recourse to physical force which has not been made strictly necessary by the detainee's own conduct diminishes human dignity and is in principle an infringement of the right set forth in Article 3 of the Convention (see Sheydayev v. Russia, No. 65859/01, § 59, 7 December 2006, and Ribitsch v. Austria, judgment of 4 December 1995, Series A No. 336, § 38). The Court reiterates that allegations of ill-treatment must be supported by appropriate evidence. In assessing evidence, the Court has generally applied the standard of proof "beyond reasonable doubt" (see Ireland v. the United Kingdom, judgment of 18 January 1978, Series A No. 25, pp. 64 - 65, § 161). However, such proof may follow from the coexistence of sufficiently strong, clear and concordant inferences or of similar unrebutted presumptions of fact. Where the events in issue lie wholly, or in large part, within the exclusive knowledge of the authorities, as in the case of persons under their control in custody, strong presumptions of fact will arise in respect of injuries occurring during such detention. Indeed, the burden of proof may be regarded as resting on the authorities to provide a satisfactory and convincing explanation (see Salman v. Turkey [GC], No. 21986/93, § 100, ECHR 2000-VII).
28. The Court observes at the outset that the applicant made no specific arguments in relation to the squad's actions on
> 1 ... 2 3 4 5 ... 7 8 9
Zaki.ru законы и право
поиск по сайту
каталог документов
добавить сайт Zaki.ru в избранное
Правовые акты международные
Правовые акты Российской Федерации
