CASE OF CĂTĂLIN EUGEN MICU v. ROMANIA
Preliminary objection joined to merits and dismissed (Article 34 - Victim);Violation of Article 3 - Prohibition of torture (Article 3 - Degrading treatment;Positive obligations) (Substantive aspect);No violation of Article 3 - Prohibition of torture (Article 3 - Positive obligations) (Substantive aspect);Non-pecuniary damage - award (Article 41 - Non-pecuniary damage;Just satisfaction)
András Sajó;Egidijus Kūris;Iulia Motoc;Krzysztof Wojtyczek;Nona Tsotsoria;Vincent A. De Gaetano
5. The applicant was born in 1973 and is detained in Drobeta Turnu Severin Prison. 6. On 28 October 2009 the applicant was convicted of rape and sentenced to ten years’ imprisonment. He has since been serving his sentence in various Romanian prisons. ... 14. The medical report drawn up when the applicant was admitted to prison on 28 October 2009 indicates that he was “clinically healthy” (clinic aparent sănătos). 15. From 26 May to 9 June 2011 the applicant was placed in the hospital wing of Rahova Prison, Bucharest, where he underwent surgery on 3 June 2011 for an inguinal hernia on his right side. 16. From 2 to 8 October 2012 the applicant was placed in the internal medicine unit of the hospital wing of Jilava Prison, for digestive problems. He was included in a screening programme for digestive and liver conditions. Following a medical test to identify the viral markers of hepatitis, the applicant was found to be suffering from viral hepatitis C (purtator VHC). A biochemical blood analysis was conducted; the results indicated that his ALAT, ASAT and GGT enzyme levels were normal, as was his total bilirubin. 17. In a note summarising the medical tests conducted during the applicant’s hospitalisation (scrisoare medicală), the doctor who had treated him observed that the applicant’s disease was progressing satisfactorily and that no additional examination was necessary at that stage. He recommended that the applicant adhere to a specific diet and refrain from smoking. He prescribed symptomatic treatment, namely hepatoprotective drugs and vitamin therapy, noting that these were to be administered “if needed” (la nevoie). The applicant’s health was scheduled for re-examination within six months. 18. The applicant was provided with a special diet for persons suffering from disease (norma 18). During January, February and March 2013 he was treated with hepatoprotective drugs. 19. On 21 February 2013 the applicant refused to be hospitalised for his health check-up. His medical records do not indicate the reasons for this refusal. However, they indicate that his health was to be re-examined within six months. 20. From 5 to 8 August 2013 the applicant was placed in the internal medicine unit of the hospital wing of Jilava Prison for re-testing of his liver function. Blood tests showed that the ALAT and ASAT enzymes were slightly above the normal levels. On leaving the hospital wing, the applicant was advised to follow a course of hepatoprotective drugs, vitamin therapy and symptomatic treatment, to be administered if needed. He was also advised to have his condition reassessed within six months. 21. The applicant continued to be provided with the special diet for persons suffering from disease. In August, October and December 2013 he was treated with hepatoprotective drugs. The list of the applicant’s medical consultations shows that, following a medical examination on 9 December 2013 in Jilava Prison, it was recommended that he attend a medical consultation for hepatitis C in Ion Cantacusino public hospital. 22. At the end of December 2013 and in January 2014 the applicant was treated with a hepatoprotective drug and vitamins. 23. On 14 January 2014 the applicant refused to be hospitalised for re-assessment of his health with regard to the hepatitis C condition. On 19 January 2014 the applicant was examined by an internal medicine specialist, who noted that his general state of health was good. 24. On 28 January 2014 the applicant was examined by the prison doctor. The latter noted a diagnosis of “liver disease under observation” and indicated that the applicant had complained of vomiting. An anti-spasmodic drug was prescribed and administered to him. 25. On 13 February 2014 the applicant complained of palpitations. He was examined by the prison doctor, who recommended a cardiology test. 26. From 18 to 21 February 2014 the applicant was placed in the internal medicine and cardiology unit in the hospital wing of Jilava Prison, on the grounds that he required medical supervision for retro-sternal pain and that, as a smoker, he was an at-risk patient. An electrocardiogram and blood test were carried out. The biochemical blood analysis revealed that the ALAT enzyme was one-and-a-half times over the upper norm, that the ASAT enzyme was slightly over the norm and that the GGT enzyme was at normal levels. 27. A medical certificate issued at the end of his hospitalisation indicated that the applicant was suffering from unstable angina (angor intricat de novo) and potentially toxic liver disease (hepatopatie posibil toxică). The applicant was prescribed treatment for his heart disease and a course of hepatoprotective treatment, to be followed for one month. 28. In March 2014 the prison took the necessary steps to purchase the hepatoprotective drug, which was administered to the applicant at the beginning and end of May 2014. The applicant’s medical records indicate that he was treated with hepatoprotective drugs in June and July 2014. 29. In the meantime, on 2 August 2013 the applicant had applied to the judge delegated by the court to supervise the observance of prisoners’ rights in Jilava Prison (“the delegate judge”), complaining about his physical conditions of detention and a lack of medical treatment for his hepatitis C. 30. By a decision of 19 August 2013, the delegate judge dismissed his complaint. He confirmed the applicant’s allegations that he was being held in a cell measuring 33.96 m², occupied by twenty-seven inmates and containing four tables and six chairs. He further held that the prison authorities had attempted to improve conditions in the cell, noting that it had recently been renovated. He stated that the toilet block was separated from the cell, and that the cell received natural and artificial light. The fact that the cell was equipped with three-tier bunk beds arose from an objective cause, namely an increase in the number of detainees, and not from a lack of good will on the part of the prison authorities. 31. With regard to the medical treatment provided to the applicant, the judge noted that he received the special diet for persons suffering from disease and that he had just received vitamin therapy. 32. Following an appeal by the applicant, on 4 December 2013 the Bucharest Court of First Instance upheld, in a final judgment, the delegate judge’s decision of 19 August 2013. ...