CEDH · CASELAW;JUDGMENTS;CHAMBER;ENG — 7 juillet 2011

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margin-bottom:12pt; text-indent:-17pt; text-align:justify } .s7CB9076 { margin-top:36pt; margin-bottom:0pt; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid } .s662A0995 { width:8.93pt; display:inline-block } .sBEC979D1 { width:161.62pt; display:inline-block }     FIFTH SECTION           CASE OF SHISHKIN v. RUSSIA   (Application no. 18280/04)               JUDGMENT     STRASBOURG   7 July 2011     FINAL   07/10/2011     This judgment has become final under Article 44 § 2 of the Convention. It may be subject to editorial revision. In the case of Shishkin v. Russia , The European Court of Human Rights (Fifth Section), sitting as a Chamber composed of:   Dean Spielmann, President,   Karel Jungwiert,   Anatoly Kovler,   Mark Villiger,   Isabelle Berro-Lefèvre,   Ann Power,   Angelika Nußberger, judges, and Claudia Westerdiek, Section Registrar, Having deliberated in private on 14 June 2011, Delivers the following judgment, which was adopted on that date: PROCEDURE 1.     The case originated in an application (no. 18280/04) against the Russian Federation lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) by a Russian national, Mr Sergey Valentinovich Shishkin (“the applicant”), on 30 April 2004. 2.     The applicant was represented by Mr M. Rachkovskiy, a lawyer practising in Moscow. The Russian Government (“the Government”) were represented by Mr G. Matyushkin, Representative of the Russian Federation at the European Court of Human Rights. 3.     The applicant alleged, in particular, that he had been ill-treated by police officers and escorts and that the investigation into his allegations of ill-treatment had been inadequate and ineffective. He also alleged that he had been denied access to counsel during part of the investigation stage of the proceedings. 4.     On 2 March 2009 the President of the Fifth Section decided to give notice of the application to the Government. It was also decided to rule on the admissibility and merits of the application at the same time (Article 29 §   1). THE FACTS I.     THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE CASE 5.     The applicant was born in 1963 and lives in Lipetsk. 6 .     In November 2000 the authorities opened criminal proceedings against the applicant in respect of three incidents of robbery and theft committed in the Lipetsk and Tambov regions. 7.     On 17 January 2001 separate criminal proceedings were instituted against the applicant on suspicion of his involvement in the manslaughter of police officer A. and the robbery of M. A.     Ill-treatment by the police in January and February 2001 1.     The applicant’s arrest and ill-treatment by the police 8.     On 23 January 2001 the applicant was arrested and escorted to the Interior Department of the Lipetsk Region. According to him, he was not provided with an explanation of the reason for his arrest, nor was he allowed to inform his family or counsel about it. 9.     In the evening of the same day the applicant was transferred to Dolgorukovskoe police station of the Lipetsk Region. He again unsuccessfully requested that he be allowed to inform his family and counsel. He was apprised that he was suspected of the manslaughter of A. and robbery of M. 10 .     The applicant denied involvement in the above crimes, whereupon he was severely beaten by Mr Abakumov (the head of the Investigations department), Mr Kondratov, Mr Trubitsyn, Mr Lukin (the head of the public safety department) and Mr Gerasimov (the chief of the police station) who punched and kicked him on various parts of the body. At the same time Mr   Kavyrshin encouraged the officers to continue the attack, and Mr   Trubitsyn was hitting the applicant on the soles of the feet with a rubber truncheon. Mr Trubitsyn and Mr Kondratov suspended the applicant several times in the air by his arms tied behind his back . Mr Abakumov, Mr   Kondratov, Mr Trubitsyn, Mr Butsan (a deputy chief of the police station), Mr Lukin, Mr Gerasimov and Mr Kavyrshin also forced the applicant to wear a gas mask whose air vent was occasionally blocked off. 11 .     Until 5 February 2001 the applicant was subjected to similar treatment by the same police officers on a daily basis. In addition, they threatened to take the applicant’s life by placing a loaded pistol in his mouth, left him for lengthy periods of time wrapped in several mattresses with his legs tied together and his hands cuffed behind his back, forced him to wear a smoke-filled gas mask with a blocked air vent and administered electric shocks to various parts of his body through wires connected to a dynamo. 12.     On an unspecified date the applicant confessed to the manslaughter of A. and robbery of M. On 23 and 27 January 2001 he also waived his right to counsel. According to the applicant, the waiver was the result of coercion by the police officers. 13.     The investigator of the prosecutor’s office of the Lipetsk Region Mr   Ibiyev was in charge of investigation of the manslaughter of A. and the robbery of M. 14.     On 30 January 2001 the applicant’s relatives retained counsel Sh. who tried unsuccessfully to see the applicant on 30 and 31 January 2001. 15.     The applicant was first allowed access to counsel on 2   February 2001. 16 .     On 7 February 2001 a forensic medical examination of the applicant recorded a bruise on his left shoulder, which might have been inflicted about two weeks prior to the examination. 17.     On 13 and 19 February 2001 respectively the applicant complained to the prosecutor of the Lipetsk Region and his counsel that he had been ill ‑ treated from 23 January to 5 February and from 9 to 13 February 2001 at Dolgorukovskoe police station, with the knowledge of the investigator Mr   Ibiyev. He wrote that under the duress he had confessed to involvement in the robbery of M. and manslaughter of A. and had slandered his co ‑ suspects. 18 .     On 26 May 2001 the criminal proceedings against the applicant for manslaughter and robbery were terminated, following the discovery of other suspects, who were later convicted by a court. 2.     Investigation into the alleged ill-treatment and trial 19.     On 14 March 2001 the applicant requested the prosecutor’s office of Yelets to institute criminal proceedings against the aforementioned police officers for ill-treatment. 20 .     On 6 July and 14 September 2001 the prosecutor’s office rejected the applicant’s request, finding no evidence that an offence had been committed. The decisions contained, in particular, the results of expert medical examinations and statements obtained from several police officers. These decisions were reversed by the prosecutor’s office of the Lipetsk Region on 7 August and 11 October 2001 respectively, on the ground that the inquiry had been incomplete. 21.     On 11 October 2001 the prosecutor’s office of the Lipetsk Region opened criminal proceedings against the alleged offenders. The applicant was granted victim status. 22.     Between November 2001 and August 2002 the investigator again questioned the police officers, the applicant and his former cellmates and held confrontations between the police and the applicant. 23 .     In reply to the applicant’s complaints about delays in the investigation, on 12 April 2002 the office of the Prosecutor General ordered that the investigation be sped up. 24.     On 11 August 2002 the criminal proceedings were again terminated on the grounds that there was insufficient evidence that the offence had been committed. 25 .     By a letter of 18 October 2002 the office of the Prosecutor General reprimanded the lower office for the discrepancies between the facts of the case and the conclusions reached by the investigator, and for attempts to cover up the violence committed by the police against the applicant. 26.     On 10 November 2002 the prosecutor’s office of the Lipetsk Region quashed the decision of 11 August 2002. The proceedings were resumed. 27.     On 16 May 2003 the police officers of Dolgorukovskoe police station, namely Mr Abakumov, Mr Kondratov, Mr Trubitsyn and Mr Lukin, were charged with abuse of authority associated with the use of violence and weapons and entailing serious consequences, an offence under Article   286 § 3 (a, b, c) of the Criminal Code. 28 .     By a letter of 12 February 2004 the office of the Prosecutor General again reprimanded the lower office for poor quality and excessive length of the investigation. It pointed out, in particular, that not all the suspects had been charged and that the charges had been drawn up with certain procedural irregularities. It was suggested that the lower office resume the investigation with a different investigating group. 29.     On 29 and 30 April, 5 May 2004 ten police officers were charged with actions committed in abuse of authority and in violation of the citizens’ rights, involving the use of violence and weapons and entailing grave consequences, an offence under Article 286 § 3 (a, b, c) of the Criminal Code of Russia. 30.     On 20 December 2004 the criminal case against the police officers of Dolgorukovskoe police station was set down for trial before the Yelets Town Court, Lipetsk Region. 31 .     On 28 December 2007 the Yelets Town Court found the policemen guilty as charged. The court found, inter alia , that the applicant had been ill ‑ treated in the circumstances described above (see paragraphs 10 and 11 above) as a suspect in the manslaughter of A. and the robbery of M. It detailed further that “unlawful methods were used to revenge A.’s death as well as with a view to coercion of the suspects to confess in the aforementioned crimes, to confirm them and to waive legal assistance”. 32.     The court sentenced the defendants to terms of imprisonment ranging from four years to five years and eight months, with a subsequent three-year prohibition on serving in law-enforcement agencies. 33.     The court also recognised the applicant’s right to compensation in separate civil proceedings. 34 .     On 2 June 2008 the Lipetsk Regional Court upheld the conviction on appeal but decided to commute the sentences and eliminate the prohibition on holding certain offices. The court noted that some of the defendants had been awarded medals for excellent police service and that all of them had positive references from their superiors. It therefore considered that it was possible to give them sentences below the statutory minimum. It sentenced six defendants to imprisonment ranging from two years and six months to three years and three months. The remaining four defendants were sentenced to imprisonment ranging from one year and six months to two years and six months, but their sentences were suspended and they were placed on probation for two years. Those four defendants were immediately released. 3.     Civil action for damages 35.     On an unspecified date the applicant sued the Ministry of Finance, the Interior Ministry and Dolgorukovskoe police station for compensation in respect of non-pecuniary damage caused by the ill-treatment. He claimed 50,000,000 Russian roubles (RUB). 36 .     On 14 May 2009 the Moscow Zamoskvoretskiy District Court allowed the claim in part. It found that the applicant had been subjected to physical and psychological violence and awarded him RUB 100,000 (about 2,300 euros (EUR)) as compensation. 37.     On an unspecified date the Moscow City Court upheld the judgment on appeal. B.     Ill-treatment by escorts on 27 June 2002 1.     Use of force by the escorts in the court-house 38.     On an unspecified date the remaining criminal charges against the applicant were submitted to the Lipetsk Regional Court for examination on the merits. 39.     On 27 June 2002 the applicant and other defendants were escorted to the Lipetsk Regional Court for a hearing. According to the applicant, he and other defendants decided not to go into the courtroom, in protest against the postponement of the hearing and lack of medical assistance to some of the defendants. The presiding judge ordered that they be brought in by force. 40.     In a report drawn up on the same day the head of the escorts group described the subsequent events in the following way: “After a discussion the accused agreed to proceed to the courtroom. While being escorted they attacked the escorting police officers. Physical force and special means were used against them in order to stop the assault and break their resistance.” 2.     Investigation into the alleged ill-treatment 41.     On 15 July 2002 the prosecutor’s office of the Sovetskiy District of Lipetsk refused the request of the relatives of the accused for institution of criminal proceedings against the police officers who had escorted and beaten the accused. The decision contained the statements of the relatives who had been eyewitnesses to the events in part, the applicant’s version of the events and the statements of the escorts. 42.     Five eyewitnesses submitted that at a certain moment they had heard a noise from the staircase leading from the basement and had soon seen the accused being driven up the stairs with blows from the escort officers’ truncheons. The applicant’s mother went on to describe the officer who was beating the applicant and added that innumerable blows had been delivered by the officer, who had used his hands, feet and the truncheon. 43.     The applicant’s version of the events read as follows: “[The accused] agreed to enter the courtroom under the condition that they would be allowed to see their family members in the lobby... [They] started going up the stairs, but seeing that not all of their families were in the lobby they turned back. [The applicant] was handcuffed to his co-accused B. Then the escorts started pushing them into the courtroom. He does not know who was beating him...After the incident he had bruises on his body”. 44.     The statement by the head of the escort group was similar to the report drawn up by him on the day of the incident. In addition, he specified that “[w]hile going up the stairs, the accused P. bolted to the right and the rest attacked the escorting officers.” 45.     The escorts made similar statements. The presiding judge refused to testify. 46.     The decision not to institute criminal proceedings found it established that the escorts had acted on the judge’s order to bring the accused in by force and had not overstepped the lawful boundaries. It also mentioned that the accused had not requested medical assistance or forensic expert examination and therefore it could not be established whether they had sustained any physical harm. 47.     On an unspecified date the applicant challenged in court the decision not to institute criminal proceedings. 48.     On 20 September 2004 the Lipetsk Sovetskiy District Court heard the applicant, who testified that the escorts had beaten him without any defiance or resistance on his part. Having examined the decision not to institute the proceedings and the escorts’ reports, the court found that the impugned decision was well-grounded and disallowed the complaint. 49.     On 19 October 2004 the Lipetsk Regional Court upheld the decision on appeal. 50.     The Government submitted that the materials of the investigation had been studied by the office of the Prosecutor General, which had returned them to the regional office on 22 January 2007 without any comments. C.     Criminal proceedings against the applicant 51.     As transpires from the text of the trial judgment (see paragraph 56 below), on 4 April 2001 the applicant was questioned as an accused within the investigation opened on account of three incidents of robbery and theft committed in the Lipetsk and Tambov Regions (see paragraph 6 above). The parties did not submit the records of the interviews given by the applicant either before or after that date. 52.     In October 2001 the criminal case against him was set down for trial. 53.     The applicant pleaded not guilty at the trial and contended that his testimony in relation to the crimes he was being charged with had been obtained under duress at Dolgorukovskoe police station as well as under pressure from other police officers. He emphasised that he had been ill ‑ treated at the police station in connection not only with the manslaughter of A. but also with the other charges pending against him. He also asserted that the waivers of legal assistance had been signed by him against his will and that the waiver of 31 January 2001 had been forged by the investigator. His legal counsel had not been informed by the investigator of the investigative actions. 54.     On 28 April 2003 the Lipetsk Regional Court found the applicant guilty of assault, aiding and abetting attempted robbery, and theft, and sentenced him to six years’ imprisonment. Three of his co-defendants were also found guilty and sentenced to various terms of imprisonment. 55.     In determining the criminal charges against the applicant and his co ‑ defendants the trial court relied on the statements made by them during the pre-trial investigation, the circumstantial evidence supplied by the victims, the statements of one of the police officers who had questioned the co-accused during the pre-trial investigation, the records of crime scene reconstructions and expert examinations of several items, which had not ruled out the possibility that the physiological evidence found on them belonged to the applicant or his co-defendants. 56 .     The trial court rejected the records of interviews given by the applicant as a suspect before 4 April 2001 in respect of the second incident as obtained in violation of the procedural norms, namely without a previous imposition of a measure of restraint on the suspect. It also did not rely in its assessment of evidence on any statements made by the applicant in respect of the first and third incidents. 57.     In respect of the applicant’s claim that the statements made during the pre-trial investigation were false and had been given under duress, the court stated: “... The court cannot agree with the[se] arguments ... as the case materials do not contain any objective information on this account ... They are also refuted by the evidence examined in the proceedings and by the fact that the confessions contained such information as could only be known to the perpetrators of the crime. [The applicant] made his pre-trial statements of his own will and by his own initiative; [he] had been explained the provisions of Article 51 of the Constitution including his right not to testify against himself ...” 58.     As to the alleged lack of legal assistance at the stage of the initial investigation, the trial court found that counsel had been retained to provide assistance in respect of the investigation of the manslaughter of A., but not in respect of the rest of the charges. 59.     In his appeal to the Supreme Court of Russia the applicant’s legal counsel challenged the judgment on a number of points. He challenged the court’s analysis of the witnesses’ statements and other evidence, maintained that part of the evidence was inadmissible for procedural flaws, lack of legal assistance during the investigation or due to the coercion applied by the police officers. 60.     On 26 November 2003 the Supreme Court rejected the appeal and upheld the judgment. D.     Conditions of the applicant’s detention 61.     The applicant was held in Yelets T-2 prison from 5 February to 13   June 2001. He was also held in Yelets IZ-48/1 detention facility from 13   June 2001 to 27 December 2003 and from 24 February to 29 April 2004. After the conviction he served his sentence in Yelets correctional colony IK-3 from 27 December 2003 to 24 February 2004 and from 29 April to 5   May 2004. 1.     The applicant’s account 62.     The applicant submitted that in the T-2 and IZ-48/1 detention facilities the cells had been poorly ventilated, their window structures had not allowed access to fresh air, and the lighting had been inadequate. He further submitted that the toilet facilities had not been separated from the living area and that the cells had been infested with rats and mice. 63.     As to the conditions of detention in the correctional colony, the applicant alleged in general terms a lack of proper ventilation, lighting and disinfection, as well as deficiencies in the quality and amount of food supplied. 64.     On an unspecified date the applicant brought proceedings against the T-2 detention facility, seeking compensation for non-pecuniary damage sustained as a result of the poor conditions of detention. In particular, he complained of stuffiness and unpleasant odour in the cells where he had been kept, lack of proper electric lighting and natural light that had allegedly led to deterioration of his eyesight, poor sanitary maintenance of the cells and breach of the statutory standards of catering for the detainees. He also raised numerous other grievances. On 16 May 2006 the Yelets Town Court of the Lipetsk Region heard the applicant and several witnesses in person, considered witness depositions and the regulations pertaining to the subject, and rejected the complaints as unfounded. 65.     It is not clear whether the applicant appealed against the judgment. 2.     The Government’s account 66 .     The Government submitted that the cell windows of the detention facilities which had housed the applicant had never been fitted with metallic sheets or grilles which could have blocked natural light. Instead, the windows were fitted with white-painted venetian blinds which did not inhibit access of daylight to the cells. These blinds were removed from IZ ‑ 48/1 and T-2 in late 2002 in accordance with the order of the Prisons Department of the Ministry of Justice of 25 November 2002. The cell windows in the correctional colony were fitted in accordance with the standards proscribed by the decree of the Ministry of Justice of 2 June 2003. During daytime the cells of the detention facilities were lit by 40-watt light bulbs whose number was in proportion with the floor area of the cells. 67.     The cells in IZ-48/1 and T-2 were equipped with combined extract ‑ and ‑ input ventilation in working condition. Such ventilation did not exist in the cells of the correctional colony, as the inmates only slept there. All the detention facilities were naturally ventilated by way of vent lights in the windows. 68.     IZ-48/1 and T-2 were equipped with sanitary facilities in working order. The toilets, which were 1.2 to 3 metres from the living area, were fitted with partitions measuring from 1 to 1.8 metres in height, which ensured sufficient privacy. The correctional colony’s quarantine unit and unit 2 had separate sanitary rooms. The cleaning of the sanitary facilities in T-2 and IZ-48/1 was done by the inmates according to the internal regulations. In the correctional colony this cleaning was done twice a day. 69.     There were no discoveries of mice, rats or parasitical insects in the concerned detention facilities during the applicant’s period of detention. In T-2 the disinfection and disinfestation took place on a monthly basis, with additional daily inspection of the cells. In IZ-48/1 and the correctional colony such operations were carried out by a staff disinfector in accordance with a set schedule. In addition, all of the concerned facilities disinfested the inmates’ clothes and bedding on a weekly basis. 70 .     As to the catering, the Government submitted that it had been provided in accordance with the statutory standards. II.     RELEVANT DOMESTIC LAW A.     Criminal-law remedies against ill-treatment 1.     Applicable criminal offences 71 .     Abuse of office associated with the use of violence and weapons and entailing serious consequences carries a punishment of three to ten years’ imprisonment and a prohibition on occupying certain positions for up to three years (Article 286 § 3 (a, b, c) of the Criminal Code). 2.     Investigation of criminal offences 72.     Until 1 July 2002 the investigation of criminal offences was governed by the RSFSR Code of Criminal Procedure of 27 October 1960 (the “old CCrP”). It established that a criminal investigation could be initiated by an investigator on a complaint by an individual or on the investigative authorities’ own initiative, where there were reasons to believe that a crime had been committed (Articles 108 and 125). A prosecutor was responsible for overall supervision of the investigation and could order specific investigative actions, transfer the case from one investigator to another, or order an additional investigation (Articles 210 and 211). If there were no grounds for initiating or continuing a criminal investigation, the prosecutor or investigator issued a reasoned decision to that effect, which had to be served on the party concerned. The decision was amenable to appeal to a higher-ranking prosecutor or to a court of general jurisdiction (Articles 113 and 209). 73.     The Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation in force since 1 July 2002 (Law no. 174-FZ of 18 December 2001, the “CCrP”), establishes that a criminal investigation may be initiated by an investigator or prosecutor upon the complaint of an individual (Articles 140 and 146). Within three days of receiving such a complaint, the investigator or prosecutor must carry out a preliminary inquiry and take one of the following decisions: (1) to open criminal proceedings if there are reasons to believe that a crime has been committed; (2) to refuse to open criminal proceedings if the inquiry reveals that there are no grounds to initiate a criminal investigation; or (3) to refer the complaint to the relevant investigative authority. The complainant must be notified of any decision taken. Refusal to open criminal proceedings is amenable to appeal to a higher-ranking prosecutor or a court of general jurisdiction (Articles 144, 145 and 148). A prosecutor is responsible for overall supervision of the investigation (Article 37). He can order specific investigative actions, transfer the case from one investigator to another or order an additional investigation. Article 125 of the CCrP provides for judicial review of decisions by investigators and prosecutors that might infringe the constitutional rights of participants in proceedings or prevent access to court. B.     Civil law remedies against illegal acts by public officials 74.     Article 1064 § 1 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation provides that damage caused to the person or property of a citizen must be fully compensated for by the tortfeasor. Pursuant to Article 1069, a State agency or a State official is liable towards a citizen for damage caused by their unlawful actions or failure to act. Such damage is to be compensated for by the federal or regional treasury. Articles 151 and   1099-1101 of the Civil Code provide for compensation for non-pecuniary damage. Article   1099 states, in particular, that non-pecuniary damage must be compensated for irrespective of any award for pecuniary damage. C.     Use of force and special measures in detention facilities 1.     The Custody Act (no. 103-FZ of 15 July 1995) (Федеральный закон «О содержании под стражей подозреваемых и обвиняемых в совершении преступлений») 75.     Rubber truncheons may be used in the following cases: -     to repel an attack on a staff member of a detention facility or on other persons; -     to suppress mass disorder or put an end to collective violations of detention rules and regulations; -     to put an end to a refusal to comply with lawful orders of facility administration and warders;     - to release hostages and liberate buildings, rooms and vehicles taken over by a detainee; -     to prevent an escape; -     to prevent a detainee from hurting himself (section 45). 2.     The Police Act (no. 1026-1 of 18 April 1991) (Закон РФ «О   милиции») 76.     Police officers are only entitled to use physical force, special means and firearms in cases and within procedures established by the Police Act; staff members of police facilities designated for temporary detention of suspects and accused persons may only use such force and special means in cases and within the procedure established by the Custody Act (section 12). 77.     Section 12 of the Police Act provides that a police officer resorting to physical force, special means or a firearm should warn an individual that force/special means/firearms are to be used against him. In cases when a delay in the use of force, special means or firearms may endanger the life and health of civilians or police officers or cause other serious damage such a warning is not necessary. Police officers should ensure that damage caused by the use of force/special means/firearms is minimal and corresponds to the character and extent of the danger that unlawful conduct by a perpetrator may pose and the resistance that the perpetrator offers. Police officers should also ensure that individuals who have been injured as a result of the use of force/special means/firearms receive medical assistance. 78.     By virtue of section 13 of the Police Act police officers may use physical force, including combat methods, to prevent criminal and administrative offences, to arrest individuals who have committed such offences, to overcome resistance to lawful orders, or if non-violent methods do not ensure compliance with responsibilities entrusted to the police. 79.     Sections 14 and 15 of the Police Act lay down an exhaustive list of cases when special means, including rubber truncheons and handcuffs, and firearms may be used. In particular, rubber truncheons may be used to repel an attack on civilians or police officers, to overcome resistance offered to a police officer and to repress mass disorder and put an end to collective actions disrupting work of transport, means of communication and legal entities. Handcuffs may only be used to overcome resistance offered to a police officer, to arrest an individual caught when he is committing a criminal offence against life, health or property and if he is attempting to escape, and to take arrestees to police stations, to transport and protect them if their behaviour allows the conclusion that they are liable to escape, cause damage to themselves or other individuals or offer resistance to police officers. D.     Access to counsel 80.     Under Article 47 § 1 of the old CCrP, in force at the material time, counsel could be admitted to proceedings from the moment charges were announced or listed, or, for an arrested or detained suspect, from the moment he or she is given access to the arrest record or detention order. If privately-retained counsel did not appear within twenty-four hours, the authority in charge of the case was allowed to suggest that the person retain other counsel, or to appoint counsel itself (Article 47 § 2). THE LAW I.     ALLEGED VIOLATION OF ARTICLE 3 OF THE CONVENTION ON ACCOUNT OF ILL-TREATMENT AT DOLGORUKOVSKOE POLICE STATION 81.     The applicant complained under Articles 2 and 3 of the Convention that he had been subjected to torture at Dolgorukovskoe police station in early 2001 and that the authorities had not undertaken an effective investigation into his complaints. The Court considers that this complaint should be examined under Article 3 of the Convention, which reads as follows: “No one shall be subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.” A.     Submissions by the parties 1.     The Government 82.     The Government confirmed that the applicant had been ill-treated at Dolgorukovskoe police station in January and February 2001, referring to the conclusions reached by the trial court in the proceedings against the offending police officers. They further contended that the investigations into the offences had been thorough and effective, as evidenced by the fact that the offenders had been convicted. They pleaded that the applicant had lost his victim status before the Court following the conviction of the offenders and the award of compensation for non-pecuniary damage to him by the domestic court. 2.     The applicant 83.     The applicant disagreed that the investigation into his complaints had been effective. He submitted that it had been too lengthy and had not led to criminal prosecution of the investigators of the prosecutor’s office, Mr Ibiyev and Mr Andreyev. He claimed that the compensation for ill ‑ treatment awarded by the domestic court had been insufficient and that he had retained his victim status under the Convention. B.     The Court’s assessment 1.     Admissibility 84 .     The Court considers that the question whether the applicant may still claim to be a victim of a violation of Article 3 of the Convention in respect of his alleged ill-treatment is closely linked to the question whether the investigation of the events in question was effective and also whether the compensation which the applicant received was sufficient. However, these issues relate to the merits of the applicant’s complaints under Article 3 of the Convention (see Vladimir Romanov v. Russia , no. 41461/02, § 53, 24   July 2008). The Court therefore decided to join this matter to the merits. 85.     The Court notes that this complaint is not manifestly ill-founded within the meaning of Article 35 § 3 (a) of the Convention. It further notes that it is not inadmissible on any other grounds. It must therefore be declared admissible. 2.     Merits (a)     Alleged ill-treatment of the applicant 86.     As the Court has stated on many occasions, ill-treatment must attain a minimum level of severity if it is to fall within the scope of Article   3. The assessment of this minimum is relative: it depends on all the circumstances of the case, such as the duration of the treatment, its physical and mental effects and, in some cases, the sex, age and state of health of the victim (see Labita v. Italy [GC], no. 26772/95, § 120, ECHR 2000 ‑ IV). Treatment has been held by the Court to be “inhuman” because, inter alia, it was premeditated, was applied for hours at a stretch and caused either actual bodily injury or intense physical and mental suffering, and also “degrading” because it was such as to arouse in its victims feelings of fear, anguish and inferiority capable of humiliating and debasing them. In order for a punishment or treatment associated with it to be “inhuman” or “degrading”, the suffering or humiliation involved must in any event go beyond that inevitable element of suffering or humiliation connected with a given form of legitimate treatment or punishment. The question whether the purpose of the treatment was to humiliate or debase the victim is a further factor to be taken into account, but the absence of any such purpose cannot conclusively rule out a finding of a violation of Article 3 (see V. v. the United Kingdom [GC], no. 24888/94, § 71, ECHR 1999 ‑ IX). 87.     Further, in order to determine whether a particular form of ill ‑ treatment should be qualified as torture, the Court must have regard to the distinction, embodied in Article 3, between this notion and that of inhuman or degrading treatment. It appears that it was the intention that the Convention should, by means of this distinction, attach a special stigma to deliberate inhuman treatment causing very serious and cruel suffering. The Court has previously had before it cases in which it has found that there has been treatment which could only be described as torture (see Aksoy v.   Turkey , 18 December 1996, § 64, Reports of Judgments and Decisions   1996-VI; Aydın v. Turkey , 25 September 1997, §§ 83-84 and 86, Reports 1997-VI; Selmouni v. France [GC], no. 25803/94, § 105, ECHR   1999-V; Dikme v. Turkey , no. 20869/92, §§ 94 ‑ 96, ECHR   2000 ‑ VIII; and, in respect of Russia, Menesheva v. Russia , no.   59261/00, §§ 60-62, ECHR ECHR 2006 ‑ III; Mikheyev v. Russia , no.   77617/01, § 135, 26 January 2006; and Polonskiy v. Russia , no.   30033/05, § 124, 19 March 2009). In assessing whether the pain and suffering inflicted on a person amounts to torture in the meaning of Article 3 of the Convention, the Court takes the view that the increasingly high standard being required in the area of the protection of human rights and fundamental liberties correspondingly and inevitably requires greater firmness in assessing breaches of the fundamental values of democratic societies (see Selmouni , cited above, § 101). 88 .     In the present case the domestic courts acknowledged that in January and February 2001 the applicant had been repeatedly ill-treated by the police officers of Dolgorukovskoe police station. In particular, it had been established that the police officers had punched and kicked the applicant, hit him on the heels with truncheons, subjected him to electric shocks, put a gas mask on him and closed its air vent or forced him to inhale cigarette smoke through the vent, tied his hands behind his back and suspended him in the air by a rope. This treatment had undoubtedly caused the applicant severe mental and physical suffering, even if the actual bodily injury might not have been particularly serious (see paragraph 16 above). It was also established that the use of force had been aimed at debasing the applicant, driving him into submission and making him confess to a criminal offence which he had not committed (see paragraphs 31 and 36 above). 89 .     Given the purpose, length and intensity of the ill-treatment, the Court concludes that it amounted to torture within the meaning of Article 3 of the Convention. (b)     The issue of victim status 90.     In paragraph 84 above the Court found that the question whether the applicant might still claim to be a victim in respect of the treatment sustained at the hands of the police was closely linked to the question whether the investigation into the events at issue had been effective and whether the compensation received by the applicant had been sufficient. It thus decided to join the issue of the applicant’s victim status to the merits and will examine it now. 91.     The Court reiterates that a decision or measure favourable to the applicant is not in principle sufficient to deprive him of his status as a “victim” unless the national authorities have acknowledged, either expressly or in substance, and then afforded redress for, the breach of the Convention (see, for example, Amuur v. France , 25 June 1996, § 36, Reports 1996 ‑ III, and Dalban v. Romania [GC], no. 28114/95, § 44, ECHR 1999-VI). 92.     In the present case the domestic authorities expressly acknowledged that the applicant had been subjected to treatment contrary to Article 3 of the Convention (see paragraph 36 above). It remains to be ascertained whether he was afforded appropriate and sufficient redress for the breach of his rights under the Convention. 93.     The Court reiterates that, in the case of a breach of Articles 2 or 3 of the Convention, compensation for the pecuniary and non-pecuniary damage flowing from the breach should in principle be available as part of the range of redress (see Z. and Others v. the United Kingdom [GC], no. 29392/95, §   109, ECHR 2001 ‑ V). However, in cases of wilful ill ‑ treatment the violation of Articles 2 or 3 cannot be remedied exclusively through an award of compensation to the victim. This is so because, if the authorities could confine their reaction to incidents of wilful ill-treatment by State agents to the mere payment of compensation, while not doing enough to prosecute and punish those responsible, it would be possible in some cases for agents of the State to abuse the rights of those within their control with virtual impunity, and the general legal prohibition of torture and inhuman and degrading treatment, despite its fundamental importance, would be ineffective in practice (see Vladimir Romanov , cited above, §§ 78-79, and Nikolova and Velichkova v. Bulgaria , no. 7888/03, §§ 55-56, 20 December 2007). It follows from the above that an effective investigation is required, in addition to adequate compensation, to provide sufficient redress to an applicant complaining of ill-treatment by State agents. 94.     Accordingly, to determine whether the applicant in the present case was afforded sufficient redress and lost his status as a “victim” with regard to Article 3, the Court will have to examine the effectiveness of the investigation into his allegations of ill-treatment and the adequacy of the compensation paid to him (see Gäfgen v. Germany [GC], no. 22978/05, §§   121 and 126, ECHR 2010 ‑ ...). (i)     Effectiveness of the investigation 95.     The Court reiterates that where an individual raises an arguable claim that he has been seriously ill-treated in breach of Article 3, that provision, read in conjunction with the State’s general duty under Article   1 of the Convention to “secure to everyone within their jurisdiction the rights and freedoms def