CEDH · CASELAW;CLIN;ENG — 31 juillet 2007

.s3ABFC313 { font-size:10pt } .sEB86A30B { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:14pt; page-break-after:avoid } .sBB9EE52A { font-family:Arial } .sA241FE93 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:18pt; text-align:justify; page-break-after:avoid; border-bottom:0.75pt solid #000000; padding-bottom:1pt } .s2EF62ED2 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; font-size:12pt } .s4DDA3AA3 { font-family:Arial; font-weight:bold; font-style:italic } .s29100277 { font-family:Arial; font-weight:bold } .s32563E28 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt } .s8F2B0B1B { margin-top:12pt; margin-bottom:12pt; page-break-after:avoid; font-size:12pt } .s9FF10068 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:12pt } .sA36B60A1 { font-family:Arial; font-style:italic } .s5F48796F { margin-top:12pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:justify } .s5CB9E8AB { margin-top:12pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:justify; border-bottom:1pt solid #000000; padding-bottom:1pt } .sDF790F1E { margin-top:12pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:center } .s7ED160F0 { text-decoration:none } .s3DC36BA9 { font-family:Arial; text-decoration:underline; color:#0069d6 } Information Note on the Court’s case-law No. 99 July 2007 Ekeberg and Others v. Norway - 11106/04 Judgment 31.7.2007 [Section I] Article 6 Criminal proceedings Article 6-1 Impartial tribunal Independent tribunal Tenuous difference between the role of a professional judge in deciding on the extension of a defendant’s detention and her role in assessing whether to endorse the jury’s verdict: violation   Facts : The applicants, members of motor cycle clubs, detonated hidden explosives in order to blow up parts of a club house belonging to another club. The force of the explosion killed the driver of a passing car and caused extensive damage. The applicants were subsequently charged before the High Court, convicted and sentenced to prison terms ranging from 6 to 16 years. The applicants complained inter alia that Judge G. had lacked the requisite impartiality in the trial because she had taken part in a decision to extend the fourth applicant’s detention. This shortcoming had been aggravated by the fact that juror W. had been disqualified as, some years earlier, she had given a witness statement to the police concerning the case. Law : Judge G . ’s role in deciding on the extension of the fourth applicant’s detention and assessing whether to endorse the jury’s verdict – The decision to extend the fourth applicant’s detention had been taken in accordance with the Code of Criminal Procedure, which required a definite suspicion that he had committed the offence in question. Without the professional judges’ endorsement, the fourth applicant could not have been convicted by the High Court jury. That made tenuous the difference between Judge   G.’s role in deciding about the extension of the fourth applicant’s detention and then assessing whether to endorse the High Court jury’s verdict. Furthermore, Judge G. also took part in the sentencing of the fourth applicant. Hence the fourth applicant had legitimate grounds for fearing that the High Court had lacked the requisite impartiality (cf. Hauschildt v . Denmark judgment). The fact that neither the fourth applicant nor his counsel at any time had objected to Judge G.’s participation in the trial could not, in the circumstances of the case, reduce the protection that follows from the requirement of objective impartiality of judges. On the other hand, any fears that the remaining applicants had entertained in this respect of Judge G.’s impartiality could not be considered objectively justified. Conclusion : violation in respect of the fourth applicant / no violation in respect of the others (unanimously). Juror W’s participation – The nature, timing and short duration of juror W.’s involvement in the proceedings could not cause the applicants to have doubts as to the impartiality of the jury. Conclusion : no violation (four votes to three).   © Council of Europe/European Court of Human Rights This summary by the Registry does not bind the Court. Click here for the Case-Law Information Notes