CEDH · PRESS;HEARINGS;ENG — 20 février 2002

.s800EAC49 { font-size:12pt } .s5FFF0A77 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; font-size:1pt } .sBB9EE52A { font-family:Arial } .sFE10DC93 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:center } .s29100277 { font-family:Arial; font-weight:bold } .sA1D3DA2E { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:justify } .s94935B0F { width:389.85pt; display:inline-block } .s32563E28 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt } .s4DDA3AA3 { font-family:Arial; font-weight:bold; font-style:italic } .sD35C6159 { width:1.54pt; display:inline-block } .s4598CDF { width:70.9pt; display:inline-block } .s38DD6A04 { width:18.2pt; display:inline-block } .sCB27B9E { width:16.66pt; display:inline-block } .sC5412BEF { width:51.05pt; display:inline-block } .sA36B60A1 { font-family:Arial; font-style:italic }   EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS     090   20.2.2002   Press release issued by the Registrar   HEARING ON THE MERITS IN THE CASE OF STAFFORD v. THE UNITED KINGDOM   Wednesday 20 February 2002 at 9.00 a.m.   The applicant   The case concerns an application brought by a United Kingdom national, Dennis Stafford, who was born in 1933 and lives in Durham.   Summary of the facts   Mr Stafford was convicted of murder in 1967. He was released on licence in 1979, detained again in 1989 for breach of conditions, and released again in 1990. In July 1994 he was convicted of cheque fraud and sentenced to six years’ imprisonment. His life licence was revoked by the Secretary of State.   In 1996-7, when normally he would have been released from the fraud sentence, the Parole Board recommended his release on life licence, noting his previous successful transition from prison to the community without violent re-offending. When the Secretary of State rejected the recommendation, judicial review proceedings were taken challenging the lawfulness of the decision to continue detention on the ground, not of risk of violent offences, but the risk that he commit further non-violent imprisonable offences. The House of Lords found that section 35(2) of the Criminal Justice Act 1991 conferred a wide discretion on the Secretary of State and that there was nothing to constrain him from adopting the course which he had. The applicant was eventually released on licence in 1998.   Complaints   The applicant complains, under Article 5 § 1 (right to liberty and security) of the European Convention on Human Rights, that his detention from the expiry of his six year sentence in July 1997 until his release on licence on 22 December 1998 was arbitrary. He points out that by the time of his detention in July 1997 he had long since completed the punitive phase of the life sentence imposed on him for murder. Since his release in 1979, he had spent many years at liberty without re-offending in a violent way. The decision to detain him after the expiry of the six year term for a dishonesty offence was justified solely by the consideration that, if released on licence, he might commit another offence of dishonesty. This had no relation to the original basis of his detention. He also complains, under Article 5 § 4, that he did not have the right to have the lawfulness of his continued detention decided by a court at reasonable intervals.       Procedure   The case was lodged on 24 July 1998 with the European Commission of Human Rights and transferred to the Court on 1 November 1998. The application was declared admissible on 29 May 2001. On 4 September 2001 the Chamber decided to relinquished jurisdiction in favour of the Grand Chamber.   Composition of the Court   The case will be heard by the Grand Chamber composed as follows:   Luzius Wildhaber (Swiss), President , Christos Rozakis (Greek), Jean-Paul Costa (French), Nicolas Bratza (British), Antonio Pastor Ridruejo (Spanish), Elisabeth Palm (Swedish), Pranas Kūris (Lithuanian), Françoise Tulkens (Belgian), Karel Jungwiert (Czech), Boštjan Zupančič (Slovenian), Nina Vajić (Croatian), Matti Pellonpää (Finnish), Hanne Sophie Greve (Norwegian), Kristaq Traja (Albanian), Snejana Botoucharova (Bulgarian), Mindia Ugrekhelidze (Georgian), Vladimiro Zagrebelsky (Italian), judges , Volodymyr Butkevych (Ukrainian), Riza Türmen (Turkish), Peer Lorenzen (Danish), substitute judges , and also Paul Mahoney , Registrar .     Representatives of the parties   Government:   Derek Walton , Agent;   David Pannick, QC , Mark Shaw , Counsel ;   Jennifer Morrish and Tim Morris , Advisers ;   Applicant:   Edward FitzGerald , QC, and Tim Owen , QC, Counsel; and   Michael Purdon , Solicitor .     ***   After the hearing the Court will begin its deliberations, which are held in private. Judgment will be delivered at a later date.     Registry of the European Court of Human Rights F – 67075 Strasbourg Cedex Contacts:   Roderick Liddell (telephone: (0)3 88 41 24 92)   Emma Hellyer (telephone: (0)3 90 21 42 15) Fax: (0)3 88 41 27 91   The European Court of Human Rights was set up in Strasbourg in 1959 to deal with alleged violations of the 1950 European Convention on Human Rights. On 1 November 1998 a full-time Court was established, replacing the original two-tier system of a part-time Commission and Court.