Overcrowding and inhuman or degrading detention conditions: ten years after the Muršić v. Croatia judgment

Abstract

Abstract: Overcrowding and inhuman or degrading detention conditions: ten years after the Muršić v. Croatia judgment - This article examines the evolution of the case law of the European Court of Human Rights on prison overcrowding and inhuman or degrading treatment, ten years after the landmark Grand Chamber judgment in Muršić v. Croatia (2016). Firstly, the study traces the path from the Court's earliest interventions to the emergence of three interpretive conflicts concerning: the consequences of failing to meet the minimum floor space requirement, the identification of the relevant spatial threshold, and the method for calculating available space. Secondly, the analysis turns to the principles established by the Grand Chamber and assesses their consolidation in the subsequent decade of case law. The analysis extends to factors beyond the spatial dimension such as the adequacy of sleeping arrangements, exposure to passive smoking, and privacy in the use of sanitary facilities and it highlights the "holistic" yet not always consistent nature of the Court's assessment. Particular attention is devoted to the practical significance of this case law within the Italian legal order, in light of the dynamic reference contained in Article 35-ter of the National Penitentiary Act (Law no. 354 of 1975).

Keywords: Prison; Overcrowding; Inhuman or degrading detention conditions; Muršić