Commentary on Judgment No. 21495 of 20/12/2022: Compensation Remedy and Minimum Space in Prison

Judgment No. 21495 of December 20, 2022, by the Court of Cassation represents an important milestone in Italian jurisprudence concerning detention conditions and respect for human rights. In particular, the Court ruled on the compensatory remedies provided for by art. 35-ter of the prison regulations, in relation to the prohibition of inhuman and degrading treatment, as enshrined in art. 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).

Context of the Judgment

The case involved the Ministry of Justice as the defendant and raised crucial issues regarding the determination of the minimum individual space to be guaranteed to detainees. The Court established that to avoid the risk of inhuman treatment, a minimum space of three square meters per detainee must be ensured. However, a fundamental aspect that emerged from the judgment concerns the computability of the space occupied by single beds.

01 President: MOGINI STEFANO. Rapporteur: FILOCAMO FULVIO. Rapporteur: FILOCAMO FULVIO. Defendant: MINISTRY OF JUSTICE. (Conf.) Annuls with referral, TRIBUNAL OF SUPERVISION BARI, 15/02/2022 563000 INSTITUTIONS OF PREVENTION AND PENALTY (PRISON REGULATIONS) - Compensatory remedy under art. 35-ter of prison regulations - Prohibition of inhuman or degrading treatment - Determination of minimum intramural individual space - Space occupied by single beds - Computability - Exclusion - Reasons. In the matter of compensatory remedies pursuant to art. 35-ter of prison regulations against detainees or inmates, for the purpose of determining the minimum individual space of three square meters to be ensured so that the State does not incur a violation of the prohibition of inhuman or degrading treatment established by art. 3 of the ECHR, as interpreted by the case law of the ECtHR, the space occupied by the single bed of the restricted person must not be computed, as it is an item of furniture that is generally fixed to the floor, not susceptible, due to its bulk or weight, to easy movement from one point to another within the cell and such as to compromise the easy movement of the aforementioned person within it.

Implications of the Judgment

The decision of the Court of Cassation has significant implications for the Italian prison system. It underscores the importance of ensuring adequate space for detainees, in compliance with European regulations. In particular, the exclusion of the space occupied by beds from the calculation of the minimum required space responds to the need to ensure a detention environment that respects human dignity and does not constitute a form of inhuman treatment.

• Respecting the minimum space per detainee is fundamental to avoiding sanctions from the European Court of Human Rights.
• The Ministry of Justice must adopt measures to improve detention conditions.
• Compliance with European regulations is essential to guarantee the rights of detainees.

Conclusions

In conclusion, judgment No. 21495 of December 20, 2022, represents a step forward in the protection of detainees' rights in Italy. It not only clarifies the methods for calculating the minimum individual space but also reaffirms the commitment of the Italian legal system to respect the fundamental principles of dignity and humanity. The competent authorities are now called upon to implement what has been established by the Court, ensuring that detention conditions comply with European standards and human rights, thereby avoiding the risk of inhuman and degrading treatment.