CHIPERI AND OTHERS v. ROMANIA

2026-05-21T00:00:00
  FOURTH SECTION DECISION Application no. 12492/21 Petru-Marius CHIPERI against Romania and 10 other applications (see appended table) The European Court of Human Rights (Fourth Section), sitting on 21 May 2026 as a Committee composed of:  Anne Louise Bormann, President,  András Jakab,  Corinna Wissels, judges, and Viktoriya Maradudina, Acting Deputy Section Registrar, Having regard to the above applications against Romania lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) on the various dates indicated in the appended table, Having regard to the observations submitted by the respondent Government and the observations in reply submitted by the applicants, Having deliberated, decides as follows: FACTS AND PROCEDUREThe list of applicants is set out in the appended table. The applicants’ complaints under Article 3 of the Convention concerning the inadequate conditions of detention were communicated to the Romanian Government (“the Government”). The applicants also raised additional complaints under other Convention provisions. THE LAW   Joinder of the applicationsHaving regard to the similar subject matter of the applications, the Court finds it appropriate to examine them jointly in a single decision.    Complaints under Article 3 of the Convention (inadequate conditions of detention)The applicants complained principally of the inadequate conditions of their detention. They relied on Article 3 of the Convention. Having examined all the material before it, the Court considers that for the reasons stated below, the present complaints are inadmissible. The Government argued that the applicants had failed to exhaust the available effective remedies for their complaints about the inadequate conditions of their detention, as the complaint with the judge responsible for supervising the deprivation of liberty (plângerea în fața judecătorului de supraveghere a privării de libertate), provided for by Article 56 of Law no. 254/2013, had become an effective remedy for grievances similar to those of the applicants. The Court recalls that in Văscăuțanu v. Romania (dec.), no. 10120/23, §§ 47–59, 18 November 2025, it held that the remedy, which consists of lodging a complaint with the judge responsible for supervising the deprivation of liberty (plângerea în fața judecătorului de supraveghere a privării de libertate), provided for by Article 56 of Law no. 254/2013, constituted, as of 6 April 2023, an effective remedy enabling individuals who allege that they are being held in inadequate conditions of detention to put an end to their situation that they denounced as being contrary to Article 3 of the Convention. In light of all the material in its possession, the Court observes that the applicants, who allege that they are being held in inadequate conditions of detention, did not indicate that they pursued the available remedy before the domestic courts or that the completed the process of exhaustion (see Văscăuțanu, cited above, § 65). Therefore, their complaints in that regard must be dismissed for failure to exhaust domestic remedies. The Government also invoked other grounds of inadmissibility to argue that the present complaints must be rejected. Since it has already upheld the Government’s objection on the non-exhaustion of domestic remedies, the Court does not consider it necessary to examine further any other arguments raised by the Government. In view of the above, the Court finds that the applicants’ complaints concerning the periods set out in the appended table must be rejected for failure to exhaust the domestic remedy laid down in Article 56 of Law no. 254/2013, in accordance with Article 35 §§ 1 and 4 of the Convention.    Remaining complaintsSome applicants also raised other complaints under various articles of the Convention. The Court has examined the applications listed in the appended table and considers that, in the light of all the material in its possession and in so far as the matters complained of are within its competence, these complaints either do not meet the admissibility criteria set out in Articles 34 and 35 of the Convention or do not disclose any appearance of a violation of the rights and freedoms enshrined in the Convention or the Protocols thereto. It follows that this part of the applications must be rejected in accordance with Article 35 § 4 of the Convention. For these reasons, the Court, unanimously, Decides to join the applications; Declares the applications inadmissible. Done in English and notified in writing on 11 June 2026.    Viktoriya Maradudina Anne Louise Bormann  Acting Deputy Registrar President   APPENDIX List of applications raising complaints under Article 3 of the Convention (inadequate conditions of detention) No. Application no. Date of introduction Applicant’s name Year of birth Facility Start and end date Duration    12492/21 24/03/2021 Petru-Marius CHIPERI 1990   Bacău, Iași, Gherla, Arad, Vaslui, Botoșani Prisons; Târgu Ocna Re-education Centre 30/09/2011 to 04/12/2012 1 year(s) and 2 month(s) and 5 day(s)   Bacău, Iași, Gherla, Arad, Vaslui, Botoșani Prisons; Târgu Ocna Re-education Centre 15/12/2016 to 03/09/2019 2 year(s) and 8 month(s) and 20 day(s)   Bacău, Iași, Gherla, Arad, Vaslui, Botoșani Prisons; Târgu Ocna Re-education Centre 29/10/2019 pending More than 6 year(s) and 3 month(s) and 28 day(s)    18044/21 16/07/2021 Petrică-Valentin ANGHEL 1993   Arad and Drobeta-Turnu Severin Prisons 17/09/2019 pending More than 6 year(s) and 5 month(s) and 9 day(s)    29156/21 23/11/2021 Florin-Daniel BIBIRE 1982   Bacău County Police Station; Bacău, Miercurea Ciuc, Oradea, Mărgineni, Aiud, Tulcea, Iaşi, Bucharest-Rahova and Vaslui Prisons; Târgu Ocna and Dej Prison Hospitals 08/10/2017 pending More than 8 year(s) and 4 month(s) and 18 day(s)          53700/21 22/02/2022 Gheorghiţă DULCIANU 1980   Iaşi County Police Station; Iaşi, Bucharest-Jilava, Bucharest-Rahova, Arad and Gherla Prisons; Bucharest-Rahova, Bucharest-Jilava and Colibași Prison Hospitals 12/01/2005 pending More than 21 year(s) and 1 month(s) and 14 day(s)    57767/21 28/04/2022 Florin MELANIA 1979   Giurgiu, Arad and Bucharest-Rahova Prisons 23/09/2020 pending More than 5 year(s) and 5 month(s) and 3 day(s)    39978/22 04/08/2022 Cătălin ANDREI 1980   Bacău and Arad Prisons 21/08/2020 pending More than 5 year(s) and 6 month(s) and 5 day(s)    46655/22 09/02/2023 Adrian MIHAI 1980   Iași and Botoșani Prisons 05/05/2022 pending More than 2 year(s) and 1 month(s) and 3 day(s)    46834/22 10/02/2023 Teodor-Narcis BOGDAN 1992   Mioveni and Craiova Prisons 23/10/2019 pending More than 6 year(s) and 4 month(s) and 3 day(s)    47645/22 28/11/2022 Cornel-Toma FRUMOS 1971   Bistrița County Police Station; Bistrița and Gherla Prisons 01/04/2019 pending More than 6 year(s) and 10 month(s) and 25 day(s)  49058/22 31/03/2023 Tudorel-Marian ADAM-TĂNĂSACHE 1985   Vaslui County Police Station; Bacău, Galați, Târgu-Ocna, Mărgineni, Craiova and Giurgiu Prisons 03/12/2019 pending More than 6 year(s) and 2 month(s) and 23 day(s)        54971/22 25/01/2023 Constantin-Roberto POPOVICI 1994   Bacău, Iași and Giurgiu Prisons 12/12/2019 to 22/01/2020 1 month(s) and 11 day(s)   Bacău, Iași and Giurgiu Prisons 21/01/2021 pending More than 5 year(s) and 1 month(s) and 5 day(s)