The applicant, Alisa Retunscaia, is a Moldovan national who was born in 1979 and lives in Chişinău (Moldova). In 2003, she was convicted in Romania of a number of drug-related offences and sentenced to six years’ imprisonment. In a second set of criminal proceedings on suspicion of related offences, the charges against her were eventually dismissed in 2005. Relying on Article 3 (prohibition of inhuman or degrading treatment), she complains that she was ill-treated during her pre-trial detention and that the conditions of that detention were inadequate. In particular, she maintains that she was transported to and from the court a number of times in an overcrowded van and that the courthouse cells were dirty and lacked ventilation. Further relying in particular on Article 6 (right to a fair trial), she alleges that she was convicted on the basis of self-incriminating evidence obtained under pressure, that she did not have enough time to prepare her defence and that she did not have adequate legal assistance during the pre-trial investigation.
Citation: Retunscaia v Romania (App no 25251/04) 8 January 2013
(citation from the official press-release prepared by the European Court of Human Rights)