Limits of prolonged detention
The Supreme Court ruling in case no. 1-16-9171/1408 reminds that even a complex criminal case does not give the state the right to keep a person in detention indefinitely.
Our attorney-at-law Kristjan Tuul defended a client whose detention was replaced by electronic monitoring in the Supreme Court. Our firm’s client had been in detention for more than three and a half years during the court proceedings and for more than four and a half years in total.
The Supreme Court found that, even taking into account the specifics of the criminal case, this was a significantly long period. Since the time needed to reach a judgment was not even approximately clear, continuing the detention would have amounted to deprivation of liberty for an indefinite period.
The central message of the ruling is that the continued justification for detention must be substantively reviewed at every stage of the proceedings. Deprivation of liberty must remain proportionate even when the charges are serious and the criminal case is extensive. If detention is no longer strictly necessary, less restrictive measures must be considered, including electronic monitoring.
The ERR coverage can be read here.