British Columbia Civil Liberties Association v Canada (Attorney General)
Country: CanadaYear: 2018
Court: Supreme Court of British Columbia
Citation: 2018 BCSC 62
Health Topics: Mental health, Prisons
Human Rights: Right to bodily integrity, Right to life
The plaintiffs are two non-profit organizations, the British Columbia Civil Liberties Association and the John Howard Society of Canada. The plaintiffs challenged the constitutionality of sections 31-33 and 37 of the Corrections and Conditional Release Act (CCRA), which authorized administrative segregation of inmates in federal prisons. Section 31 provided that the purpose of administrative segregation …Read more
Nelson v. Livermore
Country: CanadaYear: 2017
Court: Ontario Court of Appeal
Citation: 2017 ONCA 712
Health Topics: Health care and health services, Health systems and financing, Informed consent, Mental health, Prisons, Public safety, Violence
Human Rights: Freedom from torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, Freedom of movement and residence, Right to due process/fair trial, Right to liberty and security of person
Rodney Nelson sought judicial review of his involuntary admission to a psychiatric hospital under Ontario’s Mental Health Act (“MHA”) and an order for his immediate release due to rights infringements. Nelson had a lengthy history of crimes with many violent offences, including sexual offences against women and children. A psychiatrist completed an application for psychiatric …Read more
Mambu v The Democratic Republic of the Congo
Country: Congo, DRCYear: 2016
Court: United Nations Human Rights Committee
Citation: Communication No. 2465/2014; UN Doc. CCPR/C/118/D/2465/2014
Health Topics: Health care and health services, Hospitals, Prisons, Violence
Human Rights: Freedom from torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, Freedom of association, Right of access to information, Right to bodily integrity, Right to due process/fair trial, Right to liberty and security of person, Right to participation
Eugène Diomi Ndongala Nzo Mambu was a national of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and president of the opposition political party in the State, challenging the legitimacy of an election. He alleged that he was abducted in 2012 and held incommunicado for three months and 13 days while being interrogated about his ties with …Read more
Zogo Andela v. Cameroon
Country: CameroonYear: 2016
Court: United Nations Human Rights Committee
Citation: CCPR/C/121/D/2764/2016
Health Topics: Health care and health services, Prisons
Human Rights: Right to due process/fair trial, Right to health
The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) is a treaty by which its parties commit to preserving certain human and political rights. The First Optional Protocol of the Covenant allows for individuals to bring complaints, referred to as communications, against state parties to the Protocol that have allegedly violated articles of the ICCPR. …Read more
Association for the Defence of Human Rights in Romania-Helsinki Committee on Behalf of Ionel Garcea v. Romania
Country: RomaniaYear: 2015
Court: European Court of Human Rights
Citation: Application No. 2959/11
Health Topics: Chronic and noncommunicable diseases, Health care and health services, Infectious diseases, Informed consent, Medical malpractice, Mental health, Prisons
Human Rights: Freedom from torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, Right to life
The applicant was a Romanian NGO known as the Association for the Defence of Human Rights in Romania-Helsinki Committee (“Association”), representing a deceased party, Ionel Garcea. Garcea was a mentally ill prisoner who died in prison. During his sentence, he made a number of complaints about his treatment, with the Association representing him. In June …Read more
Attorney General, et al. v. Dickson Tapela, et al.
Country: BotswanaYear: 2015
Court: Court of Appeal of the Republic of Botswana at Gaborone
Health Topics: Health care and health services, HIV/AIDS, Infectious diseases, Prisons
Human Rights: Freedom from discrimination, Freedom from torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, Right to health, Right to life
Case 1: Tapela and Piye, two Zimbabwean nationals imprisoned in Botswana, both contracted HIV in prison. They were refused antiretroviral treatment for their condition based on a internal directive issued by the national government to all public medical institutions and personnel on March 26, 2004, indicating that testing, assessment, and treatment with antiretroviral and highly active …Read more
Giorgini v. Italy
Country: ItalyYear: 2015
Court: The European Court of Human Rights
Citation: Application No. 20034/11
Health Topics: Aging, Chronic and noncommunicable diseases, Hospitals, Prisons
Human Rights: Freedom from torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment
Ms. Ebe Gigliola Giorgini, the applicant, is an Italian national who was born in 1933. In 2008, the applicant was convicted by the District Court for a number of different offenses, including criminal association, aggravated fraud, and ill-treatment. In 2010, the applicant underwent a second set of criminal proceedings. On June 9, 2010, the Pistoia …Read more
Glossip et al. v. Gross et al.
Country: United StatesYear: 2015
Court: Supreme Court
Citation: 576 U.S. __ (2015)
Health Topics: Prisons
Human Rights: Freedom from torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, Right to due process/fair trial, Right to life
The state of Oklahoma adopted lethal injection as its method of execution for inmates on death row. The injection consisted of a three-drug protocol of (1) sodium thiopental (a barbiturate) to induce unconsciousness, (2) a paralytic agent to inhibit all muscular-skeletal movements, and (3) potassium chloride to induce cardiac arrest. The Supreme Court had previously ruled …Read more
Wong Ho Wing v. Peru
Country: PeruYear: 2015
Court: Inter-American Court of Human Rights
Health Topics: Prisons
Human Rights: Freedom from torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, Right to due process/fair trial, Right to liberty and security of person, Right to life
Wong Ho Wing, a Chinese citizen, was wanted by the judicial authorities of Hong Kong, China for smuggling, money laundering, bribery, and tax evasion. He was arrested at the Lima airport as he attempted to enter Peru from the United States. China and Peru had entered into an extradition treaty in 2001 that obligated both …Read more
Amirov v. Russia
Country: RussiaYear: 2014
Court: The European Court of Human Rights
Citation: [2014] EHCR 51857/13
Health Topics: Chronic and noncommunicable diseases, Health care and health services, Infectious diseases, Medicines, Prisons
Human Rights: Freedom from torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, Right to bodily integrity, Right to health
Amirov is a local politician who was arrested and charged in June 2013 with attempted murder, attempting to organize a terrorist attack, and related charges. Amirov was paralyzed in 1993 and requires constant medical care. Amirov argued that he should not be detained pending trial because of his poor health, age and position in the …Read more