Court dismisses prisoners‘ pleas of inhumane conditions

The Lausanne-based Federal Court has refused to consider the pleas of five prisoners who claimed they were subjected to inhumane conditions during detention. They wanted reduced sentences and financial compensation for their ordeal.  In a decision published on Wednesday, Switzerland’s highest court decided that the prisoners at the Champ-Dollon prison in Geneva canton had not acted in good faith, as they had raised the issue of mistreatment only after they were handed their sentence.  The prisoners, sentenced to up to four years in prison, wanted a reduction in sentence up to 660 days and compensation of up to CHF66,000 ($67,805) each for being placed in custody under “unlawful pre-trial conditions” for as long as 220 days. Complaints raised including lack of space (less than four square metres) and long periods behind bars without access to outdoor space.  While handing down the verdict on July 18, the court added that it did not completely exclude granting a ...