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Case Note - Retrospective Preventive Detention in Germany: A Comment on the ECHR Decision Haidn v. Germany of 13 January 2011

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 March 2019

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In four judgements of 13 January 2011 the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in Strasbourg returned to the issues raised in its earlier jurisprudence regarding preventive detention (“Sicherungsverwahrung”) under German criminal law. In its decision of 17 December 2009, M. v. Germany, the Court had held that the German Criminal Law's retroactive extension of confinement in preventive detention failed to meet the requirement of lawful detention “after conviction” under Art. 5 § 1 (a) of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (hereinafter “the Convention”), and violates the prohibition of retroactivity (Art. 7 § 1 of the Convention). The articles read as follows:

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Developments
Copyright
Copyright © 2011 by German Law Journal GbR 

References

1 For details see Grischa Merkel, Incompatible Contrasts? - Preventive Detention in Germany and the European Convention on Human Rights, 11 German Law Journal 1046 (2010), at 1050: http://www.germanlawjournal.com/index.php?pageID=11&artID=1283.Google Scholar

2 ECHR, 5th Section, App. no. 19359/04.Google Scholar

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7 Pursuant to § 1 of Article 66b of the German Criminal Code, in force until January 2011, the court may order preventive detention retrospectively, in particular, if, prior to the end of a term of imprisonment imposed on conviction for crimes punishable with at least one year's imprisonment against life, limb, personal liberty or sexual self-determination or for offences listed in Article 66 § 3, evidence comes to light which indicates that the convicted person presents a significant danger to the general public. An overall assessment of the convicted offender's personality, his offences and additionally his development during detention must have shown that he was very liable to commit serious offences by which the victims would be seriously harmed; moreover, the other conditions listed in Article 66 of the Criminal Code had to be met (see supra, note 6, para. 48). Persuant to § 1 of Article 66 of the German Criminal Code, in force until January 2011, the sentencing court may, at the time of the offender's conviction, order his preventive detention in addition to his prison sentence, if someone is sentenced for an intentional offence to at least two years’ imprisonment and if the following further conditions are satisfied. Firstly, the perpetrator must have been sentenced twice already, to at least one year's imprisonment in each case, for intentional offences committed prior to the new offence. Secondly, the perpetrator must previously have served a prison sentence or must have been detained pursuant to a measure of correction and prevention for at least two years. Thirdly, a comprehensive assessment of the perpetrator and his acts must reveal that, owing to his propensity to commit serious offences, notably those which seriously harm their victims physically or mentally or which cause serious economic damage, the perpetrator presents a danger to the general public (see supra, note 6, para. 38).Google Scholar

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