CAT/OP/BOL/3 94. The Subcommittee noted that persons deprived of their liberty might remain in these cells for several days or even weeks, which is not their intended purpose. 26 This is chiefly a result of the courts’ large case backlog, which is compounded by mismanagement. The Subcommittee interviewed persons whose release had been authorized but who continued to be held in these cells in inhuman conditions owing to bureaucratic issues (for example, because the court clerk had forgotten to sign the release papers before going on leave). In other cases, detainees were awaiting the outcome of their appeal against pretrial detention orders. 95. Given that the facilities were not designed for long periods of detention, the detainees were not fed or provided with beds. Several detainees slept on the floor; in some cases, two of them shared a straw mattress. Those who did not receive family visits depended on the goodwill of other inmates for their sustenance. The police officers overseeing the facility charged the detainees for letting them use the shower. 96. The Subcommittee is concerned by the fact that medical care is not provided to persons in the holding cells that it visited. The Subcommittee witnessed one detainee suffering the onset of an epileptic seizure — which was met with the indifference by the custody officers — and had to insist that an ambulance be called. 97. The Subcommittee recommends that the State party: (a) Urgently address the case backlog in the courts and determine the reasons why hearings are deferred; (b) Ensure that the maximum allowable duration of detention is not exceeded by regularly inspecting courthouse holding cells and checking police logs on the admission and release of detainees; (c) Ensure that detainees have immediate access to basic necessities, food and medical care. E. The psychiatric hospital 98. The Subcommittee visited the Gregorio Pacheco National Institute of Psychiatry in Sucre, the only public establishment of its kind in the State party. The Institute accommodates 320 persons, including 270 who were admitted in response to situations of neglect and poverty and 8 whose committal had been ordered by the courts after finding the person unfit to stand trial by reason of “mental disability”. The hospital operates as a detoxification centre under the corresponding General Health System guidelines but is not subject to any form of mental health legislation. 99. The Subcommittee was informed that most patients enter the Institute voluntarily, although some had requested institutionalization under pressure from family members who could not care for them. The Subcommittee is concerned about cases in which admission to the psychiatric hospital is a consequence of patients’ socioeconomic status and about the fact that the institution appears to function as a social assistance shelter, without benefit of any specific guidelines for the provision of psychosocial treatment. It is also concerned about the absence of psychosocial support services that could facilitate patients’ transition to living in the community. 100. During its visit, the Subcommittee encountered several persons who had been subjected to physical restraints, tied to chairs in corridors and in some cases bound by their hands and feet. The Subcommittee observed a woman tied by her feet to a chair in one of the inpatient units and a man who had been tied up in the men’s “acute” inpatient unit. The Subcommittee was told about the use of physical restraints in beds and rooms and it confirmed that patients might remain tied up all day long. The Subcommittee viewed medical records that clearly detailed the recurrent use of mechanical restraints such as handcuffs and leg irons, in some cases for prolonged periods of time. 26 GE.18-12272 Las celdas judiciales tienen por objetivo el resguardo de personas por el plazo de horas, para llevarla ante el juez y/o para la obtención del mandamiento de detención en el respectivo centro penitenciario. 17