Date of complaint:15 January 2002 The Committee against Torture, established under article 17 of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, Meeting on 5 May 2004, Having concluded its consideration of complaint No. 202/2002, submitted to the Committee against Torture by Ms. Helle Jensen, under article 22 of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, Having taken into account all information made available to it by the complainant, her counsel and the State party, Adopts the following decision on admissibility. 1.The complainant is Ms. Helle Jensen, a Danish citizen, currently residing in North Western Zealand. She claims to be a victim of a violation of articles 1, paragraph 1, 12 and 16 of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. She is represented by counsel. The facts as presented 2.1On 29 April 1998, the complainant was arrested in her home in North Western Zealand and charged with smuggling cigarettes, under section 289 of the Danish Criminal Code, and section 73 (3), subsection (2), of the Danish Customs Act. She was later also indicted with “attempted participation” in agreeing to “receive and distribute” hash, under sections 191 (2), subsection (1), and section 21 of the Criminal Code. 2.2On 30 April 1998, the complainant was brought before a judge of the District Court of Kalundborg. Pursuant to a request by the Chief Constable, the Court ordered the complainant’s detention and solitary confinement, pursuant to section 762 (1) (iii) and 770 (a) of the Administration of Justice Act (hereinafter “the Act”). The Court considered that she should be held in solitary confinement, as there were reasonable grounds to suspect that she was guilty as charged and would attempt to obstruct the investigation by contacting others involved. The pre trial detention period was set to expire on 26 May 1998, and the solitary confinement period on 12 May 1998. On 4 May 1998, the High Court of Eastern Denmark upheld the order on the grounds stated by the District Court. 2.3On 11 May 1998, the District Court considered whether to continue the complainant’s solitary confinement. Counsel submitted that the measure was disproportionately hard, as the complainant had three children - twins of 3 years and a child of 7. The District Court ordered her continued detention in solitary confinement until 26 May 1998, as the grounds for such confinement continued to apply. On 13 May 1998, the High Court upheld the order on the grounds stated by the District Court. 2.4On 26 May 1998, the District Court considered whether to prolong pre-trial detention and solitary confinement. Counsel objected to continued detention, as “the detainee’s personal health has deteriorated substantially during her pre-trial detention from 30 April 1998 until now, which is confirmed by the detainee’s condition and the two medical records”. The District Court ordered that she remain in solitary confinement until 23 June 1998, “on the grounds of the complexity of the case, and as some of the persons involved are still at large …”. On 28 May 1998, the High Court upheld the District Court’s order. 2.5On 28 May 1998, at the request of the complainant’s counsel, the prison doctor reported on her state of health. The doctor had treated the complainant on 15 and 28 May 1998, and the emergency service physician, a crisis therapist, on 22 May 1998. The report concluded that the complainant appeared to be “close to a psychotic breakdown … The inmate’s condition can fully be explained as the result of incarceration and solitary confinement. I most urgently recommend that solitary confinement be discontinued promptly and that it is considered whether alternative placement can be found that will enable the inmate to have more association with her children. I find the inmate’s health threatened and will monitor her closely”. This report was produced in the High Court, when it considered the complainant’s appeal of the District Court’s order of 26 May 1998. On 29 May 1998, the complainant was admitted to the County Hospital of Nykøbing, Zealand. She discharged herself the next day, as she wanted to be near her children. 2.6On 18 June 1998, the complainant’s solitary confinement was terminated. On 19 June 1998, the prison physician forwarded another report to the Chief Constable of Kalundborg. It stated, “it is of the utmost importance that Ms. Jensen’s solitary confinement is terminated; this should on health grounds have been done already, and I understand that the solitary confinement was terminated yesterday evening”. Finally, he refers to a report of the same date from a psychotherapist, in which he “must clearly express Ms. Jensen’s need not only for getting out of solitary confinement, but also for being released from prison during the further investigation, until the final judgement. Otherwise, all parties involved must anticipate an unnecessary spontaneous psychotic condition that will affect Ms. Jensen for the rest of her life”. These reports were produced during a hearing before the District Court on 22 June 1998. The Court established that the complainant was no longer held in solitary confinement but ordered the extension of the pre-trial detention period until 20 July 1998. It also ordered, with the complainant’s consent, that she should be examined as an outpatient by a forensic psychiatrist during the rest of her stay in prison. 2.7On 9 July 1998, the consultant of the Department of Forensic Psychiatry of the County Hospital of Nykøbing, Zealand forwarded his opinion on the complainant’s mental health, concluding that “the only proper treatment would be to unite [the complainant] with her children as soon as possible, either with her parents or in one of the institutions of the Prison and Probation Service, and to give her adequate psychotherapeutic help in this environment”. On 14 July 1998, this report was produced before the District Court, which decided to extend the complainant’s pre-trial detention but also decided, with her consent, that she be placed in alternative detention at the Lyng Halfway House of the Prison and Probation Service, together with her three children. She was transferred there on 17 July 1998 and remained in this facility until her trial on 29 October 1998.