Annual Report 2014 of the National Preventive Mechanism
centres. Nevertheless, these facilities must meet certain criteria in the treatment afforded
to detainees and should also meet certain elementary material requirements.
76. Special attention should be given to the time for which a person deprived of liberty
remains under policy custody and it should be ensured that the detention in police
facilities, before release or committal to trial of the detainee, is not extended for
more time than necessary to clarify the purportedly criminal facts for which that
person was detained.
With regard to the committal of detainees, the NPM considers it necessary to remind
that the Constitutional Court deemed the practice of bringing detainees before the
judge at the first hour in the morning of the day after completion of the police action,
extending the detention for longer than necessary, violates article 17.2 of the Spanish
Constitution. This does not mean that the existence of protocols for cooperation
between the courts and the Security Forces and Corps, intended to organisation the
transfer of detainees, is incompatible with the constitutional requirement not to prolong
the detention of citizens unduly, since both provisions may reasonable coexist,
weighing up in each case the particular existing circumstances.
77. In respect of the medical assistance provided to persons deprived of liberty, the
NPM expresses its concern with what has been observed at many of the visits made,
at which it has been verified that the medical reports that are issued are delivered to
the public officers accompanying the detainee and kept with the records of the
investigation.
It is deemed necessary, when the healthcare services provide medical attention for
disease to a detainee, for the medical assistance reports be delivered only to the party
concerned, recording in a separate form the medical prescription and treatment
ordered, if appropriate, by the medical practitioner, in addition to any measures that
may be required in the case of infectious-contagious diseases.
In the same context, in those cases in which medical attention is given and the
existence of injuries is observed in the patient when healthcare is provided, the
“injuries report” issued should not include personal data such as health
information and previous clinical record of the patient.
Lastly, it must be pointed out that medical and injury reports may only be furnished
to the Security Forces and Corps meeting the requirements established in
articles 11.2d or 22.2 of Organic Act 15/1999, of 13 December, personal data
protection act, pursuant to the criterion issued by the Spanish Data Protection Agency
in its legal report 0133/2008, i.e.: «a) It must have been duly evidenced that it is
necessary to obtain the data for the prevention of an actual serious damage to the
public health or for repression of criminal infringements and, in the case of particularly
protected data, they should be absolutely necessary for the purposes of a specific
investigation. b) The request should be concrete and specific. c) The request should be
fully founded. d) In compliance with article 22.4 of the LOPD, the data must be
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