14 Nov The principle of ne bis in idem is inapplicable in the case of anti-hooliganism measures in Croatia

The European Court of Human Rights has unanimously declared the application inadmissible in the case of Seražin v. Croatia (application no. 19120/15, 08.11.2018). The case concerned the measures used in Croatia to fight against hooliganism.

Mr Seražin, the applicant, complained under Article 4 of Protocol No. 7 (right not to be tried or punished twice) that he had been prosecuted and convicted twice for causing disorder at a football match in 2012, first in minor offence proceedings and then in proceedings banning him from attending sports events.

The Court reiterated that the principle of ne bis in idem or double jeopardy only applied to a trial and/or conviction in “criminal proceedings”. The Court concluded that Article 4 of Protocol No. 7 did not apply in Mr Seražin’s case because he had not faced a criminal charge in the second set of proceedings. The measure applied in those proceedings had not involved a fine or his being deprived of his liberty, and had essentially been to prevent him from committing further violence, rather than to punish him a second time for the offence of hooliganism. Indeed, in its previous cases involving even more substantial effects on an applicant than those in the present case, such as obliging those belonging to a “mafia-type” group to report once a week to the police or refusing to grant a residence permit to an individual following his conviction, the Court had found that the measures had not amounted to a “criminal” penalty.

References from the official website of the European Court of Human Rights