Vasilev v. Bulgaria

FOURTH SECTION

Application no. 19668/05 by Boris Hristov VASILEV against Bulgaria

The European Court of Human Rights (Fourth Section), sitting on 31 May 2011 as a Committee composed of:

Lech Garlicki, President, Zdravka Kalaydjieva, Vincent A. De Gaetano, judges, and Fatoş Aracı, Deputy Section Registrar,

Having regard to the above application lodged on 11 May 2005,

Having deliberated, decides as follows:

THE FACTS

The applicant, Mr Boris Hristov Vasilev, is a Bulgarian national who was born in 1921 and lives in Sofia. The Bulgarian Government (“the Government”) were represented by their Agent, Mrs M. Dimova, of the Ministry of Justice.

The applicant complained under Article 6 § 1 of the Convention about the length and fairness of the criminal proceedings for murder against him. He further complained that his pre-trial detention had been unlawful and that the conditions of his detention had been poor (Articles 3 and 5 § 1).

The applicant’s complaint concerning the length of the criminal proceedings against him was communicated to the Government on 30 November 2010. At the same time the Court initiated a friendly settlement procedure and invited the applicant to state whether he accepted the proposed terms. The letter was sent to the correspondence address designated by the applicant, but no response was received.

By letter dated 4 February 2011, sent by registered post, the applicant was notified that the period allowed for submission of the friendly settlement declaration had expired on 4 January 2011 and that no extension of time had been requested. The applicant was invited to inform the Court by 4 March 2011 whether he still wished to pursue the application. His attention was drawn to Article 37 § 1 (a) of the Convention, which provides that the Court may strike a case out of its list of cases where the circumstances lead to the conclusion that the applicant does not intend to pursue the application. The applicant received this letter on 16 February 2011. However, no response has been received.

No further correspondence has been received from the applicant whose last communication to the Court dates back to 20 June 2005.

THE LAW

The Court considers that, in these circumstances, the applicant may be regarded as no longer wishing to pursue his application, within the meaning of Article 37 § 1 (a) of the Convention. Furthermore, in accordance with Article 37 § 1 in fine , the Court finds no special circumstances regarding respect for human rights as defined in the Convention and its Protocols which require the continued examination of the case.

In view of the above, it is appropriate to strike the case out of the list.

For these reasons, the Court unanimously

Decides to strike the application out of its list of cases.

Fatoş Aracı Lech Garlicki Deputy Registrar President