The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) passed judgment in the case of Lari versus the Republic of Moldova. Applicant Ana Lari alleged that the investigation into her daughter’s death had not been effective, IPN reports.
In June 1999 the applicant’s seventeen-year-old daughter was found dead in the office of a gas company. The next day, a forensic medical report concluded that the girl’s death had resulted from medicinal intoxication. On the victim’s body, there were also found an ecchymosis on her left leg and a hemorrhage on the anal mucous membrane and on the vestibule of vagina, caused by a blunt and hard object at least several but not more than 30-40 minutes before death.
In October 1999 criminal proceedings were instituted to investigate the crime of incitement to commit suicide. In December 1999 the Centru District prosecutor closed the criminal investigation, finding that this was a fatal accident as the girl, being very worried about her unexplained absence from home that night, tried to avoid punishment from her parents by getting hospitalized with "poisoning", but due to the negligent use of medication, had died of an overdose.
In 2005 the applicant complained to the Prosecutor General’s Office that she had never been informed about the prosecutor’s decision of December 1999 and had found out about it only in December 2004. She argued that the investigation had been superficial and inefficient, and requested that the investigation be reopened. She alleged in particular that the investigation had essentially pursued the suicide theory and had failed to establish the circumstances which had resulted in the lesions on her daughter’s body or the time when the medication could have been ingested.
In June 2012 the investigation was resumed on the ground that “the reasons for suspending the investigation had disappeared and it became possible to conduct certain investigative actions”. Later the same month, the applicant complained to the Prosecutor General about the inefficient investigation and about not having been informed of its progress. She obtained the answer that the investigation is still pending and she will be further informed once a decision is taken on the case. But in August 2012 the Prosecutor General’s Office suspended the investigation on the same grounds as before. The other complaints submitted later by the applicant remained unanswered.
The applicant complained to the ECHR that the criminal investigation into the circumstances of her daughter’s death had not been effective and prompt. The Court found that there was a procedural violation of Article 2 of the Convention and awarded the applicant €12,000 euros in respect of non‑pecuniary damage and €2,100 for the costs and expenses incurred before the Court.
