The Soering Case
European Court of Human Rights
Judgment of 7 July 1989, Series A, Vol. 161
Jens Soering (defendant), an 18-year-old German citizen with evidence of mental health issues, was charged by the United States with two Virginia capital murders and arrested in the United Kingdom pending extradition. The U.K., having abolished the death penalty, sought assurances against its imposition, and Virginia's prosecutor agreed only to inform the sentencing judge of the U.K.'s wishes, not to forgo seeking death. After the U.K. Secretary of State ordered extradition, Soering petitioned the European Court of Human Rights, arguing that Virginia's death row conditions -- which he would face if convicted -- would violate Article 3's prohibition on inhuman or degrading treatment.
Whether Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights applies to extradition decisions and can hold the extraditing state responsible for inhuman treatment the person would face in the receiving state.