Imprisonment of the Elderly and Death in Custody

Over the past few decades, there has been a sharp increase in the number of elderly prisoners, and hence a rise in the number of prisoners dying in custody. In this book, Khechumyan questions whether respect for human dignity would justify releasing older and seriously ill prisoners. He also examines the normative justifications which could limit the administration of the imprisonment of the elderly and seriously ill. Khechumyan argues that factors such as a prisoner's age and health could alter the balance between the legitimate goals of punishment, rendering the continued imprisonment 'grossly disproportionate'. To address these issues, Articles 3 and 5 of the European Convention of Human Rights are extensively examined. This book is a valuable resource for academics, researchers and policy-makers working in the fields of Criminal Justice, Human Rights Law, and Gerontology.

Aleksandr Khechumyan is a researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Foreign and International Criminal Law, Germany. He holds an LL.M. degree in International Human Rights Law from the University of Essex, UK, and Dr.jur. degree from the University of Freiburg, Germany. Khechumyan has extensive practical experience working in both governmental and non-governmental sectors. He has published articles in such journals as European Human Rights Law Review, European Journal on Criminal Policy and Research, Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies and Management, and International Journal of Comparative and Applied Criminal Justice.

1. Introduction; 2. Human Rights Limits on Continued Imprisonment; 3. Extending the Right to Review to Elderly and Seriously Ill Prisoners; 4. Substantive and Procedural Elements of Review of Continued Imprisonment of Elderly and Seriously Ill Prisoners; 5. Compliance with Substantive and Procedural Requirements of the Right to Review under Article 3 of the ECHR: the Case of Elderly and Seriously Ill Prisoners; 6. Conclusion