Norway’s Supreme Court (Høyesterett) has rejected mass-murderer Anders Behring Breivik’s appeal that his prison conditions have been too strict and undignified. Now his attorney says he’ll make a last-ditch appeal to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.
Breivik was convicted in 2012 and sentenced to 21 years of special custody that can be extended, after he killed 77 people in twin attacks on the government in Oslo and on the island of Utøya on July 22, 2011. He has been held at two of Norway’s high-security prisons, in specially designed cells equipped with three rooms and private bath because he’s also being held in isolation for his own safety.
Breivik, however, contends the isolation, control of his communication with the outside world, use of handcuffs and full body searches are too extensive and violate his human rights. A lower court initially agreed, setting off a storm of controversy, but the state won a full victory at the appeals court level earlier this year.
Norwegian Broadcasting (NRK) reported on Thursday that Norway’s highest court has now refused to hear his appeal of the appeals court ruling, claiming that no portion of Breivik’s appeal can yield any ruling different than that set by the appeals court (Borgarting lagmannsrett). The Supreme Court also noted that it can’t see any reason to raise questions about how it has interpreted the European Convention on Human Rights either, but Breivik’s attorney Øystein Storrvik said his client will nonetheless apply to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg to hear a final appeal.
newsinenglish.no staff
