European Court of Human Rights: : Prezhdarov v. Bulgaria

• Autores: Dirk Voorhoof
• Localización: IRIS: Legal Observations of the European Audiovisual Observatory, ISSN-e 1023-8565, Nº. 10, 2014
• Idioma: francés
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• Resumen

  • In an unexpected judgment, the European Court of Human Rights found a violation of the right to respect for private life, as it considered that the confiscation of computers containing illegal software was not �in accordance with the law�, as required by Article 8 of the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR). Rumen Trifonov Prezhdarov and Anna Aleksandrovna Prezhdarova had started a business in their garage renting computers to clients, without having the necessary software licence for reproduction and distribution of the software and games that were installed on the computers. After a complaint by a manager of a company that distributed computer games, the district prosecutor ordered a police inquiry. Three weeks later the police inspected the applicants� computer club and found that five computers contained computer games. Prezhdarov was invited to present documents, such as purchase invoices or any other evidence of his title to the games. As he failed to do so, the police seized the computers. Several requests to return the computers, due to the fact that they contained personal data, were dismissed. During the further criminal proceedings and trial, the computers remained confiscated. Prezhdarov was convicted for illegally distributing computer games and for illegally reproducing computer programmes and films. He was sentenced to one year and six months� imprisonment, suspended for three years, and ordered to pay a fine in the amount of BGN 4,000.The confiscated computers were not returned after sentencing.