R (Hurst) v London Northern District Coroner
[2007] UKHL 13
Ratio Decidendi
Article 2 ECHR imposes a procedural obligation on the state to carry out an effective investigation into deaths where agents of the state are or may be responsible. This obligation requires an investigation that is capable of establishing the facts, identifying those responsible, and determining whether the state's substantive obligations under Article 2 were complied with.
Hechos
Robert Hurst was killed by Michael Palin, who was known to mental health services. Palin had previously been involved in a violent incident and had been released from hospital before the killing. Hurst's family argued that the inquest should investigate broader circumstances, including whether the mental health services had failed in their duty to protect life under Article 2.
Resumen de la sentencia
The House of Lords held that Article 2 ECHR requires an enhanced investigation (going beyond the traditional who, when, where, and how) where there is arguable reason to believe the state may have failed to protect life. However, the majority held that the obligation applied only to deaths occurring after the Human Rights Act 1998 came into force (2 October 2000), and Hurst's death predated this.
Citas clave
"The state's procedural obligation under Article 2 requires that there should be some form of effective official investigation when individuals have been killed as a result of the use of force."
— Lord Brown
Tratamiento posterior
Applied in subsequent cases on Article 2 inquests. The temporal limitation has been maintained.