2006; 64 a request for a response to a complaint filed on November 2, 2006; 65 an incidental plea of illness on November 13, 2006; 66 a complaint on December 4, 2006; 67 one complaint of illness in 2007; 68 several appeals before the Court of Cassation between 2007 and 2008; 69 one complaint on an unknown date before the Ombudsman’s Office; 70 one complaint on an unknown date before the Sentence Execution Court of Alajuela, 71 and four complaints during 2008. 72 In view of the foregoing, since a number of judicial and administrative remedies were filed in which the alleged victims presented various claims, the objection raised by the State regarding the failure to exhaust domestic remedies with respect to the prison conditions of Rafael Rojas Madrigal and Damas Vega Atencio was dismissed. C. Objection regarding lack of due process on the part of the Inter-American Commission, lack of procedural balance and violation of the State’s right to defense C.1. Arguments of the Commission and the parties 61. The State alleged that the Commission committed serious violations of due process, procedural balance and the State’s right of defense in the processing and preparation of the case, which should lead to the procedural invalidation of the case and, therefore, its evident inadmissibility before the Court, based on the following arguments: a) The way in which the case has been joined is unacceptable because the petitions submitted to the Commission deal with a series of different factual aspects, alleged human rights violations other than Article 8(2)(h) of the Convention and the particular circumstances of the petitioners are dissimilar. Therefore, the way of joining the cases without even differentiating the procedural rules, “only creates a cumbersome procedure and an imbalance in the adversarial nature of the case.” The joining of eight 64 In this complaint, he alleged that the inmates received poor food, which was sometimes uncooked, and reiterated the alleged theft of food by prison officers. He also denounced a lack of hygiene in the distribution of food. Cf. Complaint addressed to the Sentence Execution Court, October 2, 2006 (evidence file, folio 20816). 65 He requested the nutrition department of CAI La Reforma to respond to the complaint filed on October 2, 2006 regarding the poor quality of the inmates’ food. Cf. Request for response to complaint before the nutrition department of CAI La Reforma, November 2, 2006 (evidence file, folio 20820). 66 In this complaint he alleged various ailments as a result of his imprisonment. Cf. Report of illness of Damas Vega, November 13, 2006 (evidence file, folio 20847). 67 In this complaint he alleged inhumane treatment received by injured inmates during their transfer to hospital. Cf. Official letter No. 01573-2007-DHR of the Ombudsman’s Office, of March 7, 2007 (evidence file, folios 20890-20893). 68 He alleged that he did not receive adequate medical treatment at the prison. Cf. Decision No. 959-2007 of the Sentence Execution Court, March 22, 2007 (evidence file, folio 20865). 69 Referring to: i) alleged denial of a request for an operation due to his diabetes condition; ii) alleged lack of access to health care and lack of ambulances at the facility, iii) a search in which officers allegedly “touched” his genital area and his belongings were destroyed and stolen.” This is an undisputed fact mentioned in the: i) Merits Report of the Commission (merits file, folio 52); ii) Pleadings and motions brief of the common interveners SPIDH (merits file, folio 518) and iii) Answering Brief of the State (merits file, folio 1523). However, this Court does not have sufficient information on this matter. 70 Alleged that inmates began a hunger strike on December 3, 4 and 5, 2007 to protest against the poor quality of the food, the searches carried out on female visitors, and the “poor” medical care, adding that “on some occasions they were tortured.” Cf. Official letter No. 02645-2008-DHR of the Ombudsman’s Office of March 17, 2008 (evidence file, folios 20903-20905). 71 He alleged that on September 28, 2008, he was locked up in a maximum security cell for 72 hours, without any explanation of the reasons for his transfer and being held incommunicado for more than 20 hours. Report of November 20, 2008 (evidence file, folio 3198). 72 These complaints alleged the incorrect treatment of persons with mental illness and lack of medical attention. Cf. Official letter No. 00674-2010-DHR of the Ombudsman’s Office of January 22, 2010 (evidence file, folios 20911-20916). 23