REPORT No. 40/17
CASE 12.197
REPORT ON MERITS
RAMÓN ROSENDO CARRANZA ALARCÓN
ECUADOR
MAY 23, 2017
I.
SUMMARY
1.
On April 5, 1998, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (hereinafter the
"Commission," “Inter-American Commission,” or "IACHR") received a petition lodged by José Leonardo
Obando Laaz (hereinafter "the petitioner") alleging that the Republic of Ecuador was responsible for the
unlawful and arbitrary detention of Ramón Rosendo Carranza Alarcón in November 1994 by State agents, as
well as for his unreasonably long pretrial detention in the framework of an investigation and criminal
proceeding for the crime of murder.
2.
The State argued that Mr. Carranza’s arrest and the length of his pretrial detention were
consistent with the provisions of its domestic system of laws and international standards. It held that Mr.
Carranza had access to an array of adequate and effective remedies in order to challenge any supposed
violation of his rights.
3.
Having analyzed the available information, the Commission has concluded that the State is
responsible for violation of the rights to personal liberty and a fair trial recognized in Articles 7(1), 7(3), 7(5),
8(1) and 8(2) of the American Convention, taken in conjunction with the obligations established in Articles
1(1) and 2 of that instrument, to the detriment of Ramón Rosendo Carranza Alarcón.
II.
PROCEEDINGS BEFORE THE COMMISSION
4.
The IACHR received the original petition on April 5, 1998. A detailed account of the
processing of the petition up to the decision on admissibility is found in Report on Admissibility 154/11
adopted on November 2, 2011.1
5.
On November 10, 2011, the Commission notified the parties of that report and placed itself
at their disposal with a view to reaching a friendly settlement. On June 30, 2014, the petitioners informed the
IACHR that they had no additional comments to submit. The State submitted its additional comments on
merits on July 15, 2016.
III.
POSITIONS OF THE PARTIES
A.
The petitioner
6.
The petitioner alleged that the Republic of Ecuador was responsible for the unlawful and
arbitrary detention of Ramón Rosendo Carranza Alarcón in November 1994 by State agents, as well as for his
unreasonably long pretrial detention in the framework of his criminal prosecution for murder. The petitioner
said that Mr. Carranza was kept in pretrial detention until his conviction in December 1998. The petitioner
also claimed that the State was responsible for the violation of Mr. Carranza’s physical integrity due to the fact
that, despite having tuberculosis while in detention, he did not receive proper medical attention. The details
about the facts and domestic proceedings will be addressed in the “Proven Facts” section of this report, based
on information provided by both parties.
1
IACHR, Report on Admissibility No. 154/11, Case 12.197, Ramón Rosendo Carranza Alarcón, Ecuador, November 2, 2011.
1