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established that detention may become arbitrary if, while underway, acts occur that can be
attributed to the State that are incompatible with respect for the human rights of the detainee. 342
In the instant case, it is evidence that the methods used by the law enforcement agents who
detained, transferred and entered the eleven women victims in this case into the prison were
disproportionate and incompatible with respect for the fundamental rights recognized in the
Convention, and this constituted an additional factor in the arbitrary nature of their detentions.
244. Based on the foregoing considerations, the Court concludes that the deprivation of the
personal liberty of the eleven women in this case was carried out in the context of a collective
detention that was unlawful and arbitrary, because: (i) it was not in keeping with the causes
established by law, or executed pursuant to the procedures established by law; (ii) it did not
include an individualization of their conduct in order to prove a reasonable suspicion that they had
taken part in criminal acts or committed any other act that was a cause for deprivation of liberty
established by domestic law, and (iii) it was not proved that the detentions were necessary or
proportionate to guarantee a purpose permitted by the Convention.
245. Based on all the above, the Court concludes that the detentions of the eleven women
victims in this case, in addition to being unlawful, were also arbitrary. Consequently, the State
also violated Article 7(1) and 7(3) of the Convention, in relation to Article 1(1) of this instrument,
to the detriment of Yolanda Muñoz Diosdada, Norma Aidé Jiménez Osorio, María Patricia Romero
Hernández, Mariana Selvas Gómez, Georgina Edith Rosales Gutiérrez, Ana María Velasco
Rodríguez, Suhelen Gabriela Cuevas Jaramillo, Bárbara Italia Méndez Moreno, María Cristina
Sánchez Hernández, Angélica Patricia Torres Linares and Claudia Hernández Martínez.
B.2 Notification of the reasons for the detention and the right of defense
246. Regarding the right recognized in Article 7(4) of the American Convention, this Court has
indicated that this refers to two guarantees for the individual who is being detained: (i) oral or
written information on the reasons for the detention, and (ii) notification of the charges, which
must be in writing. The information on the “reasons” for the detention must be provided “at the
time of the arrest,” and this is a mechanism to avoid unlawful or arbitrary detentions at the very
moment of the deprivation of liberty and, also, to ensure the individual’s right of defense. In
addition, this Court has indicated that the agent who makes the arrest must provide information,
in simple, jargon-free language of the fundamental facts and legal grounds on which the
detention is based and that the provisions of Article 7(4) of the Convention are not met if only the
legal grounds are mentioned. If the persons is not adequately informed of the reasons for the
detention, including the facts and their legal grounds, he does not know the charges against
which he must defend himself and, consequently, the judicial control is illusory. 343
247. The Court notes that, in this case, the facts concerning the obligation to notify promptly and
in writing the charges against the eleven women victims in this case are related to the obligation
to inform the accused of the charges against him or her, included in Article 8(2)(b). In this
regard, this Court has established that this subparagraph determines the need to provide “prior
notification in detail to the accused of the charges against him.” The Court has indicated that this
Cf. Case of López Álvarez v. Honduras. Merits, reparations and costs. Judgment of February 1, 2006. Series C No.
141, para. 66.
342
Cf. Case of Yvon Neptune v. Haiti. Merits, reparations and costs. Judgment of May 6, 2008. Series C No. 180, para.
109, and Case of Espinoza Gonzáles v. Peru. Preliminary objections, merits, reparations and costs. Judgment of November
20, 2014. Series C No. 289, para. 124. See also, Case of Herrera Espinoza et al. v. Ecuador. Preliminary objections,
merits, reparations and costs. Judgment of September 1, 2016. Series C No. 316, para. 154.
343