GIULIANI AND GAGGIO v. ITALY JUDGMENT
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Others, cited above, § 161). The State must therefore ensure, by all means at
its disposal, an adequate response – judicial or otherwise – so that the
legislative and administrative framework set up to protect the right to life is
properly implemented and any breaches of that right are repressed and
punished (see Zavoloka v. Latvia, no. 58447/00, § 34, 7 July 2009).
299. The State's obligation to carry out an effective investigation has in
the Court's case-law been considered as an obligation inherent in Article 2,
which requires, inter alia, that the right to life be “protected by law”.
Although the failure to comply with such an obligation may have
consequences for the right protected under Article 13, the procedural
obligation of Article 2 is seen as a distinct obligation (see İlhan v. Turkey
[GC], no. 22277/93, §§ 91-92, ECHR 2000-VII; Öneryıldız v. Turkey [GC],
no. 48939/99, § 148, ECHR 2004-XII; and Šilih v. Slovenia [GC],
no. 71463/01, §§ 153-154, 9 April 2009). It can give rise to a finding of a
separate and independent “interference”. This conclusion derives from the
fact that the Court has consistently examined the question of procedural
obligations separately from the question of compliance with the substantive
obligation (and, where appropriate, has found a separate violation of
Article 2 on that account) and the fact that on several occasions a breach of
a procedural obligation under Article 2 has been alleged in the absence of
any complaint as to its substantive aspect (see Šilih, cited above,
§§ 158-159).
300. For an investigation into alleged unlawful killing by State agents to
be effective, it may generally be regarded as necessary for the persons
responsible for and carrying out the investigation to be independent from
those implicated in the events (see, for example, Güleç, cited above,
§§ 81-82, and Oğur, cited above, §§ 91-92). This means not only a lack of
hierarchical or institutional connection but also a practical independence.
What is at stake here is nothing less than public confidence in the State's
monopoly on the use of force (see Hugh Jordan, cited above, § 106;
Ramsahai and Others [GC], cited above, § 325; and Kolevi v. Bulgaria,
no. 1108/02, § 193, 5 November 2009).
301. The investigation must also be effective in the sense that it is
capable of leading to a determination of whether the force used was or was
not justified in the circumstances (see, for example, Kaya v. Turkey,
19 February 1998, § 87, Reports 1998-I) and of identifying and – if
appropriate – punishing those responsible (see Oğur, cited above, § 88).
This is not an obligation of result, but of means. The authorities must take
whatever reasonable steps they can to secure the evidence concerning the
incident, including, inter alia, eyewitness testimony, forensic evidence and,
where appropriate, an autopsy which provides a complete and accurate
record of injury and an objective analysis of the clinical findings, including
the cause of death (as regards autopsies, see, for example, Salman v. Turkey
[GC], no. 21986/93, § 106, ECHR 2000-VII; on the subject of witnesses,
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