Photographer Awarded Damages After Being Strip-Searched by Greek Police

A photographer has been awarded damages by the European Court of Human Rights after she was strip-searched by Greek police.

The European Court of Human Rights found Greece guilty of violating the rights of photojournalist Kalliopi Melliou, who was subjected to a full strip-search by cops. It awarded Melliou $11,340 (€10,000) in damages and $992 (€875) in legal costs.

The case stems from an incident on the evening of February 27, 2013, in the Exarchia district of Athens. Melliou, a photojournalist who covered politics, spotted four members of Greece’s DELTA police motorcycle unit while walking home. According to court documents, Melliou believed that “a violent incident or arbitrary police action had taken place” and noted down license plate numbers of the DELTA police officers’ vehicles.

According to Greek news outlet Ekathimerini, when cops spotted her, Melliou was taken to the Attica General Police Directorate. However, she was neither arrested nor formally charged with an offense. At police headquarters, Melliou eventually provided identification and handed over the note containing the license plate numbers.

A female police officer then instructed to strip-search Melliou. The search required her to completely undress, including removing her underwear. Greek authorities later told the court that police had serious grounds to suspect Melliou of helping to prepare a terrorist attack. They argued that the strip-search was necessary to determine whether she was carrying any dangerous objects.

But the European Court of Human Rights was not convinced by these arguments. The court noted that the journalist was brought to the department only for identification purposes; she was not detained as a suspect, and the police did not demonstrate why less stringent verification methods could not have been used. In its ruling, the court found that police could have checked whether the journalist was carrying dangerous items using less intrusive methods, such as a body scanner or metal detector, rather than subjecting her to a strip-search

The European Court of Human Rights unanimously found a violation of Article Three of the European Convention on Human Rights, which prohibits inhuman or degrading treatment. Greece must pay Melliou compensation for moral damages as well as her legal costs within three months.

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