PROCEDURE

The case originated in an application (no. 22930/05) against the Republic of Poland lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) by a Polish national, Mr Jan Kachel (“the applicant”), on 17 May 2005.

The Polish Government (“the Government”) were represented by their Agent, Mr J. Wołąsiewicz of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The applicant alleged, in particular, that his detention on remand had exceeded a “reasonable time” within the meaning of Article 5 § 3 of the Convention.

On 13 September 2007 the President of the Fourth Section decided to give notice of the application to the Government. It was also decided to examine the merits of the application at the same time as its admissibility (Article 29 § 3).

THE FACTS

I. THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE CASE

The applicant was born in 1960 and lives in Tarnów. He is currently serving a sentence of imprisonment in Tarnów Prison. Criminal proceedings against the applicant and his detention on remand

On 30 July 2002 the applicant was arrested on suspicion of murder.

On 31 July 2002 the Bytom District Court (Sąd Rejonowy) remanded him in custody. It justified the applicant’s pre‑trial detention by the gravity of the offence, the existence of strong evidence against him, the likelihood that a heavy penalty would be imposed and by the need to ensure the proper conduct of the proceedings.

The applicant’s appeal against the decision to remand him in custody was unsuccessful. On 4 September 2002 the Katowice Regional Court (Sąd Okręgowy), relying on a reasonable suspicion that the applicant had committed a serious offence, upheld the Bytom District Court’s decision.

The applicant’s pre‑trial detention was subsequently extended by decisions of the Katowice Regional Court of, inter alia, 21 October 2002, 2 December 2002, 31 March 2003 (upheld by the Katowice Court of Appeal on 7 May 2003), 29 July 2003 and 16 June 2004.

Once the length of the applicant’s detention had reached the statutory two‑year maximum laid down in Article 263 § 3 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (Kodeks postępowania karnego), the first‑instance court was no longer competent to extend it. Consequently, it was the Katowice Court of Appeal (Sąd Apelacyjny) which issued further extensions on, inter alia, 14 July 2004, 8 December 2004, 6 April 2005 and 28 December 2005.

The courts repeatedly justified the applicant’s pre‑trial detention in the initial phase by the existence of strong evidence against him, the likelihood that a heavy penalty would be imposed and the reasonable risk that the applicant would attempt either to induce witnesses to give false testimony or to obstruct the proper course of proceedings by other unlawful means. They further stressed that it would be necessary to hear evidence from a large number of witnesses and to obtain expert reports.

In the latter stages of the applicant’s detention, the courts additionally referred to the complexity of the case and the fact that there was strong evidence against him and other defendants.

In the meantime, on 16 April 2003 the applicant was indicted on a charge of murder allegedly committed with two accomplices, who were also on trial.

On 4 July 2005 the Katowice Regional Court convicted the applicant and his co‑defendants as charged. The applicant was sentenced to 25 years’ imprisonment.

The prosecutor and the lawyers of all three defendants lodged appeals.

On 25 January 2006 the Katowice Court of Appeal upheld the substance of the first‑instance judgment concerning the characterisation of the charges and the sentence.

On 8 November 2006 the Supreme Court dismissed a cassation appeal lodged by the applicant.