5.  The applicant was born in 1959 and lives in Dzerzhinsk, the Nizhniy Novgorod region. 6.  On 26 May 1998 the applicant was arrested, charged with the unlawful possession of firearms and attempted murder of a police officer, and remanded in custody. 7.  On 12 October 1998 the Criminal Section of the Nizhniy Novgorod Regional Court, composed of a professional judge and two lay assessors, convicted the applicant as charged and sentenced him to fifteen years and six months’ imprisonment. The court referred to statements from five witnesses: two eyewitnesses, two forensic medical examination reports and a ballistic expert’s report. The applicant had extensive opportunities to cross-examine those witnesses and challenge other pieces of evidence throughout the trial. It appears that the court refused the applicant’s request to call two more witnesses. 8.  The applicant appealed against the first-instance judgment. In his appeal submission he argued that the trial court had made wrong findings of fact and had assessed the evidence incorrectly. He did not raise any objections as to the composition of the first-instance court. 9.  On 26 April 1999 the Supreme Court of Russia examined the applicant’s appeal and reduced the sentence to eight years and six months’ imprisonment. The applicant was present at the hearing, at the end of which the operative part of the decision was read out. According to the applicant, he obtained a copy of the decision on 12 May 1999. 10.  The applicant’s attempts to avail himself of supervisory review proved unsuccessful. 11.  On 17 March 2004 the applicant was released on parole. 12.  According to the applicant, he was held in remand prison IZ – 32/1 in the city of Nizhniy Novgorod (СИЗО – 32/1) from 26 May 1998 to 16 March 1999. 13.  The applicant was kept in a cell designed to hold 24 inmates. During the applicant’s detention the cell accommodated 120 inmates, and therefore he could only sleep taking turns, for no more than four hours a day. Due to lack of space, detainees had to remain standing the rest of the day. 14.  The window of the cell was covered with metal grilles supplemented with “eyelashes”, that is metal strips covering the grille, which let no daylight in. The cell was lit only by a single light bulb. As there was no ventilation, the air was stale and musty. The cell was overrun with cockroaches and bloodsucking insects. Neither the cell nor detainees’ personal belongings were ever sanitised. 15.  Detainees were able to take a shower every eight days. However, only a few of the shower cabins functioned properly, and therefore the detainees did not have enough time to wash themselves. The scarce meals were of poor quality, and the detainees had to eat standing, as the only table in the cell was designed for eight inmates.
(ii)  Medical assistance 16.  In December 1998 the applicant was diagnosed with tuberculosis and underwent medical treatment until 16 March 1999.
(b)  The Government’s account
(i)  General conditions of detention 17.  According to the Government, the applicant was held in remand prison IZ – 32/1 in the city of Nizhniy Novgorod from 5 June 1998 to 16 March 1999. From 26 May to 5 June 1998 he was held in a temporary detention centre of the Dzerzhinsk Directorate of the Interior, Nizhniy Novgorod Region. 18.  During his placement in remand prison IZ – 32/1 the applicant was held in cell no. 3/19, which measured 40.1 square metres and had 20 beds; cell no. 9/69, which measured 40.6 sq. m and had 24 beds; cell no. 19/266, which measured 34.1 sq. m and had 22 beds; and cell no. 1/3, which measured 40.9 sq. m and had 20 beds. 19.  The Government submitted that they were not in a position to provide information about the number of inmates held in the cells at the same time as the applicant because the relevant documents had been destroyed due to the expiry of their storage term. 20.  Every inmate was provided with an individual bed and bedding. The cells had glass windows which measured 1.6 m by 1.4 m. The windows provided natural light sufficient for reading and working. A ventlight ensured natural ventilation in addition to the mandatory ventilation system installed in the cells. The cells were also equipped with central heating. The average temperature in the cells was 18 to 20 degrees Centigrade. Every cell had a washbasin and a lavatory pan separated by a brick partition. The inmates could wash once a week. None of the cells was infested with insects or rodents.
 (ii)  Medical assistance 21.  On 5 June 1998, during a medical check conducted upon the applicant’s arrival at the remand prison, he complained of a stomach ache and loss of vision in his right eye. 22.  On 7 June 1998 the applicant underwent fluorography, which showed the following changes in his lungs: limited fibrosis of the right side and minor calcification in the roots. A tuberculosis doctor regarded these changes as post-specific and recommended supervision by a radiologist. 23.  On 1 December 1998 the applicant again underwent fluorography which showed a minor infiltration in the first intercostal space on the right side with focal shadows. A tuberculosis doctor diagnosed the applicant with focal tuberculosis of the upper part of the right lung in the infiltration phase. Mycobacterium tuberculosis was not found. 24.  The applicant was first placed in a specialised cell for treatment for tuberculosis. He was mainly treated with rifampicin (an antibiotic). 25.  On 22 August 1999 the applicant was placed in medical penitentiary institution no. 10 (ЛИУ-10). An X-ray showed improvement following the treatment. 26.  On an unspecified date the acting deputy head of the Medical Department of the Federal Service of Execution of Sentences issued a medical certificate as to the possibility of the applicant having contracted tuberculosis while in detention. The certificate read, in particular:
“- [According to the] anamnesis (the patient’s recollection), [the applicant had] peptic ulcer disease, chronic gastroduodenitis since 1996, which is a risk factor for the development of tuberculosis;
- post-specific changes in the lungs were revealed upon [the applicant’s] arrival at the remand prison [on 1 December 1998] – such changes prove that the applicant had had tuberculosis earlier;
- the patient’s attitude towards treatment was highly negative, which exacerbated the condition and caused escalation of the tuberculosis process.
Having regard to the foregoing, it is possible to assert that previous convictions, presence of risk factors, post-specific changes in the lungs as well as [the applicant’s] placement in cells for detainees in good health before he was diagnosed with active tuberculosis, are evidence of endogenous reactivation of the tuberculosis process and not of [the tuberculosis] being contracted in the remand prison in 1998.” 27.  According to the applicant, he was transferred to remand prison IZ – 48/3 in Moscow (ИЗ – 48/3) on 17 March 1999 and held there until 28 May 1999. 28.  Despite the fact that he was suffering from tuberculosis, the applicant was placed in a cell with detainees in good health. The cell, measuring approximately 11 square metres (2.5 m by 4.5 m) and designed for seven inmates, held 14 to 16 detainees. The ventilation did not function properly and therefore the cell was hot and damp. 29.  The applicant submitted that he did not remember further details of the conditions of his detention in Moscow. 30.  Following his transfer to Moscow, the applicant did not receive any medical treatment for tuberculosis, since remand centre IZ – 48/3 had no facilities for such treatment. According to the applicant, he complained about the lack of any medical assistance to the local authorities and various State bodies, but his complaints remained unanswered. However, the applicant only furnished the Court with an uncertified handwritten copy of one of those complaints.
(b)  The Government’s account 31.  According to the Government, the applicant was held in remand prison IZ – 48/3 in Moscow between 16 March and 28 May 1999. However, according to the certificate dated 16 June 2005 issued by the head of remand prison IZ-77/3 (former IZ-48/3), the applicant was held there between 17 March and 28 May 1999. 32.  During his placement in remand prison IZ – 48/3 the applicant was held in cell no. 417, which measured 14.98 square metres, and cell no. 419, which measured 14.9 sq. m. The applicant was provided with an individual bed and bedding. The cells had glass windows which measured 0.89 m by 0.94 m. During the daytime the windows provided natural light sufficient for reading and working. The cells also had artificial light provided by luminescent lamps. A ventlight ensured natural ventilation in addition to the mandatory ventilation system installed in the cells. Every cell had a tap, a lavatory pan separated by a brick partition and a tank with drinkable water. The average temperature in the cells was never below 18 Centigrade. The inmates could wash once a week and took at least an hour’s daily exercise. 33.  The Government submitted that they were not in a position to provide information about the number of inmates held in the cells simultaneously with the applicant and the medical assistance available to him because the relevant documents had been destroyed due to the expiry of their storage term. 34.  It appears that from remand prison IZ-48/3 the applicant was transferred to penitentiary institution LIU-10 where he served his sentence. 35.  In January 2000 the applicant was diagnosed with focal tuberculosis of the upper part of the right lung in the carnification phase. 36.  In September 2000 his condition worsened and the applicant was prescribed treatment for tuberculosis. Until March 2003 the applicant’s condition was stable; however in April 2003 his condition worsened further. 37.  On 17 April 2003 the applicant was admitted to the hospital of penitentiary institution LIU-10. 38.  In the course of a search conducted on 20 August 2003 prison officers found and seized over one hundred anti-tuberculosis and ranitidine (anti-histamine) tablets, which the applicant had not taken despite having been prescribed them by the doctor. 39.  The applicant was released on 17 March 2004. 40.  On 21 January 2002, while the applicant was serving his sentence, he lodged a claim for damages caused by the alleged infection with tuberculosis and deterioration of his health due to inadequate treatment while in detention in remand prison IZ – 32/1. By this time the number of the remand prison had been changed to IZ – 52/1. 41.  On 22 August 2002 the Sovetskiy District Court of Nizhniy Novgorod dismissed the claim as unsubstantiated. The judgment read, in particular:
“On 5 June 1998 [the applicant] was placed in cell 3/19 of remand prison IZ – 52/1 where he remained until 28 August 1999.
Fluorogram no. 33-34 of 7 June 1998 made on [the applicant’s] admittance to remand prison IZ – 52/1 showed post-specific changes in his right lung in the form of limited fibrosis and minor calcification in the roots.
Fluorogram no. 25-26 of 1 December 1998... showed a minor infiltration with focal shadows in the first intercostal space on the right side [and] minor calcification in the roots.
...on 1 December 1998 [the applicant] was diagnosed with “focal tuberculosis of the upper part of the right lung in the infiltration phase”...
The report of the medical commission [included in the materials of the case], concluded that “taking into account post-specific changes in his right lung and the lung’s roots that had been stated earlier as well as such risk factors as a duodenal ulcer and stress reaction to the arrest, the tuberculosis process in the right lung has reactivated.
Immediately after the disease had been diagnosed, remand prison IZ – 52/1 took measures for the plaintiff’s treatment: [he was] prescribed medication, provided with special] nutrition, [and] subjected to regular medical examinations, which is confirmed by... the plaintiff’s medical file. ...
Having analysed the evidence submitted by the defendant (the plaintiff submitted no evidence that he had contracted tuberculosis through the fault of the administration of remand prison IZ – 52/1), the court has not found the administration of remand prison IZ – 52/1 responsible for [the applicant] having contracted tuberculosis...
In his statement of claim the plaintiff submitted that he had not suffered from tuberculosis before, which is refuted by the medical file provided by the defendant... According to the medical file, on 7 June 1995 the applicant was admitted for treatment to the surgical department... with the diagnosis: “Dystrophy of the retina of the right eye following thrombosis of the central vein with extensive extravasation, myopia... of the right eye.” ... Fluorography showed limited fibrosis on the right, calcification in the roots. ...[S]uch changes were post-specific... [The applicant] refused further examination and left the hospital. ...
Tuberculosis is an infectious disease which nowadays is spread not only in detention facilities. The court found no evidence to support [the claim] that actions or omissions of the administration of remand prison IZ – 52/1... caused damage to the plaintiff’s health.” 42.  The applicant appealed against the judgment. 43.  On 4 April 2003 the Nizhniy Novgorod Regional Court upheld the judgment on appeal.