5.  The applicant, Mr Damian Janicki, is a Polish national who was born in 1976 and is currently detained in Gdańsk Remand Centre.
Criminal proceedings against the applicant and his pre-trial detention 6.  On 20 February 2003 the applicant was arrested by the police on suspicion of homicide and arson. On 21 February 2003 the Gdańsk District Court (Sąd Rejonowy) ordered that he be remanded in custody. That decision was justified by the existence of strong evidence against the applicant. 7.  Subsequently, the applicant’s detention was extended several times by the Gdańsk Regional Court in its decisions of 8 May, 15 July, 16 September and 16 December 2003. The court referred to the likelihood of a severe sentence of imprisonment being imposed on the applicant, the risk that he might obstruct the proceedings and the need to obtain further evidence, such as reports by experts in forensic medicine and in psychiatry. 8.  On 30 January 2004 the applicant was indicted before the Gdańsk Regional Court (Sąd Okręgowy). The bill of indictment comprised charges of homicide and arson against the applicant and his alleged accomplice. The prosecutor requested that thirty-four witnesses and eight experts be heard by the trial court.
The first hearing was scheduled for 10 May 2004. 9.  In the course of the judicial proceedings, the applicant’s detention was extended several times by decisions of the Gdańsk Regional Court of 10 February, 19 June, 27 October and 29 December 2004 and a decision of the Gdańsk Court of Appeal of 16 February 2005.
The courts referred to the likelihood of a severe sentence of imprisonment being imposed on the applicant and, furthermore, they reiterated the original grounds for the applicant’s pre-trial detention. 10.  Between May and December 2004 the trial court held eight hearings. It appears that in the course of the proceedings the applicant made numerous unsuccessful applications for his detention to be lifted or replaced by another preventive measure and that he appealed, likewise unsuccessfully, against decisions extending his detention. In his applications and appeals he relied on personal circumstances, in particular the fact of being the only guardian of two minor daughters. 11.  On 23 March 2005 the Gdańsk Regional Court convicted the applicant as charged and sentenced him to fifteen years’ imprisonment. The applicant appealed. 12.   On 5 January 2006 the Gdańsk Court of Appeal (Sąd Apelacyjny) quashed the judgment and remitted the case to the Gdańsk Regional Court. 13.  On 16 March 2006 the Gdańsk Regional Court extended the applicant’s detention until 31 August 2006. It relied on the reasonable suspicion that the applicant had committed the offences with which he had been charged and on the likelihood that a severe sentence of imprisonment would be imposed on him. 14.  During the retrial the applicant’s detention was extended on several occasions by the decisions of the Gdańsk Court of Appeal of 29 August and 14 December 2006. The court referred to the grounds for detention given in previous decisions.
Between June and December 2006 the trial court held four hearings. 15.  On 22 August 2006, during one of the hearings, the applicant lodged an application for release. It was dismissed. The Regional Court relied on the reasonable suspicion that the applicant had committed the offences. It referred to the need to ensure that the process of obtaining evidence would be successfully completed. 16.  On 12 December 2006 the court decided to disqualify one of the judges from dealing with the case. On 14 December 2006 the applicant lodged a complaint against that decision. It was dismissed by the Regional Court on 18 December 2006 and by the Court of Appeal on 19 December 2006. 17.  Subsequently, the applicant’s detention was extended by the decisions of the Gdańsk Court of Appeal of 13 March, 4 June and 23 October 2007 and a number of decisions issued in 2008. 18.  On 24 April 2008 the Gdańsk Regional Court convicted the applicant as charged. The case is currently pending appeal. 19.  The applicant did not lodge a complaint about a breach of the right to a trial within a reasonable time with the domestic court, under section 5 of the Law of 17 June 2004 (Ustawa o skardze na naruszenie prawa strony do rozpoznania sprawy w postępowaniu sądowym bez nieuzasadnionej zwłoki) (“the 2004 Act”).