be regarded as an acknowledgment, even in substance, of a violation of the applicant's right to trial within a reasonable time or release pending trial. Moreover, the Court is not convinced by the Government's argument that the applicant could have obtained redress by bringing a civil action for damages. It has already found that Russian law does not provide for State liability for detention which is not based on "relevant and sufficient" reasons or which exceeds a "reasonable time". This state of Russian law precludes any legal opportunity for the applicant to receive compensation for the detention which was effected in breach of Article 5 § 3 of the Convention (see Korshunov v. Russia, No. 38971/06, § 62, 25 October 2007, and Govorushko v. Russia, No. 42940/06, § 60, 25 October 2007). The Court therefore finds that the applicant can still claim to be a "victim" of a breach of Article 5 § 3 of the Convention, and dismisses the Government's objection.
70. The Court finds that this complaint is not manifestly ill-founded within the meaning of Article 35 § 3 of the Convention. It further notes that it is not inadmissible on any other grounds. It must therefore be declared admissible.
B. Merits
1. Arguments by the parties
71. The Government argued that the decisions to remand the applicant in custody had been lawful and justified. The applicant had been charged with a particularly serious criminal offence. She had moreover been suspected of being the leader of an organised criminal group trafficking in drugs and presenting an increased danger to society. Referring to the case of Contrada v. Italy (24 August 1998, § 67, Reports of Judgments and Decisions 1998-V), the Government submitted that her membership of a mafia-type organisation with a rigid hierarchical structure and substantial power of intimidation had complicated and lengthened the criminal proceedings. As to the applicant's character, her drug test had been positive, she had refused to give evidence against her accomplices or cooperate with the investigation team and, if released, she had been likely to abscond, reoffend or interfere with witnesses or obstruct the investigation and the trial in some other way. She had not provided any guarantees that she would appear for trial. The Government considered the applicant's detention had been founded on "relevant and sufficient" reasons.
72. The applicant considered that there had been no "relevant and sufficient" reasons to hold her in custody for a year and seven months. The domestic authorities had continuously extended her detention, relying essentially on the gravity of the charge and without demonstrating the existence of concrete facts in support of their conclusion that she might abscond, interfere with the investigation or reoffend. She argued she had not presented any such risks. She was in frail health, had positive references, no criminal record, had permanent residence and employment, and her brother had been dying of cancer. She had moreover offered to post bail. Although her drug test had indeed been positive, the Supreme Court had found that it could not serve as a basis for her detention in the absence of any medical evidence of drug addiction. The need for a further investigation could not justify her detention after September 2007, as by that time the investigation had already been completed. No further investigative measures had been carried out during the subsequent months of her detention.
2. The Court's assessment
(a) General principles
73. The Court reiterates that the persistence of reasonable suspicion that the person arrested has committed an offence is a condition sine qua non for the lawfulness of the continued detention. However after a certain lapse of time it no longer suffices. In such cases, the Court must establish whether the
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