Facts
On August 17, 2017, A. filed a criminal complaint against his neighbors X. and Y. for property damage. The Public Prosecutor's Office refused to consider the matter, considering that the right to file a complaint had been "time-barred" since August 16, 2017, the day before the complaint was filed.
A. filed an appeal in criminal matters with the Federal Tribunal, contesting the violation of Articles 31 and 110 para. 6 of the Swiss Criminal Code by the cantonal court in the calculation of the complaint deadline.
Considerations
According to Article 31 of the Swiss Criminal Code, the right to file a complaint is subject to a three-month statute of limitations. The deadline runs from the day the entitled party became aware of the perpetrator of the offense.
Article 110 para. 6 of the Swiss Criminal Code specifies that the day is counted as twenty-four consecutive hours, while the month and the year are counted from date to date.
The case law of the Federal Tribunal has established that the three-month complaint deadline runs from the day after the day the entitled party became aware of the perpetrator of the offense, and not from the same day. The deadline thus…