Facts
The case concerns [A.] , who was convicted by the Juvenile Court of Basel-Stadt for multiple robberies, attacks, and attempted simple bodily harm, and was placed in open placement pursuant to Art. 15 para. 1 of the Juvenile Criminal Law Act (JStG). After interruption of the open placement, [A.] was first transferred to the juvenile ward of the Basel-Stadt Detention Center and later to the Uitikon Measures Center (MZU). There, he was held in closed placement until he escaped on July 2, 2023. Subsequently, the placement was temporarily suspended, and [A.] was released to his home on August 24, 2023.
On January 8, 2024, the Juvenile Prosecutor's Office ordered [A.] to be transferred to the MZU again. [A.] filed a complaint against this with the Juvenile Court. He also requested immediate release from the "arrest/detention/precautionary placement in the MZU", which the Juvenile Prosecutor's Office rejected. [A.] filed a further complaint against this rejection.
By decision of March 14, 2024, the Juvenile Court dismissed [A.] 's complaints. Thereupon, [A.] appealed to the Federal Supreme Court.
Considerations
The Federal Supreme Court first examined whether the appeal in criminal matters was admissible. It concluded that the Juvenile Court of Basel-Stadt had decided as the first and only cantonal appellate instance, and that this was a final decision within the meaning of Art. 80 para. 2 of the Federal Supreme Court Act, which could exceptionally be challenged directly before the Federal Supreme Court.
However, the Federal Supreme Court found that under cantonal legislation, the Juvenile Court is hierarchically subordinate to the Court of…