Dismissal of the criminal appeal against the refusal to enter into the matter on a cantonal appeal for non-compliance with the language of the proceedings

Facts

The Federal Tribunal dismissed the criminal appeal filed by X. against the judgment of the Criminal Appeals Chamber of the Geneva Court of Justice, which had not entered into the matter on her cantonal appeal, as she had failed to provide reasons in the language of the proceedings brought against the appellant.

X. had been found guilty of forgery in certificates by a criminal order of 30 October 2014 and sentenced to a monetary penalty. She had filed an objection against this order, but her objection was deemed withdrawn due to her failure to appear at the hearing scheduled for 14 January 2015.

X. then contested this decision with the Criminal Appeals Chamber of the Geneva Court of Justice, but her letter written in English was not taken into account, as the Criminal Chamber had invited her to proceed in French within a specified time limit, failing which her appeal would be declared inadmissible. As X. did not respond within the time limit, the Criminal Chamber declared that it would not enter into the matter on the appeal.

Considerations

The Federal Tribunal considered that the Criminal Appeals Chamber was under no obligation to accept the writing of 20 January 2015 in English, which is not the official language in the canton of Geneva. By requesting a French version of this letter, it properly complied…