Facts
The Public Prosecutor's Office of the Canton of Schaffhausen accuses X. of having commissioned three men to collect money from A. A. was allegedly beaten and threatened with a pistol. X. was sentenced by the High Court of the Canton of Schaffhausen to a partially suspended custodial sentence of 27 months for attempted extortion. X. has filed a criminal appeal against this judgment.
The Federal Supreme Court upholds the appeal and remands the case to the lower court so that it can question the appellant again in the oral appeal proceedings.
Considerations
The appeal proceedings continue the criminal proceedings and build on the procedural acts that have already taken place. The principle laid down in Art. 389 para. 1 CPC, according to which the appeal proceedings are based on the evidence taken in the preliminary proceedings and in the first instance main proceedings, only applies insofar as the evidence has been taken in compliance with the procedural requirements.
The legislator has designed the appeal as the primary legal remedy against first instance judgments as a principally oral, adversarial procedure with the summoning of the parties. According to Art. 405 para. 1 CPC, the oral appeal hearing is conducted in accordance with the provisions on the first instance main hearing. Consequently, Art. 341 para. 3 CPC is also applicable, according to which the presiding judge must question the accused person extensively about their person, the indictment and the results of the…