Facts
The case concerns the question of whether an expert witness who has examined all three co-perpetrators must be considered biased. Y. was found guilty by the District Court of Solothurn-Lebern of multiple murders, qualified robbery, criminal preparatory acts for robbery and murder, and other offenses, and was sentenced to life imprisonment. On appeal by Y., the High Court of the Canton of Solothurn upheld the first-instance judgment.
Y. has filed a criminal complaint, requesting that the contested judgment be set aside in the criminal matter and that the lower court be instructed to conduct the evidence-gathering he has requested. In particular, he requests the preparation of a new psychiatric expert opinion, as the expert witness has examined all three parties involved in the offense, which would constitute an appearance of bias.
Considerations
The Federal Supreme Court sees no appearance of bias on the part of the expert witness. While the literature points out that the examination of co-defendants by the same expert witness can be problematic if the expert witness cannot express himself freely regarding the relationship between the defendants, in the present case, neither the oral nor the written statements of the expert witness indicate that he has committed himself in a way that would have impaired his assessment of the complainant.
The expert witness has comprehensively documented and disclosed his…