Facts
The case concerns a road accident that occurred on June 30, 2004, involving a truck and a car. The truck driver, X., was convicted of involuntary bodily harm by the Winterthur district court on May 15, 2006, and sentenced to a fine of 1,500 francs. The Zurich cantonal court of appeal confirmed this judgment on January 19, 2007, but sentenced X. to a pecuniary penalty of 8 daily penalty units at 100 francs, with a suspended sentence of two years. The public prosecutor appealed this decision, requesting that X. be sentenced to a pecuniary penalty of 8 daily penalty units at 100 francs and a fine of 500 francs.
The case was brought before the SCC, which had to determine whether the new sanction system, which came into effect on January 1, 2007, was applicable in this case. The SCC considered that the new sanction system was more favorable for X. and therefore decided to apply it.
Considerations
The SCC examined the provisions of the Swiss Criminal Code relating to the sanction system and found that the new system was more favorable for X. It considered that the pecuniary penalty of 8 daily penalty units at 100 francs, with a suspended sentence of two years, was a milder sanction than the fine of 1,500 francs imposed by the district court.
The SCC also examined the issue of combining sanctions and considered that,…