Facts
The case concerns an individual, I., who was convicted of serious bodily harm by the Higher Court of the canton of Zurich. I. had worked as a security agent and access controller in a private club in Zurich. He had argued with a Tunisian national, C., about the payment of the entrance fee, and had fired a shot with a gas revolver, causing C. the permanent loss of vision in his right eye due to burns to the cornea and conjunctiva.
I. filed a nullity complaint with the Federal Court, requesting the annulment of the Higher Court's judgment and the order to conduct a psychiatric examination.
Considerations
The Federal Court examined the question of whether the court should order a psychiatric expertise to determine the author's responsibility. According to Article 13, paragraph 1, of the Swiss Criminal Code (SCC), the court must order an expertise if serious doubts exist regarding the author's responsibility.
The Federal Court considered that, in this case, serious doubts existed regarding I.'s responsibility, given his criminal record and the psychiatric expertise conducted in 1972, which had qualified him as a psychopath with a poor prognosis. The court also took into account new psychiatric literature, which suggests that personality disorders can lead to a reduction in…