Facts
On December 20, 1988, a Pakistani national, Z., was attacked by a group of Indians near the Zurich barracks. Two days later, Z. went to the Central tram station, accompanied by X., Y., and their compatriot B., with the intention of getting revenge. When they spotted a group of Indians, Z. recognized S. among them, one of the people who had attacked him. S. pulled out a kitchen knife from his pocket and made slashing movements towards the Pakistanis, injuring X. in the shoulder. X. then took a butterfly knife belonging to B. and stabbed S. several times. Z. also hit S. with punches and kicks. S. died from his injuries.
The court of first instance convicted X., Y., and Z. of voluntary homicide and sentenced them to prison terms. The defendants appealed against this judgment, requesting its annulment and the referral of the case to the lower court for a new trial.
Considerations
The Federal Court examined the grounds for appeal raised by the defendants and found that the court of first instance had violated federal law by convicting Y. and Z. of voluntary homicide. The Federal Court considered that Y. and Z. had not acted as co-perpetrators of the homicide, as they had not contributed significantly to the commission of the offense.
The Federal Court also examined the issue of participation in a brawl and considered that the defendants had acted as participants in a brawl, but only X. had acted with the intention to kill. The Federal Court therefore annulled the judgment of the first instance with regard to Y. and Z. and referred the case to the lower court for a new trial.
The Federal Court also recalled that, for there to be…