Facts
On 13 September 1996, X. gave a horse riding lesson to a group of six girls aged 10 to 12 at the « Höldihof » equestrian center in Rupperswil. Due to his tardiness, the students chose and prepared the horses without his direct supervision. When X. arrived, he checked the preparations and began the lesson. However, due to the cool weather and a nearby jumping competition, the horses were nervous. When X. ordered the students to switch from a trot to a gallop, one of the horses, « Amigo », bolted and the other horses followed, causing a chaotic situation in which several students fell off their horses. One of the students, A., was seriously injured when she was thrown by her horse, « Dubai », and suffered a head trauma with multiple fractures.
The Lenzburg district court convicted X. of severe bodily injury through negligence and sentenced him to a suspended prison sentence of three months, as well as a fine of 500 Swiss francs. The canton of Argovia's court of appeal reduced the prison sentence to one month, but confirmed the rest of the decision. X. filed a nullity appeal with the SCC.
Considerations
The SCC examined whether X. had violated his duties of care as a horse riding instructor. The court considered that X. had acted negligently by ordering the students to switch from a trot to a gallop for the third time, despite previous incidents with the horse « Amigo ». The court estimated that X. should have taken additional safety measures, such as riding the horse « Amigo » himself or canceling the lesson, to avoid the risk of…