Facts
The High Court of the Canton of Solothurn convicted T. of multiple murders and multiple acts of property damage and sentenced him to life imprisonment. With regard to the civil claims asserted, it declared [K.], the son of the victim M., in principle entitled to receive compensation for the dependant's damage, but referred him to the civil court to determine the amount of the damage.
[K.] filed a federal nullity appeal with the request to revoke this referral to the civil court.
Considerations
The Federal Supreme Court states that according to the Federal Act on Assistance to Victims of Crimes (OHG), the criminal court must also decide on the civil claims of the victim. A referral to the civil court is only permissible if a complete assessment of the civil claims would require disproportionate effort.
In the present case, the lower court was missing only three documents to assess the amount of the dependant's damage. Obtaining these documents did not represent a disproportionate effort for the lower court. Therefore, it was not allowed to merely…