Violation of official secrecy by a member of a police association

Facts

The case concerns a member of the police association of the city of Chur, who discovered a copy of a confidential document in a police photocopier. The document concerned a subsidy of 500 Swiss francs granted by the city of Chur to the Chur section of the police association for a meeting with the central committee of the association. The member of the association sent a copy of the document to the president of the association, which led to an investigation and a conviction for violation of official secrecy.

The facts are as follows: in February 1987, the president of the Chur section of the police association received a subsidy of 500 Swiss francs from the city of Chur for a meeting with the central committee of the association. The subsidy document was created by a police officer, who indicated that the subsidy was intended to cover travel expenses for the meeting. The document was approved by the commander of the Chur police and was sent to the city treasury for payment.

The member of the association, who was also a police officer, discovered a copy of the document in a police photocopier and sent it to the president of the association. The president of the association filed a complaint against the member for violation of official secrecy, and the member was fined 300 Swiss francs.

The member appealed the decision, arguing that the document was not confidential and that the city of Chur had abandoned its intention to keep the document secret. The federal court annulled the conviction, considering that the member had not violated official secrecy.

Considerations

The federal court considered that the member of the association had not violated official secrecy, as they had discovered the document by chance and not in the course of their duties as a police officer. The court also considered that the document was not confidential, as it concerned a public subsidy and the city of Chur had abandoned its intention to keep the document secret.

The court also considered that the member of the association had the right to discover the document, as they were a member of the association and the document concerned the…