Facts

- The Swiss Federal Prosecutor's Office transferred the criminal prosecution and adjudication of [A.] for violence and threats against officials as well as forgery of documents to the authorities of the Canton of Basel-Stadt. - The Public Prosecutor's Office of Basel-Stadt refrained from extending the investigation proceedings to these offenses pursuant to § 5 CPC/BS, as they were not of significant criminal relevance alongside the other offenses for which [A.] was charged. - The Swiss Federal Prosecutor's Office filed an appeal against these dismissal decisions, which were confirmed by the transferring authority of Basel-Stadt. - With federal nullity appeals, the Federal Prosecutor's Office requested the annulment of the decisions and the remission of the case for re-assessment.

Considerations

The Federal Supreme Court's Court of Cassation decided as follows

  • Art. 254 para. 1 CPC obliges the cantonal authorities to investigate the federal criminal cases transferred to them and to terminate them by a dismissal decision or judgment. A simple abandonment of the case without a formal decision violates federal law.
  • However, the grounds on which the cantonal authorities can dismiss the investigation are determined by cantonal procedural law. A dismissal on the basis of considerations of expediency is therefore generally permissible, as long as it meets the requirements of federal law.
  • The specific…