Facts
The complainants, [A.X.] and [B.X.] , parents of the deceased [C.X.] , who died on 29 April 2010, lodged a complaint against the decision of the High Court of the Canton of Zurich, III. Criminal Chamber, of 8 September 2014. This decision dismissed their complaint against the discontinuation of the criminal proceedings for negligent homicide by the Public Prosecutor's Office IV of the Canton of Zurich.
The Public Prosecutor's Office had discontinued the proceedings after preparing two expert opinions that did not reveal any breach of duty of care by the medical personnel involved. The complainants argued that the preparation of the expert opinions was incomplete and that the events in the hospital had not been sufficiently documented.
The lower court considered that the opening of a criminal investigation required a sufficient suspicion of a criminal offence and that the Public Prosecutor's Office had never confirmed such suspicion. It found that the complainants did not specify what breach of duty of care was alleged and that a causal link between the possible deletion of the monitoring system data and the death of [C.X.] was not apparent.
Considerations
The Federal Court examined the complainants' entitlement to lodge a complaint against the discontinuation decision. It found that the complainants, as parents of the deceased, were close relatives within the meaning of Art. 1 para. 2 VSA and that the contested decision affected their civil claims, in particular with regard to their claims for compensation.
The Court concluded that the lower court had set too high requirements for the reasoning of the complaint and had not addressed the complainants' objections. It thus violated their right to be heard. The case was referred back to the lower court to fully clarify the facts.
The Federal Court found that the Public Prosecutor's Office had to close the proceedings by discontinuation under Art. 319 ff. CrimPC and not by…