Facts
The complainant [X.] was found guilty of intentional homicide of [A.] by the District Court of [X.] on 25 September 1998 and sentenced to seven years in prison. The District Court suspended the execution of the sentence under the condition of detention as per Art. 43 para. 1 sec. 2 SCC. Later, the 2nd Criminal Chamber of the High Court of the Canton of Bern ordered, in its judgment of 16 May 2000, an outpatient treatment in the form of psychotherapy as per Art. 43 para. 1 sec. 1 SCC during and after the execution of the seven-year prison sentence.
The complainant served his sentence in various prisons and reached the halfway point of his sentence on 29 March 2002. On 27 January 2002, he had filed a request for conditional release from prison as of 29 March 2002, which was rejected. The complainant appealed this decision to the Administrative Court of the Canton of Bern, which dismissed the appeal on 30 September 2002.
Against the decision of the Administrative Court of the Canton of Bern, the complainant filed a federal administrative appeal with the Federal Court and requested that the contested decision be annulled and that he be conditionally released from prison immediately.
Considerations
The Federal Court examined the admissibility of the administrative appeal and came to the conclusion that the appeal was admissible, as it was directed against a ruling based on federal public law and issued by an authority mentioned in Art. 98 FJA.
The Federal Court reviewed the reasoning of the lower court and came to the conclusion that the cantonal authorities had rightly refused the complainant's conditional release. The lower court had found that the complainant had not demonstrated good behavior during his imprisonment and that there was no favorable prognosis regarding his chances of rehabilitation.
The Federal Court found that…