Facts
This case concerns an incident that occurred on 20 February 1973 in Glattbrugg, where the defendant X. was accused of obstructing public traffic within the meaning of Art. 237 para. 1 no. 1 SCC. Driver E. of company Y. had parked his truck on X.'s private property, despite the prohibition on driving and entering this private property indicated by signs. When X. arrived by car to access his property, an incident occurred between him and E. The Public Prosecutor's Office then filed a complaint against X. for endangering the life of others according to Art. 129 para. 1 SCC.
The District Court of Bülach acquitted X. of the charge of endangering life, but found him guilty of obstructing public traffic according to Art. 237 para. 1 no. 1 SCC and sentenced him to 14 days' imprisonment with probation. The Cantonal Court of Zurich confirmed this decision.
X. then appealed the judgment of the Cantonal Court, requesting acquittal or the remand of the case to the previous instance.
Considerations
According to case law, Art. 237 para. 1 no. 1 SCC aims to protect public traffic, i.e. traffic that takes place on public roads or squares, and not traffic on private property, even if it is used abusively by third parties.
In the present case, X.'s property was clearly marked as private and prohibited to the public. Although some drivers used it despite the prohibition, this is not sufficient to qualify it as a public road…