Federal Court clears Swiss journalist in 3D-printed gun case
Parts of 'The Liberator', which was said to be the world's first 3-D printable handgun, 2013.
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Listening: Federal Court clears Swiss journalist in 3D-printed gun case
The Federal Court has acquitted a journalist from Swiss public television, RTS, who had been fined over a TV investigation into the dangers of 3D-printed weapons.
In a press release published on Thursday, RTS welcomed the ruling handed down by the Federal Court over a TV investigation into a “Liberator”, a pistol made from plastic using a 3D printer.
In 2019, the RTS journalist made a programme to demonstrate how easy it is to manufacture such a weapon in Switzerland and to highlight the dangers.
The RTS investigation resulted in a court handing down a suspended 60-day fine for violating Swiss weapons law. The Federal Court ruled in the journalist’s favour after five years of proceedings.
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According to the Geneva Attorney General, as well as the Police Court and the Court of Justice, the journalist knew that police authorisation was needed to obtain such a weapon but did not do so.
‘Should set precedent’
RTS contested the earlier verdict. The lawyer representing RTS and the journalist argued that there was no point in criminally sanctioning a journalist whose sole aim was to serve the public.
“It is first of all a great relief for our journalist and for the RTS which supported her during more than five years of proceedings,” said the RTS news editor-in-chief Pierre-Olivier Volet. “It is a strong decision in favour of freedom of the press and a true recognition of the role of investigative journalists in our society.”
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“The Federal Court has validated the fact that journalists can take certain risks if they pursue a goal of public interest and demonstrate diligence,” said the journalist’s lawyer, Mr. Soussi.
Reporters Without Borders Switzerland welcomed the Federal Court judgment: “This decision, which gives priority to freedom of the press over the strict application of criminal law to journalists, should set a precedent.”
Translated from French by DeepL/sb
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