No statute of limitations for murder in Switzerland
The Swiss parliament wants murder to be one of the crimes for which there is no statute of limitations.
After the Senate, the House of Representatives also voted in favour of this motion on Tuesday. The Swiss canton of St. Gallen provided the impetus for the bill by demanding that the limitation period of 30 years for offences with life sentences be abolished. The Legal Affairs Committee of the Senate (RK-S) limited its proposal to murder.
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The Senate had voted in favour of the amendment to the Criminal Code and the Military Criminal Code around a year ago. At the request of a minority, the House of Representatives has now done the same. The Swiss People’s Party prevailed with the help of the Radical Liberals and the Centre Party. The majority of the Legal Affairs Committee had requested that the statute of limitations for murder be maintained.
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As the House of Representatives has adjusted the statute of limitations for other offences in the bill besides murder, it will return to the Senate.
Adapted from German by AI/ac
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