Switzerland criticised by Strasbourg court for judge’s lack of impartiality

Erwin Sperisen was sentenced to 15 years for his complicity in the killing of seven prisoners in Guatemala in 2006 © Keystone / Salvatore Di Nolfi

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in Strasbourg has upheld an appeal by Erwin Sperisen, the former head of Guatemala’s police force sentenced to 15 years in prison. He had complained that the president of the Geneva Appeals Court was biased.

Switzerland will have to pay Sperisen €15,000 (CHF14,700) for his costs and expenses.

In 2018 the Swiss-Guatemalan dual citizen was sentenced to 15 years for his complicity in the killing of seven prisoners in Guatemala in 2006.

In a decision published on TuesdayExternal link, the judges in Strasbourg found that the comments made by the magistrate in October 2017 “went beyond the statement of a mere suspicion”. At the time, she was commenting on the annulment of an order extending the detention of Sperisen after his first conviction had been quashed by the Federal Court.

The magistrate considered that there were “sufficient charges” that made the prospect of a conviction “likely”. In addition, she emphasised that elements of the case file continued “to speak in favour of guilt”.

The judges in Strasbourg said that in these circumstances, Sperisen could “reasonably fear that she had a preconceived idea on the question of his guilt”.

The ECHR therefore found that the right to an impartial tribunal had been violated. The court held that this finding constituted sufficient compensation for the non-pecuniary damage suffered by the applicant. The other complaints raised by Sperisen, in particular concerning his detention, were dismissed as inadmissible.

The European Court of Human Rights is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights. It is not connected to the European Union.

Rare case

Sperisen, who maintains his innocence, was initially sentenced to life in prison by a Geneva court in 2014 for the crimes committed as head of the Guatemalan police force. An appeal was partially upheld by the Swiss Federal Court in 2017, and at his re-trial in 2018 he was sentenced by Geneva’s cantonal court to 15 years in prison.

The legal proceedings have taken place in Switzerland because that is where he has lived since 2007 and Switzerland does not extradite its citizens. The case is a rare example of Swiss justice trying a defendant for crimes committed in another country.

Guatemala issued an international arrest warrant for Sperisen in 2010 and a year later he was detained in Geneva.