Basel Grand Council grants pardon Convicted offender gets a second chance

The Basel Grand Council has granted a partial pardon to a 35-year-old offender. The pardon commission recommended that the sentence be commuted to a partially conditional sentence with electronic monitoring.

In September 2019, a 35-year-old man was sentenced to four years and three months in prison. The man committed a number of different criminal offenses. Among other things, he allegedly planned a failed robbery at an Interdiscount store in Basel and was also involved in copper thefts to the detriment of SBB.

But now he has been pardoned. In the first session of September, the Basel Grand Council approved a request from the pardon commission by a large majority, thus commuting the sentence of a convicted criminal.

He will be allowed to leave prison and serve the unconditional part of his sentence with electronic monitoring. He can therefore go about his work. They have been informed about his entire situation.

"He has worked the entire time since his conviction and paid off large sums of his debts," said Edibe Gölgeli (SP), President of the Pardons Commission in the Grand Council. "He has also provided proof of abstinence, regained his driver's license and has not reoffended," she continued. And: "He went the extra mile", which is why the commutation to a partially conditional sentence is supported, explains Gölgeli.

Commission rarely supports a request

When asked by "20 Minuten", it is very rare for the Pardons Commission to support such a request. For data protection reasons, the Commission's business is not publicly accessible, nor are there any statistics on its activities.

"We are not a court, but a political body. However, we have to decide cases on a purely factual level," she continues. "Remorse and insight are a prerequisite for granting a pardon. There are seven special reasons that could make a pardon possible. Mercy before justice applies."

The Cantonal Pardon Act forms the basis for the pardon procedure. Applications for pardons must be submitted to the Presidium of the Grand Council, which forwards formally admissible applications to the relevant commission.

The chairperson of the Pardons Commission first obtains an opinion from the sentencing authority and draws up a proposal for the Commission if it supports the application.

The commission can then decide on a pardon or commutation of sentence, whereby the Grand Council must still approve this decision. The Grand Council always acts as the highest authority in matters of pardons, even if the government submits a request for a pardon. However, it is important to note that the executive cannot independently release people from a sentence.

The situation is the same at federal level. When it comes to sentences handed down by federal authorities, the Federal Assembly is responsible for pardon applications submitted by the Federal Council. This is in contrast to the USA, where the president may not be able to absolve people of guilt, but he or she can absolve them of their sentence.