Case could overturn hundreds of fines Speeding offender innocent after all - Glarus police officer alleged to have manipulated evidence
Because a police officer allegedly manipulated photos of evidence, the Glarus High Court has acquitted a speeding driver. The case raises questions about the integrity of police work.
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- Hundreds of drivers were fined for speeding on the Kerenzerberg in Glarus in 2021.
- One of those affected took legal action against the fine.
- The Glarus High Court has now acquitted him, as evidence photos of the signage were apparently manipulated.
In spring 2021, around 600 car and motorcycle drivers in the canton of Glarus were fined after being flashed on a temporary 50 km/h stretch of road on the Kerenzerberg.
One of those affected, Markus Liver, did not accept the fine and took the matter to court. He argued that the speed limit was not properly signposted, as he told SRF. The Glarus High Court initially ruled in his favor, but the Federal Supreme Court sent the case back.
In a retrial, the Glarus High Court has now acquitted Liver again. The reason is explosive: a police officer is said to have manipulated evidence photos. The photos in question were intended to document the location of the traffic signs at the time of the check. However, it emerged in court that the photos were not from the period in question.
Suspicious vegetation
The court found that the vegetation in the police photos did not match the time of year. While the trees in the police photos were already in leaf, they were still bare in a private photo from the same period. This led to the conclusion that the photos were taken retrospectively in order to reconstruct the situation.
The police officer responsible had also given contradictory information about the location of the signs. The court criticized the procedure as manipulative and ruled that it could not be established beyond doubt whether the speed limit was correctly signposted. Liver was therefore acquitted.
The Glarus cantonal police have announced that they will investigate the case internally. Commander Richard Schmidt emphasized to SRF that they are taking note of the verdict and want to work through the incident.
In addition to Liver's case, four other similar cases are pending. If the ruling becomes legally binding, these individuals could also be exempt from paying the fines - along with hundreds of others.
