Swiss parliament to reconsider whether murder should never expire

Switzerland’s parliament will reconsider whether murder should become a crime with no statute of limitations, SRF reported Friday. The move follows a motion to reopen the issue after both chambers had previously voted in favour of removing the limitation period.

The National Council’s Legal Affairs Committee approved the motion by 13 votes to 10, Parliament’s Services said. Murder currently becomes time-barred after 30 years, and the new proposal would keep that rule.

The majority of the Council of States committee said victims’ interests could also be addressed by extending the limitation period for intentional killing and other offences from 15 to 30 years. Parliament intends to align that period with the 30-year limit for murder.

The Council of States is expected to consider the issue again in the autumn.

The reform was initiated by the canton of St Gallen, which called for the 30-year limitation period to be removed for offences carrying a life sentence. The Council of States committee limited its proposal to murder.

In Switzerland, crimes against humanity, genocide, war crimes and certain sexual offences against children currently have no statute of limitations. The proposal to add murder to that list was rejected during the consultation process.