TV report about wine merchant Giroud was factual
Dominique Giroud, wine trader from Valais, has once again been dismissed by the Federal Supreme Court. The Lausanne judges have rejected his complaint in connection with the broadcast of a report of the French-speaking Swiss television (RTS) in December 2013.
They thus confirm the ruling of the Independent Complaints Authority for Radio and Television (UBI). Giroud had criticized that the barely four-minute report had not been appropriate. The report dealt with the accusations of tax fraud and wine adulteration.
In the meantime, first-instance verdicts have been handed down on the first point. Mr. Giroud was sentenced to a conditional fine of 150 daily sentences of 300 Swiss francs for violations in connection with the value added tax. Moreover, another conditional fine of 180 daily rates in the same amount was imposed on the wine trader in connection with the direct federal tax. The proceedings concerning the alleged wine adulteration, however, were discontinued in December 2014.
With regard to the TV report, the Federal Supreme Court concludes that the lower court ruled correctly. Neither did the UBI violate the right to be heard nor did it arbitrarily determine the facts of the case. Nevertheless, the disputed report is a borderline case that definitely shows certain deficiencies, the Lausanne judges further state. (Judgment 2C_255/2015 of 01.03.2016) (SDA)
