Good life and morals

Good life and morals

The criminal record is a federal register governed by articles 365 et seq. of the Criminal Code. These legal provisions specify which offences must be recorded and for how long. In particular, judgements for felonies or misdemeanours are recorded in the criminal record, provided, of course, that a sentence or measure has been imposed. The certificate of good conduct is governed by the cantons and there is no definition at federal level. In the canton of Vaud, for example, the law does not lay down the conditions for granting it or even what it contains, and the attestation of good conduct - as it is also known - is issued at municipal level on the basis of information from criminal records and police files. In Geneva, on the other hand, the law on police information and records and the issuing of certificates of good conduct (LCBVM) sets out the conditions that must be met for this document to be issued. Article 9 of the LCBVM stipulates that the certificate of good conduct must attest to the applicant's good reputation. Generally speaking, it contains no details of the applicant's criminal record, and the mere fact that it has been issued means that the applicant's good social behaviour can be taken for granted. Article 10 of the LCBVM stipulates that a certificate of good conduct will not be issued to anyone whose criminal record contains a custodial sentence, or to anyone whose good character can be denied with certainty on the basis of well-founded complaints about his or her behaviour or repeated offences, such as drunkenness or drug addiction. It is not necessary to have been convicted in order to be refused a certificate of good conduct, as long as current cases can be taken into consideration. A person with a clean criminal record may therefore be refused a certificate of good conduct, with the result that, unlike a criminal record, the authority responsible for issuing a certificate of good conduct enjoys a relatively high degree of discretion.