Kernrechtsfrage
Whether the appellate court could, despite the prohibition of reformatio in peius, replace an unconditional prison sentence with a conditional prison sentence and add a fine when only the accused appealed.
Extrahierter Entscheid
Yes. The accused was not placed in a worse position because the conditional prison sentence was more favorable than the unconditional one, and the additional fine did not constitute an impermissible worsening under the circumstances.
Extrahierte Begründung
The court held that reformatio in peius is excluded only if the appellate judgment results in a genuine increase in punishment. Whether there is a worsening must be assessed objectively. A combination of a more favorable custodial sentence with a fine is permissible where the overall modification does not amount to a direct aggravation of the sentence imposed by the lower court.