Prosecutors cancel Jessica Moretti's confrontation hearing after alleged violence by her husband

Hearing cancelled

Valais prosecutors have dropped a planned confrontation hearing between Jacques and Jessica Moretti, the owners of the Le Constellation bar in Crans-Montana. The session was scheduled for Monday, 2 November 2026 in Sion. In a letter dated 27 October to the lawyers involved in the case, the two prosecutors said they would not hear Jessica Moretti at that session. Only Jacques Moretti is now due to answer questions that day, and the criminal investigation into the fire of 1 January at the bar continues.

“In view of the last paragraph of the psychotherapeutic report, we have decided not to hear Jessica Moretti.”

Psychotherapeutic certificate

Jessica Moretti's lawyers, Yaël Hayat and Nicola Meier, sent the prosecutors a psychotherapeutic certificate on 26 October. A psychologist issued the document on 2 October, and the Swiss broadcaster RTS obtained its contents. According to the certificate, Jessica Moretti is in a particularly severe state of psychological fragility. The psychologist wrote that she already showed acute post-traumatic stress linked to the fire before the recent physical attack by her husband, and that the ongoing court proceedings add a heavy burden. The psychologist described the prospect of facing her husband in a joint hearing as a particularly destabilising confrontation.

Alleged violence and arrest

Jacques Moretti is suspected of violence against his wife. Blick reports that neighbours heard screams in the couple's shared home in Lens, Valais, during the night of 11 to 12 August 2026, called emergency services, and that police arrested him. Media reports said Jessica Moretti's injuries were serious enough to require hospital treatment. Jacques Moretti is in pre-trial detention and, according to Le Temps, is undergoing a psychiatric assessment. Her lawyers say she has not seen her husband since the alleged attack, so the planned hearing would have been their first meeting since his detention.

Lawyers' position and next steps

The lawyers wrote that their client remains concerned about the continuation of the investigation and wanted to attend the hearing so she could keep answering questions, as she has done until now. They asked that breaks or suspensions be allowed during her testimony because of her health. The prosecutors' letter, however, judged that a confrontation appeared contraindicated because it carried a real risk of acute psychological decompensation. The prosecutors said it was clinically strongly recommended to postpone the 2 November hearing. A second confrontation hearing remains scheduled for 2 December, although that date could also change.

Memorials for the anniversary

The municipality of Crans-Montana plans two temporary memorial sites for the anniversary of the tragedy. The first will be at the location of the bar itself, where the burned facade will be covered so relatives can have the names of their loved ones added. The second is a covered area near the Saint-Christophe chapel, where relatives and visitors can leave personal belongings and keepsakes of the victims. Both sites are meant to serve until a permanent monument is built. A light installation with star-shaped effects is also planned at Lake Grenon, to be lit on the nights of 31 December and 1 January from 21:00 to 02:00. The official commemoration takes place on 1 January at 10:00 in Grône, Valais.