[world] mass pardon rattles italy
There are some things only the Italians can do [apart from winning world cups]:
12,000 detainees in Italy have just been released or are about to walk free thanks to a mass pardon pushed through by Romano Prodi's centre-left government to reduce prison overcrowding.
Justice Minister Clemente Mastella says the July 29 pardon, which cuts three years off sentences including for convicted murderers and thieves, was an overdue act of clemency in a jail system cramming 62,000 inmates into prisons meant for 42,000.
In the first few days after the amnesty came into effect, at least 18 pardoned detainees were re-arrested within hours of their release because they were found committing new crimes. In the northern city of Udine, a man convicted for abusing his family went straight home and tried to strangle his wife.
A 32-year-old drug addict was found dead shortly after being freed in Milan, killed by an overdose. The far-right Northern League has distributed leaflets with advice on how to apply for a gun licence. "We are not encouraging people to take the law into their own hands. But if honest citizens feel in danger, they have a right to know how to lawfully get a gun," said Senator Massimo Polledri.
A police trade union, which complains of understaffing, advised Romans to cancel their holidays and guard their homes. "In Rome alone, 2,000 detainees are being set free. Many have no place to go to, they are bound to commit a new offence soon," Palmerino Paniccia of the Consap union told Reuters.
Local authorities say all is well and that Mafiosi, terrorists, rapists, paedophiles, armed gangsters and those who prostitute minors are excluded from the pardon.
Well, that’s a relief then, isn’t it?
12,000 detainees in Italy have just been released or are about to walk free thanks to a mass pardon pushed through by Romano Prodi's centre-left government to reduce prison overcrowding.
Justice Minister Clemente Mastella says the July 29 pardon, which cuts three years off sentences including for convicted murderers and thieves, was an overdue act of clemency in a jail system cramming 62,000 inmates into prisons meant for 42,000.
In the first few days after the amnesty came into effect, at least 18 pardoned detainees were re-arrested within hours of their release because they were found committing new crimes. In the northern city of Udine, a man convicted for abusing his family went straight home and tried to strangle his wife.
A 32-year-old drug addict was found dead shortly after being freed in Milan, killed by an overdose. The far-right Northern League has distributed leaflets with advice on how to apply for a gun licence. "We are not encouraging people to take the law into their own hands. But if honest citizens feel in danger, they have a right to know how to lawfully get a gun," said Senator Massimo Polledri.
A police trade union, which complains of understaffing, advised Romans to cancel their holidays and guard their homes. "In Rome alone, 2,000 detainees are being set free. Many have no place to go to, they are bound to commit a new offence soon," Palmerino Paniccia of the Consap union told Reuters.
Local authorities say all is well and that Mafiosi, terrorists, rapists, paedophiles, armed gangsters and those who prostitute minors are excluded from the pardon.
Well, that’s a relief then, isn’t it?
posted by James Higham @ 14:01
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