Tag: in absentia

The assessment of torture charges in a public criminal trial meets a constitutional and supranational obligation: the uncooperative conduct of one's own State in the notification of the trial legitimises a trial in absence, without prejudice to the right of the accused himself to a new trial in presence for the re-examination of the merits of the case. 

Italy violates fair trial rights not granting an effective fresh determination of the merits of the charges against who whas been convicted without effective knowledge of the trial in accordance with the requirements of Article 6 ECHR.

In in absentia convictions prior to 2014, the 30 days term from surrender to Italy for requesting retrial set in Italian  Code of Criminal Procedure constitutes a favorable term as well as an additional guarantee with respect to the ordinary term of 30 days from the date of effective knowledge of the conviction: nothing precludes the defendant to file a retrial request before surrender within 30 days form arrest. 

Under Italian law, a in-absentia-convicted defendant may obtain the rescission of the judgment, if she/he proves that the absence is due to an non culpable lack of knowledge of  the trial: art 629 bis Italian criminal procedure code rules that it's the convicted person who must prove that 1) she/he had no knowledge of the trial, and 2) that the lack of knowledge was not due to her/his fault. 

 

Request of mutual assistance in serving an execution order to an attorney canno automatically leads to an effective knowkledge presumtpio of the in absentia conviction.

The right to attend an own hearing is a fundamental requirement of a fair trial: if the defendant is detained abroad, the Italian trial should halt. 

Italian in absentia conviction cannot be justified with effective knowledge deriving an Interpol red notice arrest. 

The request for "rescission of the judgment" (rescissione del giudicato)  applies only to proceedings in which the absence of the defendant has been declared pursuant to Article 420-bis of the…

The Italian rules governing the retrial of in absentia conviction do not meet European convention on Human rights' standard, because they do not grant the defendant the right to adduce new evidence and disputethe evidence gathered in his absence.

The Italian rules governing the retrial of in absentia convictions do not respect human dignity.