Italië benadrukt problematiek gevangenissen EU (en)

LONDON - The Italian Senate recently announced it would take action against one of the most persistent of the Italian’s justice system's problems - the overuse of pre-trial detention.

A new law is to be introduced, which will give particular consideration to minor crimes, ruling that where a crime is punishable by less than five years in jail, pre-trial detention should be limited only to the most exceptional circumstances.

Fair Trials International has held concerns over the use of pre-trial detention across Europe, and so is pleased that the Senate has recognised the extent of this problem in Italy.

Reports estimate that around 40 percent of the Italian prison population are awaiting trial, significantly higher than the EU average.

This clearly has a knock-on effect for prison overcrowding, and many Italian prisons are running at around 150 percent capacity - a fact highlighted in Fair Trials’ recent study.

However, despite this positive step, there remains some cause for caution.

Our experience from working in other criminal justice systems - including Hungary, Greece and Spain - is that legislative safeguards such as this new offering from Italy can sometimes be ignored or abused by judges and prosecutors.

Our recent report on Greece, for example, showed how judges were able to get around an 18-month limit on the use of pre-trial detention - often by filing multiple charges for a single offence.

Time will tell as to whether this proves to be the case in Italy, but in fact, the country already has strict limits on the use of pre-trial detention.

According to Italian law, pre-trial detention is to be used only as a measure of last resort and provided certain conditions are met. Judges must recognise a real risk that the suspect will commit further offence, tamper with the evidence, or abscond from proceedings.

On the evidence available, it is hard to say these exisiting laws have made much of a difference.

We hope that these new laws do have an effect, but at the same time Fair Trials recognises the need for the European Union to follow up on its promise of minimum standards for the use of pre-trial detention.

This would provide a clear and consistent level of protection across all 28 Member States, ensuring that all aspects of the process are fully covered (including the right to regular review of detention decisions).

Unlike Council of Europe standards, these can be enforced by the European Commission and can also be upheld directly in domestic and European courts.

The extent of the pre-trial detention problem has been recognised by the European Commission and the European Parliament (which voted for action on the issue), as well as the Council of Europe.

Italy provides a clear reminder of the need for EU action, but the issue goes beyond prison overcrowding. When suspects are held in detention it can be extremely difficult to communicate with their lawyer, making it harder for them to prepare a defence.

Lawyers have also reported that, in some EU countries, prosecutors use the threat of lengthy pre-trial detention to coerce suspects into pleading guilty - a grave violation of the right to a fair trial.

We hope the Italian government will add its voice to the growing number of governments and NGOs supporting Fair Trials’ recommendations to end the excessive and unjustified use of pre-trial detention in the EU.

Alex Tinsley, is a law reform officer at Fair Trials International, a London-based NGO