PADUA – Angelantonio Racanelli, from Thursday, is the new head of the Padua Prosecutor’s Office. He appointed him by majority, with 21 votes, of the plenum of the Superior Council of the Judiciary. Racanelli was appointed to the Superior Council of the Judiciary in the 2010-2014 consiliatura with the Independent Judiciary, a group of which he was also secretary. In the judiciary since 1990 Racanelli, 60 years old and originally from Bari, he was first a substitute at Sanremo, then spent the rest of his career in Rome. During his work at the capital’s prosecutor’s office, first as a deputy and then as an assistant, he dealt with cybercrime and was responsible for the pool of magistrates for the protection of cultural heritage.
Prosecutor, does a staff shortage persist here in Padua as in the rest of Italy?
«Yes, as now throughout the country, the judicial organization suffers from a shortage of both judicial and above all administrative personnel: I have noticed, however, that in this city and in this region there is a strong sensitivity on the part of the local authorities to make up for to the serious shortage of administrative staff through agreements and various collaboration projects. I think, for example, of the vigilant grandparents who also lend a hand in the Prosecutor’s Office. Then there is the phenomenon of escape from justice, in the sense that many prefer to go to work at the Revenue or Customs agency where the pay is higher.”
The numbers of this staff gap?
«Padua is currently missing two substitutes and the assistant, Valeria Peruzzo will arrive from the Treviso prosecutor’s office in July, but Cecilia Baravelli will leave. At an administrative level, the Prosecutor’s Office should count on 62 people, instead it would be 42. I use the conditional, because even from this figure there are defections down to just 33 presences. In essence, the staff shortage is 50 percent. Not to mention the drivers. There should be four serving in the Prosecutor’s Office, but at the moment only one is operational and he will retire from October 1st. Their task is also to transport important files to the Attorney General’s Office.”
Padua, in recent months, has been in the national news due to the case of the rainbow mothers
«The ruling of the Court of Padua was challenged by the Attorney General and the Interior Ministry. Having said that, there is full confidence in the actions of the judges. It cannot be denied, however, that in the past on several occasions we have witnessed phenomena of undue substitution of the judiciary and certainly the inertia, or in some cases the inability of the legislator to clearly and clearly address some fundamental issues does not help. It is sufficient to think of the numerous cases in which the sometimes repeated invitations made by the Constitutional Court to Parliament to intervene in certain matters remain ignored”.
As in the rest of the country, also in Padua the environmentalist movement Ultima Generazione has implemented a whole series of actions that have ended up in the sights of the Prosecutor’s Office.
«They are often illegal demonstrations that endanger our heritage. We need to think about legislative initiatives to stop these phenomena, for example by providing for optional arrest in the event of a violation of article 518 duodecies of the penal code.”
Padua and its province are an area plagued by drug dealing. How is it possible to put a stop to the phenomenon?
«By operating more in the area with the police forces. Padua is a rich city, so for many it is also easier to obtain drugs.”
Do you have a message for the people of Padua?
«I will try, together with my colleagues, to guarantee, while respecting people and the rules, an effective response to the demand for justice coming from citizens and the territory. In Padua my father, who passed away, underwent a delicate operation thirty years ago. While my mother is deeply tied to this city for religious reasons. I also take this opportunity to thank my wife.”
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