League vs. Bandecchi in court in Terni. PM asks for dismissal but the mayor wants it ‘full’

06 Jun 2024 1.14pm

It will be up to the court of Terni – investigating judge Barbara Di Giovannantonio – to decide whether the mayor of Terni, Stefano Bandecchi, will have to be judged for the accusation of defamation in relation to the complaint filed last October by the secretary of the League of Terni, Devid Maggiora, after some Instagram content by Bandecchi himself, in response to the controversies raised by the League regarding safety in Terni. It is reported by theHandle. “I knew that there is a lot of drugs in Terni – he wrote in one of Bandecchi’s posts – but I didn’t imagine that political subjects also used them”. On the matter, the Terni prosecutor’s office – in the person of prosecutor Raffaele Pesiri – requested the dismissal of the proceedings due to the ‘particular tenuousness of the fact’. A request which the Terni League opposed, hence the hearing on Thursday morning in front of the investigating judge. In the courtroom – also present Stefano Bandecchi – the defense of the mayor of Terni, represented by the lawyers Carlo Pacelli and Giorgio Panebianco, requested the dismissal due to ‘unfoundedness of the crime report’, with consequent full absolution. On the other hand, the secretary of the League of Terni, through the lawyer Sara Napoleoni replacing her colleague Simone Pillon, requested the indictment, and therefore the trial, for the mayor. The investigating judge reserved his decision.

The complainant – Devid Maggiora – has his say and summarizes the story from his point of view: «In October 2023, through a press release, I wanted to bring the problems related to safety in the city to public attention. I would have expected a response from Bandecchi relating to the topic discussed and a constructive attitude, but instead I was addressed via social media with defamatory phrases that were highly damaging to my personal dignity. I therefore decided to report the incident. In my life I have always repudiated any type of narcotic substance and I have always fought against the use of drugs, including soft ones. I have decided to undertake this legal action not only to defend my reputation, but also to reiterate the importance of respectful and civil political dialogue, fundamental for the good of the Terni community, but which for some months has left room for foul language and verbal attacks that are aimed almost daily at those who express thoughts different from those of the mayor.”