The Tuscan Archipelago National Park welcomes with satisfaction the decision of the Court of Grosseto to dismiss the criminal proceedings against the President Giampiero Sammuri and the Director Maurizio Burlando. The investigation concerned the accusation of killing animals for cruelty or without necessity, in relation to the mouflon eradication activities on the Island of Giglio, as part of the LIFE LetsGoGiglio project financed by the European Community.
The Judge considered the arguments of the Public Prosecutor who had requested the dismissal on 22 December 2023 to be valid. Despite the opposition presented by the “Vitadacani ODV” Association and the “Centro Recupero Ricci La Ninna” – whose manager, moreover, was sent to trial for defamation against President Sammuri himself – the Court established that the conditions for configuring the contested crime did not exist. In particular, it was highlighted that the conduct of the suspects took place as part of a complex administrative process, approved and authorized by various institutional subjects at national and European level, which also included the technical-scientific opinion of ISPRA.
The Judge concluded that the actions of President Sammuri and Director Burlando, representing the Park Authority, were aimed at protecting the ecosystem of the Tuscan Archipelago, of which the island of Giglio is part, and not driven by cruelty or absence of necessity. The activities envisaged by the project, supported by authoritative technical-scientific opinions, fall within the administrative and technical discretion of the Park Authority and were conducted in full compliance with current regulations. The Court of Grosseto therefore ordered the dismissal of the criminal proceedings, excluding at the root any charges against the leaders of the Park Authority.
The Tuscan Archipelago National Park receives the favorable outcome of this legal case which, if on the one hand highlights the importance of the work carried out for the conservation of the natural heritage of the Tuscan Archipelago, on the other hand reaffirms in unequivocal terms the functions of the parks and of nature reserves regarding the management of wildlife and the fight against invasive alien species, in full compliance with global and European agreements and directives and national legislation.
Attached act of the Court of Grosseto
