On December 27, 2023, at 8.30 pm, the agents of the State Police they went to via Francesco Tedesco ad Avellino, near the National Shooting Range, to respond to a report of a person in a state of agitation who was harassing passers-by. The report had come from the operations room.
On site, the officers met the applicant for the intervention, who reported that she had been annoyed by a man, a 44-year-old Moroccan. The woman said the man was walking behind her, shouting and throwing trash cans on the ground. When she changed sidewalks in an attempt to get away, the 44-year-old followed her and threw a backpack at her. Frightened, the woman found refuge in a butcher’s shop in the area, whose owner promptly closed the door and blocked it with his body, preventing the man from entering.
Pointed out to the officers, the man was staggering away in the direction of Corso Umberto I. The soldiers reached him and subjected him to checks not without difficulty, given that the 44-year-old was in a state of strong alteration, probably due to the intake of alcohol. To make sure that he did not have weapons with him, the officers carried out a search of his person and backpack, which had a negative result.
During the search, the man maintained a non-cooperative and aggressive attitude, going so far as to suddenly lash out at the operator, attempting to remove the gun from the officer’s holster. Thanks to the safety systems of the holster and the resistance of the operator, he did not succeed in his intent. The timely intervention made it possible to neutralize the man without causing him physical injury.
The 44-year-old was declared under arrest and taken to the offices for the formalities. At his request, 118 medical personnel were called to check his vital parameters, which were found to be normal. Subjected to photo-fingerprint tests, he was found to have specific police records and a report in a state of freedom dated 16 October 2023 for irregular entry into the national territory.
During the validation hearing on 28 December 2023, the 44-year-old made short spontaneous statements, stating: “What happened was bad, but I didn’t do it on purpose, I got nervous, also because I was very tired”.
In relation to the crime, the Court of Cassation clarified that the typical conduct of this crime takes the form of the use of violence or threats to oppose a public official while he carries out an act of his office or service. The jurisprudence specifies that a direct or personal threat is not necessary; any coercion, even moral, is sufficient, as long as it is capable of constraining the public official’s freedom of action.
The 44-year-old’s conduct was fully integrated into the disputed case. His spontaneous statements, although implicitly confirming the facts, were not considered sufficient to exclude liability.
Considering the seriousness of the facts and the personality of the accused, the judge decided not to grant generic mitigating circumstances. The sentence was set at one year and eight months of imprisonment, reduced by the abbreviated procedure from a basic sentence of two years and six months. The accused was also sentenced to pay the court costs and precautionary custody costs, without granting the conditional suspension of the sentence or the benefit of non-mention in the criminal record certificate. The precautionary needs relating to the danger of repetition of the crime were considered concrete and current, justifying the inframural custodial measure in place.
Now, a twist before the Court of Appeal of Naples – I Criminal Section. The request of the man’s trusted defender was accepted, the lawyer Chiara Preziosi. Given the opinion of the judicial police, considering that the 44-year-old has already spent five months in prison, considering that the precautionary needs of the accused coincide with the home detention regime, the request presented by the lawyer Preziosi was fully accepted, ordering the the immediate release of the man and the attenuation of the measure in place with that of house arrest.
