Born in Riesi, Sicily, Roccella was one of the founders of the Radical Party (PR) in 1955.

He failed re-election in 1983, but returned to the chamber in July 1984 after the resignation of Giovanni Negri.

[2][3] In February 1986, he moved to the Italian Socialist Party (PSI), with whom he served the remainder of his term until 1987.

[3] Roccella married the feminist painter Wanda Raheli with whom he had a daughter, Eugenia, who also became a politician and journalist.

Briefly a candidate for his party in the late 1970s, she returned to politics in the 2000s espousing social conservative views including opposition to abortion, and was named Minister for Family, Natality and Equal Opportunities in the Meloni Cabinet in 2022.