Italian Code of Criminal Procedure
[3] There are other parties that are optional, and they are: the Polizia Giudiziaria (Judiciary Police, a branch of the police whose duty is to help a prosecutor during his investigations),[4] the parte lesa (the injured party),[5] the responsabile civile (civilly liable, who can be compelled to pay damages, if the defendant is not solvent) and the civilmente obbligato per la pena pecuniaria (civilly liable, who can be compelled to pay the fines, if the defendant is not solvent).
[7] When a Pubblico Ministero or a member of Polizia Giudiziaria becomes aware of the fact that a crime was committed, he must begin his investigation: in Italy, the public prosecutor has the duty to initiate criminal proceedings.
There are many kinds of precautionary measures:[11] The defendant or the prosecutor can appeal against the order of the Judge before the Tribunale della Libertà (Court of Liberty).
The CL (Court of Liberty) actually reviews all the evidence and must render its decision within ten days from the appeal.
When a person who is neither an indagato (suspect) nor an imputato (defendant), interrogated by the police or the prosecutor, reveals pieces of information that might lead to his incrimination, the interrogation must be immediately stopped, the person must be invited to nominate a lawyer and be warned that the information disclosed may render necessary an investigation.
[12] The police or the prosecutor summon the indagato, during the preliminary investigations, and inform him precisely of the actions he is alleged to have committed (not yet technically a charge); they also inform him of the evidence so far gathered against him, if this is not detrimental to the investigations; the indagato is also invited to defend himself, if he so wishes; the police or the prosecutor can also ask him questions, that he may refuse to answer.
The police or the prosecutor cannot use on the indagato any methods or techniques that may influence his right to self-determination or alter his memory or his capability to evaluate facts.
If the Prosecutor does not serve this notice, the decreto di rinvio al giudizio (indictment) is null and void.
[16] When the preliminary investigations are over, if the Pubblico Ministero thinks that the evidence he gathered could not justify a conviction, he must archiviare the notitia criminis (he must drop the charges).
[18] Before the JPH, the Pubblico Ministero presents all the evidence he has gathered so far; the defendant can make his case and try to prove his innocence.
The JPH, if convinced of the defendant's innocence or that the evidence gathered would not be enough to justify a guilty verdict, passes a sentence of non luogo a procedere (no grounds to proceed).
Should new evidence be found, the Prosecutor may ask the Judge for the Preliminary Investigations (JPI) that this judgement be revoked.
If, on the contrary, the JPH thinks that the evidence gathered so far is enough to justify a guilty verdict, he issues a decreto (order or decree [19]) of rinvio al giudizio (indictment).
No defendant may be proven guilty on the basis of testimony given by witnesses who freely and purposely avoided cross-examination by the defense.
Plus, all the experiments, conducted during the preliminary investigations, must be repeated as possible and so on, to allow the defendant to actually participate in the process of formazione della prova (proof formation).
For a defendant to be convicted, the Judge must be internally convinced (Italian law requires the Judge's intimo convincimento); because of that, there are no rules that predetermine the weight to be attributed to any given piece of evidence, so even credible admissions [of guilt] can do no more than reduce the amount of extrinsic evidence necessary for a finding of guilt.
The Judge ad quem (the one the case is remanded to) can try de novo the defendant, but must conform to the contingent points of law applied by the Court of Cassation.
The Italian criminal system has a statute limiting the time for prosecution of all crimes, apart from felonies punishable by life imprisonment, to a period of time equalling the maximum penalty provided for by law, which cannot, though, be less than six years for delitti (felonies) and four years for contravvenzioni (misdemeanours).
It is not enough that the criminal suit be started before the statute of limitations runs out: it is the definitive sentence (possibly involving three trials) that must be handed down before the term expires.
When it appears manifest that the indagato has committed the crime, if this does not seriously compromise the investigations, and when the indagato has been interrogated, or, summoned before the public prosecutor, has not appeared, or when the imputato is under provisional arrest, the public prosecutor can apply to the Judge for the Preliminary Investigations for the immediate trial.
[28] The application must indicate the evidence gathered so far and the punishment considered adequate, which can be diminished to up to half the penalty imposed by law.
When new evidence is discovered that by itself or together with that presented during the trial might justify an acquittal, the convict, his next of kin, his guardian, his heir (if the convict is dead) or the Procuratore Generale presso la Corte d'Appello (the Public Prosecutor attached to the Court of Appeals) may apply to the Court of Appeals for a review of trial.
