[5][3] On 3 August 1849 Pironti was arrested and tried for having founded the underground patriotic organization “Grande Società dell'Unità Italiana” with Luigi Settembrini, it:Filippi Agresti and others.

[1][6][7][5][4] The British ambassador made representations on his behalf to the Neapolitan authorities[8] The conditions of his confinement were so harsh that he eventually became paralyzed and lost the use of his legs.

[4][9] According to some sources, he eventually escaped with Settembrini and other political prisoners when they managed to divert a ship taking them into exile from its course to New York and landed in Cork, Ireland.

[3][13] After the unification of Italy, on 17 September 1860 he was appointed councilor of the Supreme Court of Naples and in January 1861 he was elected deputy from the constituency of Nocera Inferiore.

He declined to take his seat however, due to his appointment from 25 July to 27 October as general secretary of Justice under the Royal Lieutenant in Naples, Enrico Cialdini.

After the 1876 general election Italy’s new left wing government under Agostino Depretis appointed Pironti to Ancona as the first president of the court of appeal, but he never took up this post after supporters applied pressure for him to be given a more desirable position.