Bernardo De Bernardinis

Go to Database Search Page

Go to Database Index Page

Charge:	Manslaughter
Sentence:	6 years
Years Imprisoned:
Year Crime:	2009
Year Convicted:	2012
Year Cleared:	2014
U.S. State or Country of Crime:	Italy
County or Region of Crime:
City of Crime:	L'Aquila
Result:	Judicially Exonerated
Summary of Case:	"Franco Barberi, Enzo Boschi, Gian Michele Calvi, Bernardo De Bernardinis, Mauro Dolce, Claudio Eva, and Giulio Selvaggi were seven Italian scientists and co-defendants wrongly convicted on October 21, 2012 of multiple counts of manslaughter and bodily harm for failing to predict an earthquake that devastated the medieval town of L'Aquila in 2009, killing 309 people. The seven defendants were all members of the National Commission for the Forecast and Prevention of Major Risks. They were accused of having provided "inaccurate, incomplete and contradictory" information about the danger of the tremors felt ahead of the April 6, 2009 earthquake. Their trial began in September 2011, and they were convicted in October 2012 Each of the seven was sentenced to six years in prison, and they were jointly ordered to pay damages of €7.8 million (Euros) to families of earthquake victims. Following the guilty verdicts, more than 5,000 scientists support the convicted experts by signing an open letter to Italian President Giorgio Napolitano that their convictions represented a fundamental misunderstanding of earthquake science. The defendants appealed and on November 10, 2014 Judge Fabrizia Ida Francabandera vacated their convictions, ruling there was no case for the defendants to answer."
Conviction Caused By:
Innocence Proved By:	"On November 10, 2014 Judge Fabrizia Ida Francabandera vacated their convictions, ruling there was no case for the defendants to answer."
Defendant Aided By:
Compensation Awarded:
Was Perpetrator Identified?
Age When Imprisoned:
Age When Released:
Sex:	Male
Skin/Ethnicity:
Information Source 1:	"L'Aquila quake: Scientists see convictions overturned, By Staff writers, BBC News, November 10, 2014"
Information Location 1:	http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-29996872
Information Source 2:	"L'Aquila quake: Italy scientists guilty of manslaughter, By Staff writers, BBC News, October 22, 2012"
Information Location 2:	http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-20025626
Information Source 3:	"Italian Scientists Jailed for Failing to Predict L’Aquila Earthquake, By Umberto Bacchi (Staff writer), International Business Times, October 22, 2012"
Information Location 3:	http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/scientists-jailed-italy-earthquake-l-aquila-396955
Information Source 4:
Information Location 4:
Information Source 5:
Information Location 5:
Book About Case:
Book Information:
Book About Case (2):
Book Information (2):
Movie About Case:
Comments About Case:

Go to Database Search Page

Go to Database Index Page

Bernardo De Bernardinis

Charge:

Manslaughter

Sentence:

6 years

Years Imprisoned:

Year Crime:

2009

Year Convicted:

2012

Year Cleared:

2014

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

Italy

County or Region of Crime:

City of Crime:

L'Aquila

Result:

Judicially Exonerated

Summary of Case:

Conviction Caused By:

Innocence Proved By:

"On November 10, 2014 Judge Fabrizia Ida Francabandera vacated their convictions, ruling there was no case for the defendants to answer."

Defendant Aided By:

Compensation Awarded:

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Age When Imprisoned:

Age When Released:

Sex:

Male

Skin/Ethnicity:

Information Source 1:

"L'Aquila quake: Scientists see convictions overturned, By Staff writers, BBC News, November 10, 2014"

Information Location 1:

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-29996872

Information Source 2:

"L'Aquila quake: Italy scientists guilty of manslaughter, By Staff writers, BBC News, October 22, 2012"

Information Location 2:

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-20025626

Information Source 3:

"Italian Scientists Jailed for Failing to Predict L’Aquila Earthquake, By Umberto Bacchi (Staff writer), International Business Times, October 22, 2012"

Information Location 3:

http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/scientists-jailed-italy-earthquake-l-aquila-396955

Information Source 4:

Information Location 4:

Information Source 5:

Information Location 5:

Book About Case:

Book Information:

Book About Case (2):

Book Information (2):

Movie About Case:

Comments About Case: