The preliminary hearing for Andrea Sempio, accused by the Pavia Prosecutor's Office of the murder of Chiara Poggi in Garlasco on August 13, 2007, will begin on February 25. Court President Enrica Bertolotto announced the news in a statement. The preliminary hearing judge who will decide whether or not to commit Sempio to trial is Luigi Umberto Riganti.
Before deciding whether to send Sempio to trial, Riganti will have to resolve the issue of whether, in the absence of a review of the definitive 16-year sentence handed down to Alberto Stasi, it is possible or not to proceed against the 38-year-old .
The Stasi issue and the exception of unconstitutionality
Sempio's defense attorneys, Liborio Cataliotti and Angela Taccia, believe their client cannot be tried for the same "crime" for which Stasi (who is currently excluded from the preliminary hearing) has already been definitively deemed the sole culprit . They will therefore request a suspension of the hearing pending a ruling on the motion for review that the former Bocconi graduate's defense attorneys will submit in the coming days in Brescia. Alternatively, they will ask the preliminary hearing judge in Pavia to raise a constitutional issue.
" The objection of unconstitutionality is ready to prevent two trials from being held concurrently , one for review and the other against the new defendant," lawyer Liborio Cataliotti reiterated in a video released to the media after notification of the preliminary hearing date.
"We are obviously ready to face the prosecution from all angles, both evidentiary, legal, and strictly scientific," he said. "To this end, we just yesterday convened the entire defense team to divide the relevant arguments among the various consultants."
The accusations
The request for trial against Sempio dates back to November 3rd. The office, led by prosecutor Fabio Napoleone, charged the defendant with aggravated voluntary manslaughter: Sempio allegedly "acted cruelly toward the victim, given the brutality of the murder, given the number and extent of the wounds inflicted," including "at least 12 injuries to the skull and face." He also allegedly "committed the crime for vile motives, attributable to hatred" for the 26-year-old woman, who "refused" his advances . Chiara's parents and brother will not join the civil action.
(Unioneonline)
