The Grillo appeal trial will face off head-on starting Thursday. The parties have already filed important documents in Sassari, clearly revealing the plaintiff's line of attack, as well as the very strong arguments presented by the defense of Ciro Grillo , son of Beppe Grillo, founder of the Five Star Movement; Edoardo Capitta; Vittorio Lauria; and Francesco Corsiglia.
The four boys (born in 2000, all from Genoa) were convicted in the first instance of sexual assault against a student.
Criminal lawyer Giulia Bongiorno (Chair of the Senate Justice Committee), the civil plaintiff's attorney, has filed a 700-page brief supporting the conviction issued by the judges of the Tempio Tribunal. Bongiorno's brief, regarding the events that occurred between July 16 and 17, 2019, in Porto Cervo, lists the very serious charges and arguments against the four young men. The criminal lawyer recounts every aspect of the ruling and "supports" it with additional evidence. Bongiorno describes the devastating consequences for the victim of the alleged gang rape.
However, the defense attorneys (Antonella Cuccureddu, Mariano Mameli, Ernesto Monteverde, Enrico Grillo, Andrea Vernazza, and Alessandro Vaccaro) also offer very harsh arguments. The four men's lawyers are requesting a new trial due to a failure to properly assess the evidence and methodological errors in assessing the victim's credibility. Two issues appear particularly serious, at least according to the defense's position. One is the failure to read the witness statements during the hearing following the change in the Tempio Tribunal panel (the transfer of Judge Nicola Bonante to his colleague Alessandro Cossu). Another issue highlighted by Grillo and his friends' lawyers is the violation of the right to a fair hearing by failing to interview the young man accused of rape by the victim in Norway. This young man has been accused of rape, a matter deemed relevant by the defense. The witness was never heard, due to the "superfluity of the testimony."
