The head prosecutor of Milan's appeals
court has appealed a sentence clearing a former trade unionist
of sexual assault on the grounds that his alleged victim took
too long to react, saying that sexual violence can only be
determined based on whether the encounter is consensual,
judicial sources said Friday.
In the appeal to Italy's supreme Cassation Court, prosecutor
general Angelo Renna wrote that the existence of sexual violence
can't be established by a court based on the "timing of
reaction" of a presumed victim, implying that "a sexual
encounter that lasts for a period of time of 20 or maximum 30
seconds" can't be non-consensual.
"The willingness of the victim is far from irrelevant", wrote
Renna.
On June 24, an appeals court in Milan upheld a first-instance
verdict, ruling that the trade unionist's alleged victim, a
hostess, took too long - 20 seconds - to react to his alleged
assault at Milan's Malpensa airport in 2018.
The appeals court cleared the defendant saying the timeframe of
the alleged violence, "20-30 seconds" would have "enabled her to
flee".
However the sentence, wrote Renna, goes against the most recent
rulings on consent by "implicitly considering as totally
irrelevant the victim's dissent and its acknowledgement by the
defendant".
The court, moreover, did not give relevance to the woman's
testimony, said Renna.
The sentence was blasted by women's rights group Associazione
Differenza Donna with attorney Maria Teresa Manente slamming it
as a step "back 30 years".
Manente has also announced she will appeal to the Cassation
Court on behalf of the alleged victim.
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