Italy approves law for drug-addicted inmates to serve sentences at home

Italy's Chamber of Deputies has passed a landmark law that will allow drug and alcohol-dependent inmates to serve their sentences under house arrest or in protected facilities. The bill, which passed with broad support from the majority, aims to alleviate severe overcrowding in Italian prisons.

The new legislation is expected to impact approximately 10,000 inmates, a significant portion of the country's prison population, which exceeds 64,000 against a capacity of around 52,000. To qualify for alternative detention, inmates must commit to undergoing treatment programs, and their unserved sentence must not exceed eight years.

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It is an epochal measure because it allows for the alternative detention of at least 10,000 people, drug addicts who have committed crimes and whom we have always considered primarily sick people to be treated rather than criminals to be punished, even if they were serving a sentence.

Justice Minister Carlo Nordio hailed the law as "epochal," emphasizing its focus on treating addiction as a health issue rather than solely a criminal one. "This is an epochal measure because it allows for the alternative detention of at least 10,000 people, drug addicts who have committed crimes and whom we have always considered primarily sick people to be treated rather than criminals to be punished, even if they were serving a sentence," Nordio stated.

However, the Five Star Movement (M5S) and other parties opposed the bill, raising concerns about public safety. Valentina D'Orso of the M5S argued that the measure could release "potentially very dangerous people" from prison into facilities lacking adequate supervision. The bill passed with 153 votes in favor, 82 abstentions from the Democratic Party and Alleanza Verdi e Sinistra, and 42 votes against.

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The measure concerns potentially very dangerous people who will leave prison and go to facilities without any supervision and control.