Italian court recognizes COVID stress as mitigating factor in murder case

The Supreme Court of Cassation in Italy has overturned a life sentence handed down to a healthcare worker from Sicily who strangled his girlfriend in March 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Report, which cites Italian media.

Antonio De Pace, a nurse from the province of Messina, had an altercation with his girlfriend, Lorena Quaranta, after suspecting that she had contracted the coronavirus. The 27-year-old woman had been complaining of a sore throat for several weeks, which led De Pace to decide to leave her and stay with his parents during the nationwide lockdown. Despite Quaranta's pleas for him to stay, the argument escalated, and De Pace strangled her. After two failed suicide attempts, he confessed his crime to the police.

The life sentence verdict reached the Supreme Court, which has now sent it back to the Court of Appeal for review. The judges of the Supreme Court ruled that the previous verdict "did not take into account the cause that triggered the state of excitement" leading to the murder, which hindered psychological, emotional, medical, and relationship-related measures aimed at mitigating the consequences and preventing the escalation of conflict between the partners.