After the Torreggiani vs. Italy case in 2013, Italian authorities introduced new reforms that set out a wider range of alternative measures to detention. A system that promoted probation with rehabilitation programs over strict prison sentences was implemented.

The new reforms reduced the average length of pre-trial detention and increased the number of days attributed to sentences’ adjustment measures for good behaviour from 45 to 75 days per semester. For foreign prisoners, the last two years of the prison sentence were replaced by compulsory expulsion to the country of origin. The penalties for drug-related offences (possession of small quantities of drugs)¹ were also reduced.

One more measure was the messa alla prova, introduced for crimes penalized with no more than four years of detention. The convicted person had the possibility to require the suspension of criminal proceedings. If the request was accepted, s/he would be put on probation under the supervision of social services and under a special program, which compelled the reparation of the damage caused².

There are several detention regimes:

• The most restrictive is the 41-bis , the summonses/classification is reviewed every two years by the judicial authority. It is possible to request a revision before this period.
• The Alta Sicurezza regime. The decision is made by the Department of Penitentiary Administration on the basis of several elements: needs for prison treatment, links with the reference criminal organisation, information obtained by the public prosecutor and the judicial authority, etc.
• The common semi-opened regime.

For more information see “Security measures”.

Inmates condemned for Islamic terrorism are subject to a special and restrictive detention regime (named AS2).

The different categories of penal institutions are the following:

• Case di reclusione for sentenced inmates
• Case Circondariali for pre-trial /remand prisoners and prisoners with short sentences.
• Penal institutions for women
• Istituti penali per i minorenni (IPM) for juvenile offenders
• Penal institutions for long sentences (case di reclusione)

The size of the penal institutions varies significantly. Most facilities have between 100 and 500 places.

The biggest is Poggioreale prison (Napoli) with 1,659 places and the smallest is Grosetto prison, with capacity for 14 inmates when actually holding 24 persons.

Renewal of prison buildings:¶

Some prisons are in obsolete conditions. Some blocks have been renovated and others are in dilapidated conditions. Some prisons were built in the XVIII century but are in general good conditions, whereas some new facilities are in poor conditions because there have been no renovations.

Savona prison was closed in January 2016. On the other hand, 200 new places should be opened in Parma and in Lecce prisons in 2018. The project of building a new prison in San Vito al Tagliamento (300 places) should be approved in 2018.

The negotiations concerning the construction of a new prison in Bolzano and the construction of 220 additional places are currently on hold.

Tendering offers are being negotiated to restructure Milano’s San Vittore and Napoli prisons. The project to restructure Livorno’s prison has been suspended¹.

There are many institutions that had other functions before they became prisons (e.g. former convents, etc.). These are generally the oldest buildings, some of which date back to several centuries.

The IPM in Bologna is an ancient monastery with structural problems (narrow corridors; lack of space for common areas). Moreover, the building is a cultural heritage site and this complicates any project that might seek to bring structural changes

The Busto Arsizio prison was built in 1985. Some sections have been refurnished but the facility is rather in precarious conditions. The main applicants in the Torreggiani vs. Italy case were serving their sentence in this prison. Cells are very small (less than 3 m² per person). The only kitchen is in poor conditions: the floors are damaged and in many places the wall and floor tiles are missing.

Prison officers are required to undergo training. There are ten training schools for security and administrative prison staff. The General Directorate of Personnel and Training Office offers initial training and delegates some courses to the regional school boards. In order to organise professional trainings, there is an annual plan for professional training of the prison administration.

There is a special master’s degree in Prison Act and the Constitutional Charter (in collaboration with the university of “Roma Tre”). This programme includes trainings within the Italian prison system and the possibility to implement new technologies during the execution of the sentence (e.g. electronic tagging). There is also practice of professional skills, the ones required to prevent radicalization and to implement the solutions to reduce it for example¹.

Prison guards, social workers and educators respond to the central prison administration. Health workers are all under the responsibility of regional medical authorities.