On trial attacker of a journalist during anti-vaccination protest

Gianpaolo Sarti was injured and had a 7-day recovery period from the consequences of the attack. The Order of Journalists and Assostampa Friuli Venezia Giulia formed civil parties in the case

OSSIGENO 9th September 2022 – On the 15th July 2022 the trial of the attacker of the reporter of the newspaper ‘Il Piccolo’, Gianpaolo Sarti, opened at the Court of Trieste. On the 6th November 2021 Sarti was insulted and beaten in the port area of ​​the city by a participant at the no-green pass and no-vaccination protests which were held several times in that period against the anti-Coronavirus measures of the government of Prime Minister Draghi. The reporter received injuries that required a seven day recovery period due to a sprain of the cervical spine and head trauma (read Ossigeno here). Following the official complaint presented by Gianpaolo Sarti to the Trieste office of the state police’s Special Branch (Digos), investigations made it possible to identify the man.This is the first legal proceedings to be conducted against a person responsible for assaulting journalists and media workers who during the 2021 demonstrations where numerous reporters were targeted (see Ossigeno here). The Order of Journalist and Assostampa Friuli Venezia Giulia have filed a civil action lawsuit. Their request was accepted at the hearing on the 22nd July 2022.

GIANPAOLO SARTI is assisted by the lawyer Antonio Santoro. The journalist, contacted by Ossigeno, expressed satisfaction with this decision of the judge, which supported the thesis of Cristiano Degano and Carlo Muscatello, presidents of the Order and Assostampa Fvg. “The intimidation and in some cases the physical attacks suffered by our colleagues were not isolated incidents – they said in a statement – but the result of a generalized climate of animosity and attack towards journalists who have become the preferred target of the demonstrators since last autumn. “. The next hearing will be held in March 2023. LT wt

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