Promotion of convicted municipal technician 24 years after Jovine school collapse

ROME-- Twenty-four years after the Jovine school collapse that left 27 students and a teacher dead in San Giuliano di Puglia in the Molise region, the community's wounds are being re-opened after the promotion of the convicted municipal surveyor, according to a report from il Fatto Quatidiano. The buildings collapse became one of the worst massacres of children in Italy in recent history. The victims' families are outraged at the lack of justice all these years later. 

On October 31st, 2002 a 5.7 magnitude earthquake struck the lower Molise region and its effect was felt in S. Giuliano where the Francesco Jovine Comprehensive Institute once stood. It was the only building in the town to collapse due to poor craftmanship. On January 28 2010 Italy’s Supreme Court of Cassation ruled that the collapse was a culpable disaster due to the poor structural integrity of the building. The school had been raised by a new reinforced concrete floor on top of the already existing one and no adequate load-bearing calculations were performed. The ruling states that a fraudulent certificate of habitability and stability was filed which allowed for students and teachers to attend the school.

Five defendants were charged in the initial trial, including former mayor Antonio Borrelli, project designer Guiseppe La Serra, head of the municipal technical office Mario Marinaro and builders Carmine Abiuso and Giovanni Martino. All were sentenced to between 5 and 7 years however Marinaro never spent a day in prison and his recent promotion has caused outrage in the town. 

After the 2010 ruling Marinaro was dismissed from his position “for a crime committed in the course of his duties.” However Marinaro was able to appeal his dismissal. It first went to the Court of Larino then to the Court of Appeal of Campobasso which annulled the dismissal. In 2017 the Court of Appeal of Naples declared Marinaro's dismissal unlawful and ruled that no further appeals could be filed. He was reinstated to his position where his mistakes cost the lives of 28 people. 

In 2015 the Court of Auditors of Molise ordered Marinaro, La Serra and Borelli to compensate the municipal offices of San Giuliano with 2,536,225 euros. However Marinaro had no assets so it seized his back pay and continued to collect part of his salary. He is paid around 10,000 euros a year while the rest is seized by the offices.

This brings us to the most recent upset in the story. The San Giuliano municipal offices approved a management decision of a salary increase for three figures within the administration including Mario Marinaro. Marino has been promoted and given a raise with minimal consequences for the lives he so carelessly endangered 24 years ago. 

The parents of the victims of the tragedy have expressed their deep indignation and dismay over the promotion and believe it to be unethical and inappropriate. There is a resounding feeling in the community that justice was never served for the terrible tragedy all those years ago.