Italy prosecutor to appeal dismissal of murder charge against US soldier News
Italy prosecutor to appeal dismissal of murder charge against US soldier

[JURIST] Italian prosecutor Franco Ionta said Friday that he would "almost certainly" appeal a Rome court's October 2007 dismissal [JURIST report] of a criminal case against US Army Spc. Mario Lozano [defense website] for the murder of Italian intelligence agent Nicola Calipari [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] and the attempted murders of agent Andrea Carpani and Italian journalist Giuliana Sgrena [BBC profile]. The comment came after the court released a statement of reasons for its ruling stating that it lacked jurisdiction to try the US soldier.

Lozano was tried in absentia [JURIST report] beginning in April last year. Lozano's lawyers had argued that the Italian court lacked jurisdiction [JURIST report], as members of multinational forces in Iraq were each under the sole jurisdiction of their home countries. The Italian agent and journalist were shot at while entering a US checkpoint [JURIST report] on the way to the Baghdad airport after the agents secured the release of Sgrena from Iraqi kidnappers. US and Italian officials have failed to agree [JURIST report] on details surrounding Calipari's death. A US investigation cleared US soldiers of wrongdoing, while an Italian probe [JURIST reports] concluded the killing was accidental but found that there were serious miscommunications and confusion about the rules of engagement for checkpoints. Reuters has more.