Italy’s top court has overturned a law that shielded Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi from possible prosecution.
The flamboyant prime minister pushed the law through after he returned to power in 2008, but legal authorities in the city of Milan challenged it in the Constitutional Court. The ruling potentially opens the way for the billionaire prime minister to face charges of bribery, influence peddling and tax fraud — but it is unlikely the court verdict itself will force him to resign. The law was designed to shield from prosecution the country’s president, its prime minister, and the heads of both houses of parliament. The Constitutional Court found the law violated Section 3 of the constitution, which requires that all Italians be equal before the law, and Article 138, which says laws must be consistent with the constitution, the court’s press office said in a statement. The 15-judge court may reveal more about its decision-making process in the future, but is not required to do so. The court hearing on the law lasted a little under two hours on Tuesday, with three lawyers arguing Berlusconi’s case and one representing the legal authorities of Milan. Arguments focused on whether every Italian is included under the provision on equality under the law, with Milan arguing they must be. One of Berlusconi’s attorneys, Niccolo Ghedini, said the prime minister is a special case, Italian media reported.
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Despite the many scandals surrounding him, Berlusconi remains popular, consistently scoring approval ratings well over 50 percent. His private life has been in the spotlight since his wife of 19 years, Veronica Lario, filed for divorce in May.
The split followed reports that Berlusconi went to the birthday party of an 18-year-old girl, with whom Berlusconi has denied having an inappropriate relationship. And the Spanish newspaper El Pais has published what it said were photos of racy parties at Berlusconi’s villa on the island of Sardinia, including one picture that showed scantily clad women.
