‘Indulto law works’ says sociologist

A recent study shows that the effects of the controversial indulto law, implemented in 2007, to make room in Italy’s overfilled jails by granting non-dangerous offenders early release from prison, are positive. ‘The indulto law works but no one believes it’, claims sociologist Giovanni Torrente, head of a research team that analyzed the rate of recidivism after the indulto law. Using data compiled by the Department of Prison Administration, Torrente and his colleagues tracked the movements of the 44, 944 prisoners who were granted the early release, finding that 73 percent were not subsequently arrested or jailed. Just 27 percent returned to crime, significantly lower than the previous rate of 63 percent.