Italian Supreme Court, Criminal Division V, judgment no. 34913/2026, hearing 16 June 2026, filed 30 September 2026.

Psychiatric documentation produced by the defence cannot be dismissed through a generic reference to alcohol or drug dependence. Where there is evidence suggesting a stable psychiatric disorder, the court must examine its impact on the defendant’s capacity to understand or control conduct and provide reasons when deciding a request for recognition of diminished responsibility.

In the case examined, the Supreme Court held that the lower courts had not adequately addressed a diagnosis of psychosis and the persistence of symptoms during detention despite abstinence from alcohol. The defendant’s admission to a psychiatric facility and the treatment pathway documented by the defence were also relevant.

Dependence alone does not establish diminished responsibility. For the purposes of Articles 89 and 95 of the Criminal Code, a pathological condition must be rigorously established, must persist independently of renewed substance use and must be relevant to criminal capacity. The Court therefore requires a concrete examination of clinical evidence rather than an automatic conclusion based on a diagnosis of dependence.

The judgment also addresses refusal of general mitigating circumstances. Mental health, living conditions and dependence must form part of the overall assessment under Article 133 of the Criminal Code even where they do not lead to recognition of diminished responsibility. They may affect individualisation of the sentence and require a reasoned response.

The Supreme Court quashed and remitted the judgment only in relation to the failure to recognise the mitigating circumstances under Articles 89 and 62-bis. A different section of the Court of Appeal must reconsider those issues. The judgment does not itself grant the mitigating circumstances and does not find the defendant wholly incapable.

Source: full text of the judgment, pp. 3–6, hosted by Terz’ultima fermata. Reporting and commentary: Marco Pizzinelli, Terz’ultima fermata, 7 October 2026.