Fi files Zuncheddu bill: provides for a provision of one thousand euro per month

"They open the gate for you and then they tell you: 'Arrange yourself'. I, thank God, have a family and they are still supporting me, despite all the expenses they have already had'. Thus Beniamino Zuncheddu, the Sardinian shepherd who has served almost 33 years in prison as an innocent man, accused of the Sinnai massacre, the triple murder of Gesuino Fadda, Giuseppe Fadda and Ignazio Pusceddu, and the attempted murder of Luigi Pinna, in a video link-up during the presentation of the Zuncheddu bill, signed by Forza Italia, which provides for a provision of one thousand euro per month for victims of unjust imprisonment and miscarriages of justice, who remain waiting for compensation from the State even for ten years after being acquitted. A bill that deliberately traces the text of the popular initiative bill with which the Radical Party had collected 50,000 signatures and submitted them on 31 December 2025 in Montecitorio (act C2755). The Chamber, however, had removed it from the agenda on 2 February 2026. Sixty thousand signatures had been collected, but some electoral certificates were missing, which, due to the coincidence with the timing of the referendum, were difficult to obtain.

The proposal envisages a monthly allowance of approximately EUR 1,000, (twice the social allowance), in favour of those who have an acquittal or a dismissal order after having been remanded in custody. The allowance would be paid until formal recognition of reparation for unfair detention or until a possible review process. The purpose is to ensure immediate means of subsistence for those who, after detention, find themselves destitute and socially stigmatised, without having to wait the long time of ordinary reparations. The text amends Articles 315 and 646 of the Code of Criminal Procedure to speed up the compensation procedures and to raise the maximum limit for compensation.

"Ours is a battle to restore dignity to the 30,000 citizens who, over the past 30 years, like Beniamino, have unjustly suffered prison sentences. No one has paid for these judicial errors," Forza Italia leader and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani wrote on social media. "Also to repair these injustices we will vote Yes to the justice reform, so that no one else can suffer this wrong." For Senate group leader Maurizio Gasparri, "the intention is to accelerate a proposal on the possibility of giving compensation to victims of unjust imprisonment who receive reparations many years later". Gasparri recalled that 'Zuncheddu's case is an extreme case, fortunately, but it should make us reflect on the advisability of a reform of justice, so that there is greater transparency in decisions, timeliness and also the possibility of judging those who have done wrong. This is the function of the High Court so that errors of this kind can be assessed'. The leader of the Forza Italia Chamber of Deputies, Paolo Barelli, stated that 'judicial errors are the children of an evil justice that we intend to correct by voting Yes to the referendum. The commitment is to have the proposal immediately put before the Justice Commission.

"We ask that this bill - underlined Irene Testa, guarantor of prisoners in Sardinia, treasurer of the Radical Party and always in the forefront of Beniamino Zuncheddu's battle for freedom - does not remain in the drawer, but may soon become State law so that no one will be humiliated anymore after a judicial ordeal'. To the story of Beniamino Zuncheddu Il Sole 24 Ore and Radio 24 dedicated the podcast "Innocente". 

Beniamino returned to freedom in January 2024, thanks to the verdict in the revision trial that highlighted the miscarriage of justice, based on the false testimony of the main witness, the only survivor, Luigi Pinna. The revision of the trial was brought about by the recantations of the key witness, Luigi Pinna, who admitted that he had been conditioned by a policeman, former inspector Mario Uda, who was following the investigation, and who, according to the findings of the revision trial, suggested to him that Zuncheddu should be accused. After a life unjustly spent behind bars Beniamino is waiting for the State to support him. After almost 33 years spent unjustly behind bars Zuncheddu is a lonely man, who could not build a family, who could not get a job, who today has no pension. He came out of prison with his personal belongings packed in a plastic bag. And two years later he is waiting for justice to finally be fair with him.