Solving The Puzzle Of Where The New Perugia Criminal Courthouse Is Actually Located



Massei/Hellman court is in the brick building at top left; Rudy Guede was tried in the new courthouse at hard right.


With this, we seem to have onsite images of all the key locations in Meredith’s case. Click all images for larger versions.

This at right above, and below, is Perugia’s new criminal courthouse. It was first used in October 2008 by Judge Micheli for Rudy Guede’s trial and Sollecito’s and Knox’s arraignment for trial. One advantage is that it has underground parking so defendants can enter away from the media.

It was built by Siemens in the early 1900s as a generating station. Media descriptions of the 2008 trial did not explain precisely where the new court is, and the few media images online (see last 2 images here) only showed the front entrance and thus gave the impression of quite a small building.

In fact it turns out to be directly downhill from the Court of Assizes and right under the opaque windows of the court used by Judge Massei and Judge Hellman. (Their court is in the brick building visible high up in several of these images.)

Also it is really quite large and it contains several criminal courts. We’ll check for any video showing the interior. The complete interior rebuild was paid for by the central Ministry of Justice.

By the way Google Images does a terrific job of caching our images. These should show up there soon.


Below: familiar piazza entrance to assize courts is to left, new courts are at lower level on right

Below: the location of Meredith’s house relative to the courts is at the top center in this satellite view.

Below: five images showing the court’s south side, seen from the tunnel mouth and the street beside

Below: empty van is parked by ramp to underground parking, the route taken by RG + RS + AK


Below: Masssei/Hellman court shows up at top in two shots below; windows are opaque so no view down.


Below: two media images of the new entrance, which is all that was shown in the main media.

Below: the ramp down to underground parking where perps enter is shown in foreground

Posted by Peter Quennell on 04/05/12 at 05:46 PM in

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The street that runs past the lower end of the court building here (not shown, there is a T junction) is the same circular road that Meredith’s house is located on.

It takes only 2-3 minutes to drive it.

Judge Hellman and his jury, unaware that there was a real victim, didn’t bother. They just assumed without looking that someone could climb in Filomena’s window.

Posted by Peter Quennell on 04/05/12 at 08:10 PM | #

The Kercher family were in that courthouse of course, for Guede’s trial, and this post shows them exiting with protection.

http://www.truejustice.org/ee/index.php?/tjmkphotosmeredith/comments/merediths_family_unbuoyed_in_perugia_after_rudy_guedes_trial/

The Knox-Mellases were too nervous to confront them, knowing as they surely did that AK and RS were both guilty, and they hung around at a higher level looking down.

They and their flash-mob havent been in that court to our knowledge.

Posted by Peter Quennell on 04/05/12 at 08:16 PM | #

Peter, I know that the curtnedda showdown has been postponed, but any word on the other family? Bribery and other attempts at perversion of justice happen all over the globe, but most disgusting and inexcusable to my mind was the leaking and airing of the forensic footage on Telenorba. Still rankles.

Posted by mimi on 04/06/12 at 05:32 AM | #

Hi Mimi.

This is the Sollecito family trial in Bari for illegal leaking of evidence (a crime scene video showing Meredith) and attempted perversion of justice (involving politicians). Nothing at all appeared in the Italian media and several contacts we have so far asked expressed surprise. We will be in touch with the court in Bari.

There seems a feeling that Dr Galati’s appeal is a new game in town, and if it succeeds as we expect all other cases will have more of an inside track.  As we’ve remarked before Italy has very limited crime and, in part because of past political manipulation, resources available to take care of what there is also remain rather limited.

Hard for Americans to understand when there seems no limit to Pentagon budgets (larger than the rest of the world’s combined) and police and prosecution and incarceration (largest prison system in the world).  The US and Italy are at polar opposites - despite the fact that the FOA always get them the wrong way round.

If Dr Galati overturns the Hellman verdicts and sentence it will be relatively plain sailing for prosecutions and plaintifs on these other matters still pending. Right now they remain large shots across the PR bows and we can all welcome the relative quiet. At a guess the books if and when they do appear are going to be relatively restrained. Anything else and they’re toast.

Posted by Peter Quennell on 04/06/12 at 04:21 PM | #

The shots in this post on Day One of Guede’s trial (it only lasted two days, can you believe) were all taken outside the new court - the front entrance is visible in some shots.

http://truejustice.org/ee/index.php?/tjmk/comments/dramatic_day_for_guede_knox_sollecito_the_cast_arrives/

This video report of some flooding in the new court 18 months ago shows some of the interior - and Judge Massei interrupted while handling another case.

<object width=“640” height=“360”><param name=“movie” value=“http://www.youtube.com/v/jegk_N2Jjyg?version=3&hl=en_US”></param></param></param><embed src=“http://www.youtube.com/v/jegk_N2Jjyg?version=3&hl=en_US” type=“application/x-shockwave-flash” width=“640” height=“360” allowscriptaccess=“always” allowfullscreen=“true”></embed></object>

Posted by Peter Quennell on 04/06/12 at 05:48 PM | #

Papa Sollecito’s move is really brilliant: he abhors limelight, and for good reasons. The case will be closed with either a modest fine or some kind of regret will be offered. Nonetheless, he does not want any publicity, for reasons even a child can understand.

A number of prisons in the US are run by private contractors and they dictate the terms and conditions. There is a lot of money to be made and the competition is fierce. Whatever is left for the prisoners is a pittance- but then my information is decades old.

The condition in the prisons in the Europe is exactly opposite: they all are state run and the facilities are superb and far better than most of the prisoners are used to (outside, in their original homes). I am surprised that no one in this forum has compared the differences in the standards: there is a heaven and hell difference.

I have seen the two questura- one in Milan and the other one in Trieste. The atmosphere is very relaxed- but then that is quite unsurprising.

I do not think that there will be lots of arguments in Bari and the case will be closed promptly. It will not be there in the evening news!

Committee, n.: A group of men who individually can do nothing but as a group decide that nothing can be done.—Fred Allen

Posted by chami on 04/07/12 at 09:12 PM | #

Hi Chami. Yes you are as always impeccably informed. Contractors do still run many US prisons and they lobby hard to keep the prisoner numbers and profits up.

They contribute to the election campaigns of hard-line judges and prosecutors and police chiefs. Which in part accounts for this.

http://truejustice.org/ee/index.php?/tjmk/comments/compared_to_italy_say_precisely_how_wicked_is_the_united_states/

Cruel places.  The internal conditions of Italian prison have generally been among the very best by comparison, as you describe. Here are several past posts that touch on this.

http://truejustice.org/ee/index.php?/tjmk/comments/where_the_convicted_perp_and_the_defendants_are_now/
http://truejustice.org/ee/index.php?/tjmk/comments/where_sollecito_knox_and_guede_are_now_sitting_out_the_heatwave/
http://truejustice.org/ee/index.php?/tjmk/comments/with_not_many_prisons_and_chronic_overcrowding_italy_decides_to_build/

Sollecito was in the very modern solar-heated Terni prison in 2008 and was unhappy to have to return to Capanne for the 2009 trial as internet connections there are constricted.

Knox was only ever in Capanne and it was only half full when she first moved in. But about two years ago many more prisoners had to be transferred there, and the women’s wing may have exceeded rated capacity.

Gurede was in the sex offenders wing to stop him getting beaten up but somehow got beaten up anyway. The other two were also convicted of a sex crime but for some reason were never isolated.

Posted by Peter Quennell on 04/10/12 at 01:37 AM | #

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