A Milan court has convicted a defendant to four months in prison, suspended, and ordered €1,500 in damages for online racist abuse targeting Senator Liliana Segre, marking the first conviction in a sweeping investigation by Milan prosecutors into aggravated defamation motivated by racial hatred.
The case, heard under an expedited procedure, originally involved eight defendants. Three apologised and paid between €500 and €2,000 to the Fondazione Memoriale della Shoah, securing dismissal of charges. Four others were admitted to a probation programme requiring one year of community service and €300 each to the Shoah memorial foundation.
Segre, a Holocaust survivor and senator for life, filed the complaints that triggered the investigation. A further hearing on remaining positions is scheduled for 1 October before preliminary investigations judge Fabrizio Filice.