Rome, 12 June (LaPresse) – It was the “breach of one of the cornerstones of due process, namely the impartiality of the judge”, that led the Court of Cassation to quash, without referral, the extradition to Brazil of MP Carla Zambelli. The Supreme Court upheld the appeal lodged by lawyers Angelo Alessandro and Pieremilio Sammarco, declaring the conditions for executing the request made by the Brazilian authorities to be “non-existent”. In the 16-page judgment, the judges state that the right to be tried by an independent and impartial tribunal forms part of the “core of the right to a defence” and represents an “essential precondition for the fairness of the trial”. A principle which, according to the Court of Cassation, was not adequately guaranteed in the proceedings that concluded in Brazil with the MP’s conviction. According to LaPresse, the crux of the decision lies in the role played by Judge Alexandre de Moraes. The Court states that the documents submitted show the judge held multiple roles in the same proceedings: rapporteur, member of the panel of judges, author of precautionary measures, signatory of the arrest warrant and the extradition request, as well as the point of contact for the Italian authorities regarding the conditions of detention envisaged for Zambelli. The Court of Cassation also emphasises that de Moraes himself could be considered a victim of one of the alleged offences, as the proceedings also concerned the inclusion in the Brazilian judicial system of a false arrest warrant in his name. “In the criminal proceedings against the appellant,” the judges write, “there was a failure to effectively safeguard the guarantee of the judge’s objective impartiality and, ultimately, the essential core of the right to a defence.” A conclusion that leads the Court to consider that the ground for refusal provided for in Article 5 of the Extradition Treaty between Italy and Brazil has been met.