Italian court convicts 32 over the 2018 Genoa Morandi bridge collapse, former highway operator CEO gets 12 years

Summary

An Italian court convicted 32 people, including the former CEO of Autostrade per l'Italia, Italy's main motorway operator, for the August 2018 collapse of the Morandi highway bridge in Genoa that sent vehicles plunging onto a riverbed and an industrial area below, killing 43 people. The former CEO received a 12-year sentence. Twenty-five defendants were acquitted or cleared by the statute of limitations. The collapse exposed serious maintenance lapses in Italy's motorway concession system, prompting Italy to revoke Autostrade's concession contract and take state control of the network.

Why it matters

Eight years after one of Europe's deadliest infrastructure failures, the verdict delivers criminal accountability for the companies responsible for maintaining the bridge, and tests whether Italy's post-collapse concession reforms have put sufficient legal liability on private infrastructure operators. Families of the 43 victims had pushed for convictions throughout the long prosecution.

What to watch

• Whether convicted defendants appeal and the expected timeline of any appeal proceedings
• Sentencing for the other 31 convicted individuals beyond the former CEO
• What civil damages awards follow the criminal verdict
• Whether the Genoa precedent changes how Italian or EU courts assess private motorway operator liability