Italy scientists face trial over L'Aquila earthquake

Six Italian scientists and a former government official are due to go on trial for manslaughter over the 2009 earthquake in L'Aquila. The 6.3 magnitude quake devastated the city and killed 309 people. Prosecutors allege the defendants gave a falsely reassuring statement before the quake after studying hundreds of tremors that had shaken the city. The defence argues that there is no way to predict major earthquakes even in a seismically active area. The case has attracted the attention of the scientific community. Last year, more than 5,000 scientists signed an open letter to Italian President Giorgio Napolitano in support of the defendants. The seven were members of a government panel tasked with assessing the risks after hundreds of low-level tremors had rattled the medieval city in the months before the earthquake struck. They issued a reassuring statement, while also saying that it was not possible to predict whether a stronger quake would occur. They recommended stricter enforcement of anti-seismic measures, particularly in building construction. On the night of the quake, many people remained in their homes and died because of this advice, while others who had decided to remain outside in the street survived, says the BBC's David Willey in Rome. The prosecutors accuse the seven of "negligence and imprudence... of having provided an approximate, generic and ineffective assessment of seismic activity risks as well as incomplete, imprecise and contradictory information". The defendants, who include some of Italy's most distinguished geophysicists, face up to 15 years in jail as well as paying more than $30m (£19m) in damages to plaintiffs in a separate civil case if found guilty.