Court of Cassation, Judgment no. 13515/2025: the criterion of prevalence in criminal enforcement and partial bis in idem
Judgment no. 13515, filed on April 7, 2025, by the First Criminal Section of the Court of Cassation represents an important piece in the complex matter of criminal enforcement. The panel, presided over by M. B. and rapporteur F. C., addresses the issue of continuity between multiple final judgments, offering a practical solution – and one consistent with constitutional and European principles – to the risk of double punishment for the same historical event.
The case decided by the Court of Cassation
The defendant, identified in the judgment as A. F., had been convicted by two separate rulings for the same escape from house arrest. The first decision covered the entire period of absence, the second only the initial part. The Court of Naples, during the enforcement phase, had combined both sentences; the defense had raised the objection of partial bis in idem. The Supreme Court annuls with referral, indicating the correct application of art. 669 c.p.p.
The legal principle and art. 669 c.p.p.
In matters of enforcement, where there is a relationship of containment between the facts judged by two irrevocable conviction judgments issued against the same subject, since one encompasses the other, the partial "bis in idem" must be resolved, pursuant to art. 669 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, by ordering the execution of the judgment that ruled on the broader segment of conduct and revoking the other. (Case relating to conviction judgments for the continuous offense of evasion, one of which concerned the entire period of absence from house arrest, and the other only the initial part of the conduct).
The maxim, of crystal clarity, reiterates the obligation for the enforcement judge to:
- recognize the logical-factual continuity between the two decisions;
- apply art. 669 c.p.p., a rule that requires the revocation of the less extensive judgment when there is partial overlap;
- guarantee the integrity of the ne bis in idem principle, enshrined in art. 649 c.p.p. and art. 4 of Protocol No. 7 of the ECHR.
This orientation is not new: the Court refers to precedents no. 20015/2016, 27900/2020, and 21883/2021. The innovation lies in the emphasis placed on the broader segment of conduct as the criterion of prevalence, a practical solution that avoids the need for complex penalty redetermination operations.
National precedents and European aspects
Constitutional jurisprudence (Constitutional Court no. 200/2016) has recognized the legitimacy of art. 669 c.p.p. as a tool aimed at preventing sanctioning duplications. On the supranational level, the ECtHR – cases Sergey Zolotukhin v. Russia and Grande Stevens v. Italy – requires states to avoid multiple prosecutions. The Court of Cassation, aligning itself, confirms that, in continuous offenses such as evasion (art. 385 of the Criminal Code), the uniqueness of the conduct prevails over any temporal divisions made at the merits stage.
Practical implications for lawyers and enforcement judges
The ruling offers an operational compass:
- Defense lawyers: can immediately invoke art. 669 c.p.p. when they find multiple overlapping judgments.
- Public prosecutors: are required to report the containment ex officio to avoid illegitimate cumulation.
- Judges: must justify the exclusion of a judgment by indicating precisely why the other covers a more extensive course of conduct.
Conclusions
The Court of Cassation, with judgment no. 13515/2025, strengthens the coherence of the enforcement system: when two final judgments concern, in whole or in part, the same factual situation, the common scope of the conduct is first identified, and then art. 669 c.p.p. is applied by choosing the broader decision. The result is twofold: protection of the defendant from an unjustly duplicated penalty and preservation of the effectiveness of the more complete judgment. For legal professionals, this is a precedent destined to impact daily practice in the Courts of Surveillance and enforcement offices.
