The Court of Trento acquitted the president of the autonomous province, Maurizio Fugatti, of the charge of killing an animal cruelly or unnecessarily. At the center of the trial is the story of the M90 bear, shot down in February 2024 after being deemed problematic.
The judge ruled that “the fact does not constitute a crime”, rejecting the prosecution’s theory that the animal was killed without sedation, an element considered central to the crime. With this decision, the first degree of a case that sparked public debate far beyond the borders of Trentino comes to an end.
The killing and the reasons
M90 was a young specimen, about two and a half years old, which had begun to frequently approach inhabited areas. The turning point came on January 28, 2024, when the bear chased two people for a few meters in the municipality of Mezzana.
A few days later, on February 6, Fugatti signed the abatement order. The intervention was carried out quickly by forest rangers in Val di Sole. For the Province, it was a necessary measure to guarantee public safety, in line with the procedures established in cases considered at risk.
The criticisms of the associations
The animal rights associations had a completely different opinion, having formed a civil party requesting compensation of 300 thousand euros, which was then rejected by the court. According to these organizations, the killing occurred in violation of the same rules adopted for the management of wildlife.
At the center of the criticism is also the context in which the M90 moved. The bear, they claim, frequented urban areas because it was attracted by unprotected bins, a situation that would have favored the habit of human presence. In this reading, the animal would not have been dangerous in the strict sense, but the result of ineffective land management.
View this post on Instagram
A decision that does not close the case
The acquittal formula does not call into question the facts, but excludes the presence of the subjective element of the crime. A technical detail which however leaves public and legal debate open. The associations have already announced new initiatives, awaiting the reasons for the sentence, which will be filed in the coming weeks.
The objective is to evaluate a possible appeal and continue what they define as a battle for the protection of wild animals. In the meantime, the M90 case remains a symbol of a broader clash: that between human security and coexistence with wildlife, a balance that is still difficult to find and too often resolved brutally with killings and cullings.
You might also be interested in:
