In the last 24 validation hearings, the Tribunal for Minors and the juvenile prosecutor's office placed three minors in prison and 21 under house arrest or in communities. Those hearings concern part of the 35 minors arrested across Saturday 17 and Sunday 18 October.
Justice Minister Carlo Nordio says the juvenile prison system is struggling and proposes funding more places and reserving some adult prison sections for minors. The Democratic Party and the Five Star Movement attacked the plan, and Giuseppe Conte called for Nordio to resign.
President Sergio Mattarella signed the Security Decree, which makes minors over 14 criminally liable. Matteo Salvini says 500 soldiers will arrive in Milan with Lince vehicles and drones, while Europa Verde councillors call the plan disproportionate and put its cost at almost 5 million euros.
Antigone counts 550 people in IPM in August 2026, up from 381 at the end of 2022. Il Messaggero reports a 40 per cent rise in detained minors since 2022.
The Tribunal for Minors and the juvenile prosecutor's office said in a joint note that the last 24 validation hearings ended with three minors held in prison and 21 others placed under house arrest or in a community. Between Saturday 17 and Sunday 18 October, 35 minors had been arrested in total, and eleven of those detained on Saturday already had measures set before this round of hearings. Prosecutors will carry out socio-family inquiries into the children under 14, who are not criminally liable, and may request security measures or refer the cases to the juvenile court.
Adults arrested in the same disorder are being handled separately. Judge Fabrizio Filice validated the arrests of five adults detained on Saturday 17 October and ordered prison custody for four of them, who face charges of devastation and looting and aggravated resistance. The fifth man, accused of aggravated resistance, was placed under house arrest with an electronic tag. The judge pointed to the seriousness of the alleged conduct and the risk that the violence could be repeated.
Justice Minister Carlo Nordio, speaking on the Start programme on Sky TG24, said the scale of the arrests was without precedent.
“A series of massive arrests of minors had never happened before.”
He defended sending violent minors behind bars when necessary, and said the juvenile prison system is struggling. A meeting held the day before the interview looked at spending the few available funds to add places, and at reserving some sections of adult prisons for minors.
The proposal drew sharp criticism from opposition parties. Michela Di Biase of the Democratic Party accused the government of replacing rehabilitation with cells, while Giuseppe Conte, leader of the Five Star Movement, called for the minister to resign.
“If you talk like that, you are not a politician, you have to go home.”
Il Messaggero reports that the number of minors held in juvenile penal institutions (IPM) has risen 40 per cent since 2022. The association Antigone gives the figures: 381 people were held in IPM at the end of 2022, and 550 in August 2026.
Data from the article text
Susanna Marietti, who coordinates Antigone's juvenile prison observatory, said the government's logic appeared to be punishing one to deter a hundred. She added that juvenile justice cannot serve as a tool of collective intimidation. Il Messaggero also recalls that in 2025 a provisional section for 21 to 25 year olds was set up inside Bologna's Dozza prison to ease pressure on juvenile institutes.
The Security Decree received President Sergio Mattarella's signature. It introduces the offence of violent participation in demonstrations and makes minors over 14 criminally liable. Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini said 500 soldiers, including Folgore paratroopers, will arrive in Milan under the Strade Sicure operation and could use Lince armoured vehicles and drones to keep public order. Europa Verde councillors Tommaso Gorini and Francesca Cucchiara called the plan disproportionate, noting that Strade Sicure troops have so far performed surveillance rather than public order duties, and they put the cost at almost 5 million euros.
Confcommercio's first estimate puts the damage to Milan's shops and the city at about 1 million euros. Police are identifying around 500 young people using CCTV footage and videos shot during the clashes, and Rai reports that minors make up 80 per cent of those held. The youngest detainee is 11 years old and not criminally liable. The head of his school, who is a woman, described his fragility and limited Italian, and said she was determined to keep supporting him.
The Stati Generali on juvenile justice meet in Rome on 26 November, when 500 experts from Libera, Defence for Children Italia and Antigone will present their proposals.
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Courts ordered prison custody for three minors and house arrest or community placement for 21 others arrested over the 17 and 18 October clashes in Milan. Justice Minister Carlo Nordio's proposal to hold young offenders in adult prison wings has drawn sharp criticism from the opposition.
AI text based on reports by Fanpage, Il Messaggero, Il Fatto Quotidiano and other publishers. Published .