Rome, 20 September (LaPresse) – ‘As it stands, it is useless and harmful.’ So said Nicola Gratteri, chief prosecutor of Naples, in an interview with Corriere della Sera on justice reform. "Useless because it does not address the real problems: the length of trials and the quality of decisions. No measures are being introduced to eliminate unnecessary red tape and enable magistrates to analyse their cases quickly and effectively. It is harmful because it causes the public prosecutor to lose the culture of jurisdiction. He is the dominus of preliminary investigations, so he must behave as a judge would, to avoid seeking guilty parties at all costs. He must remain impartial with regard to the case he is examining, without worrying about requesting dismissal. Amending the Constitution for a non-issue is truly inexplicable," continues Gratteri. Some fear that this will increase the powers of the public prosecutor. Do you? “The serious fear is that the public prosecutor will become the longa manus of the government in power, as in other countries where there is a separation of careers. The consequence will be that he will only prosecute crimes indicated to him by the executive. With all due respect to the protection of citizens,” concludes Gratteri.