Pannofino Country/Territory Italy Type of court National - higher court Date Jun 26, 2009 Source UNEP, InforMEA Court name Corte Suprema di Cassazione Seat of court Rome Judge Amoresan, S.De Maio, G.Teresi, A.Gentile, M.Franco, A. Reference number 26577/2009 Language Italian Subject Wild species & ecosystems Keyword National parks Offences/penalties Enforcement/compliance Protected area Liability/compensation Abstract U. Pannofino was declared guilty of hunting in a prohibited area within the National Park of Alta Murgia. The decision of first instance was confirmed by the Court of Appeals. The defendant submitted further appeal before the Criminal Court of Cassation and alleged violation of article 125 of the Criminal Procedure Code as well as article 111 of the Constitution. In particular the issue before the Supreme Court was whether the absence of perimeters and signs delimiting the prohibited hunting area would exclude liability or not The Supreme Court based its decision upon the general principle established under article 5 of the Criminal Code, according to which liability is not excluded when the error (i.e. ignorance of the delimitation of the prohibited hunting zone) is not excusable. In this case, the Supreme Court determined that the error was not excusable, since the parameters of the national park were accessible to the public through publication in ther official gazette. Therefore the Supreme Court confirmed the decision of the Court of Appeals and declared the defendant guilty.