Paolo Giaccone: Palermo honors doctor murdered by Cosa Nostra

The city of Palermo is commemorating the anniversary of the assassination of Paolo Giaccone, a university professor and forensic medicine expert who was murdered by Cosa Nostra on August 11, 1982.

Giaccone, who directed the Institute of Legal Medicine at the Policlinico di Palermo, was targeted after refusing to falsify a fingerprint analysis. The evidence linked a member of the Corso dei Mille mafia clan to a deadly shooting in Bagheria in December 1981. Despite facing threats and pressure to alter his professional conclusions, Giaccone maintained his integrity, leading to the killer's conviction.

During the commemoration, Palermo Mayor Roberto Lagalla honored Giaccone as a symbol of professional rigor and moral responsibility. Lagalla emphasized that remembering the doctor means renewing the commitment of institutions to ensure that criminal powers never again influence the work or conscience of those serving the community.