Uguaglianza e processo penale

In the criminali justice system the principle of equality as been actualized as a distribution policy of procedural rights. All humans have an equal basic moral status. However the equality of chances in a criminal process does not be realised through a simple normative equality of treatment. The italian criminal process (like others criminal justice systems in western countries) allows some differences in treatment with regard to status or the social conditons of the accused persons, to severity of the offences as well as to some efficiency requirements of the penal system. Of great importance are social, economic and linguistic inequalities. Of these the law must take into account to ensure that the guarantees in the abstract are not, in fact, be exercised by many citizens. This contribution examines, in a critical key, the main problems encountered in the italian experience with regard to the implementation of the equality principle in criminal proceedings.