Giuseppe Ayala (born 18 May 1945 in

Caltanissetta Caltanissetta (Sicilian language, Sicilian: ''Cartanissètta)'' is an Italian comune with a population of 58,012 inhabitants, serving as the capital of the Province of Caltanissetta, free municipal consortium of Caltanissetta in Sicily. The earl ...

) is an Italian politician and magistrate. He was known as an "

anti-mafia The Antimafia Commission () is a bicameral commission of the Italian Parliament, composed of members from the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate of the Republic (Italy), Senate of the Republic. The first commission, formed in 1963, was established ...

" magistrate, and served as "anti-Mafia" judge. He raised doubts about whether it was only the Mafia that was involved in the killing of

Giovanni Falcone Giovanni Falcone (; 18 May 1939 – 23 May 1992) was an Italian judge and prosecuting magistrate. From his office in the Palace of Justice in Palermo, Sicily, he spent most of his professional life trying to overthrow the power of the Sicilian ...

. In 1993 he published a book entitled ''La guerra dei giusti: I giudici, la mafia, la politica'' (''The war of the righteous: The judges, the mafia, politics''), detailing his experiences in politics and his encounters with the mafia.''La guerra dei giusti : i giudici, la mafia, la politica'' on Worldcat.org
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Biography

Ayala graduated in law at the

University of Palermo The University of Palermo () is a public university, public research university in Palermo, Italy. It was founded in 1806, and is currently organized in 12 Faculties. History The University of Palermo was officially founded in 1806, although it ...

and worked as a substitute public prosecutor for the Republic, assisting the "anti-mafia pool" for several years. He was a public prosecutor at the first maxiprocess, later becoming Councilor of Cassation. He was elected to the Chamber of Deputies in 1992, shortly before the murder of

and

Paolo Borsellino Paolo Emanuele Borsellino (; 19 January 1940 – 19 July 1992) was an Italian judge and prosecuting magistrate. From his office in the Palace of Justice in Palermo, Sicily, he spent most of his professional life trying to overthrow the power of ...

(magistrates of the anti-mafia pool with which Ayala had been interlocutor at the Public Prosecutor's Office), becoming a deputy in the ranks of the

Italian Republican Party The Italian Republican Party (, PRI) is a political party in Italy established in 1895, which makes it the oldest political party still active in the country. The PRI identifies with 19th-century classical radicalism, as well as Mazzinianism, a ...

(PRI). Following

Tangentopoli (; ) was a nationwide judicial investigation into political corruption in Italy held in the early 1990s, resulting in the demise of the First Italian Republic and the disappearance of many political parties. Some politicians and industry leade ...

, and the PRI crisis, Ayala joined the Democratic Alliance (AD), confirming the seat in the Chamber of Deputies in 1994. After the dissolution of AD he joined the Democratic Union (UD) of Antonio Maccanico, with which he was elected to the Senate in 1996. In 1998 he enrolled in the

Democrats of the Left The Democrats of the Left (, DS) was a social-democratic political party in Italy. Positioned on the centre-left, the DS, successor of the Democratic Party of the Left (PDS) and the Italian Communist Party, was formed in 1998 upon the merger ...

(DS), party with which he was elected senator in 2001 until 2006. He served as Undersecretary to the Ministry of Justice from 1996 to 2000, in the Prodi I government and in the D'Alema I and II governments. After 2006, he returned to the judiciary as a councilor of a civil section at the Court of Appeal of

L'Aquila L'Aquila ( ; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' in central Italy. It is the capital city of the Province of L'Aquila and the Abruzzo region in Italy. , it has a population of 69,902. Laid out within medieval walls on a hill in the wide valley of the A ...

(2006 – 2011). He has been retired since December 2011.

References

External links

Official homepage of Giuseppe Ayala
(in Italian) {{DEFAULTSORT:Ayala, Giuseppe 1945 births Living people People from Caltanissetta University of Palermo alumni Italian Republican Party politicians Democratic Alliance (Italy) politicians Democratic Union (Italy) politicians Democrats of the Left politicians Deputies of Legislature XI of Italy Deputies of Legislature XII of Italy Senators of Legislature XIII of Italy Senators of Legislature XIV of Italy Politicians from the Province of Caltanissetta 20th-century Italian judges Jurists from Sicily