Complaint and Continuing Offence: Temporal Effects According to the Supreme Court (Judgment no. 15115/2025)

The Court of Cassation, Second Criminal Section, with judgment no. 15115 filed on April 16, 2025, revisits the delicate relationship between a complaint and a continuing offence, offering valuable guidance for lawyers, Public Prosecutors, and aggrieved parties. The decision overcomes previous oscillating orientations and directly impacts defence strategies and the operational efficiency of Public Prosecutor's offices.

The Case Submitted to the Court

The defendant S. G. had been convicted on appeal for multiple illicit conduct unified under the bond of continuation pursuant to art. 81 of the Italian Criminal Code. The victim had filed a complaint after the first act, but before the second incident was completed. The Court of Appeal of Catanzaro had rejected the defence's exception of untimeliness of the criminal action, deeming the complaint valid for all conduct. The appeal to the Court of Cassation alleged a violation of arts. 120 and 124 of the Italian Criminal Code, arguing that a new complaint was essential for subsequent acts.

The Principle of Law Affirmed

In matters of continuing offences, a complaint filed after the first criminal act and before the completion of the second has its effects also with regard to the latter, given that the act initiating criminal proceedings is, in this case, attributable to a single offence, the evolution of which the victim could not foresee at the time of filing the complaint.

Comment: The Court emphasizes the substantial unity of the continuing offence. As long as the criminal series has not been exhausted, the punitive will expressed with the first complaint is sufficient. It would be unreasonable, the Court of Cassation points out, to force the victim to file multiple complaints for each episode not yet known or not foreseeable, with the risk of frustrating criminal protection and exacerbating secondary victimization.

Practical Aspects and Coordination with Art. 124 of the Italian Criminal Code

• Start of the Complaint Period: the three-month period under art. 124 of the Italian Criminal Code runs from the day the victim becomes aware of each act, but the Court of Cassation clarifies that a single complaint, filed between the first and second episodes, also covers subsequent ones, provided they stem from the same criminal design.
• Burden of Proof: it is incumbent upon the Public Prosecutor to prove the existence of the bond of continuation; the defence may counter this by proving the autonomy of the conduct.
• Jurisprudential Precedents: the ruling departs from judgments no. 183/2008 and 41275/2015, which required subsequent complaints, and instead aligns with Cass. 48268/2016 and 31996/2018.

This results in a favour for complaints that facilitates the victim and, at the same time, ensures the efficiency of criminal proceedings, reducing the risk of inadmissibility due to lack of a complaint.

Conclusions

Judgment no. 15115/2025 provides an important piece to the regulation of continuing offences, affirming that a complaint timely filed between the first and second episodes is valid for the entire criminal sequence. For criminal law professionals, it is a reminder to always verify the timing and manner of filing a complaint, but also to carefully assess the existence of the teleological link between the conduct. While the maxim is clear, it does not exempt from the concrete examination of the case: it remains essential to ascertain the subjective foreseeability and objective connection between the acts, so that criminal proceedings can legitimately continue.