Extradition detention and family contacts: the Italian Supreme Court requires an effective judicial assessment

Italian Supreme Court, Sixth Criminal Division, judgment no. 16620/2026, 5 May 2026

In judgment no. 16620/2026, the Italian Supreme Court addressed a point that is often treated as merely ancillary in extradition proceedings, but which carries significant practical and personal implications for requested persons in detention, especially if foreigners: the right to maintain telephone and video contact with close family members.

The case concerned an individual detained in Italy in the context of extradition proceedings initiated by the United States. During the proceedings, the requested person sought authorisation to have telephone conversations, including video calls, with his wife and minor child in the U.S., but the Italian authorities refused the request, relying essentially on security concerns and on communications received from the U.S. authorities.

The Supreme Court quashed that decision. 

The first important point of the judgment concerns the remedy available against decisions of this kind.

The Supreme Court held that, in extradition matters, decisions concerning in-person and telephone communications adopted by the Court of Appeal are subject to appeal before the Court of Cassation under Article 111(7) of the Italian Constitution.

This is a significant clarification, since restrictions on family contacts are not treated as purely administrative or internal prison-management decisions. Where they affect fundamental rights and are adopted by the judicial authority in the context of extradition proceedings they must be amenable to effective judicial review.

The second, and perhaps more significant, point concerns the substance of the assessment required from the Italian authorities.

The Supreme Court made clear that a request for telephone or video contact with family members cannot be refused on the basis of a generic reference to “security reasons” or by merely invoking communications received from the requesting State.

The Italian court must carry out its own assessment and that assessment must explain, in concrete terms, why the proposed contact would create a real risk, having regard to the specific modalities of the communication requested and to the circumstances of the case. In other words, the requesting State’s concerns may be relevant, but they cannot replace the independent evaluation of the Italian judicial authority. The Court of Appeal cannot simply act as a transmission belt for foreign arguments or objections.

In this specific case, the Supreme Court attached notable weight to the fact that the requested communications involved not only the spouse, but also a minor child. That circumstance calls for a stricter proportionality assessment.

In conclusion, the Supreme Court’s decision reaffirms the principle that, even when a person is detained for the purposes of extradition to a foreign State, the interference with family life must remain proportionate, reasoned and subject to effective review.

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