detenuto

Detenuto is an Italian term used as both a noun and an adjective to describe a person who has been deprived of personal liberty as a result of a judicial decision or criminal procedure. The word is commonly used in legal contexts to designate someone under custody or imprisonment, as well as someone subject to detention measures such as house arrest. The gender forms are detenuto (masculine) and detenuta (feminine), with plural detenuti and detenute.

The term derives from detenere, meaning to hold back or detain, itself from Latin detinere. In everyday language and in law, detenuto often refers to individuals who are not free due to state-authorized deprivation of liberty. It can apply to various stages of the penal process, including preventive or precautionary detention during investigation and custodial confinement during or after a trial, as well as detention under house arrest or other custodial regimes.

In the Italian legal system, detention is categorized by the specific measure applied: detention in prison (carcere) or detenzione domiciliare (detention at home). The status of a detainee can arise through custodia cautelare (precautionary custody) or through sentence, and it is distinct from terms such as imputato (accused) or condannato (convicted). Detainees retain certain rights and protections under national law and international standards, including access to legal counsel, medical care, and humane treatment, as regulated by penitentiary and criminal procedure regulations.

See also: custodia cautelare, detenzione, carcere, detenzione domiciliare, diritto dei detenuti.