Seven Convicted In Earthquake Controversy - Spokane, North Idaho News & Weather KHQ.com

KHQ.COM - Seven scientists and experts were convicted by an Italian court Monday for not providing enough warning leading up to a 2009 earthquake that killed more than 300 people.

In their indictment, the experts were accused of "inexact, incomplete and contradictory information" leading up to the earthquake. The court handed down a guilty verdict for manslaughter and sentenced each of the seven men to six years in prison.

One of the men convicted, Enzo Boschi, former head of the national Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology, said after the trial, "I thought I would have been acquitted. I still don't understand what I was convicted of."

Scientists around the world argued that the trial was "ridiculous" and there is no reliable way to predict earthquakes.

This story written and filed by Colin McQuilkin (colin.mcquilkin@khq.com)