They cleared a man of sexual assault on the grounds that he groped a minor that only lasted 10 seconds

(CNN) – An Italian court’s decision in favor of a school janitor who fumbled a student because the act lasted less than 10 seconds sparked outrage across the country.

In their judgment judges of the fifth section penal The Rome court stated that it acquitted the accused, a 66-year-old man according to Italian state chain RAI, of sexual assault because it lasted “between five and ten seconds.”

In her testimony, the young woman, who, according to RAI, was 17, said the act took place in April 2022 when she was walking up the school stairs with a friend.

She testified that she removed her pants and felt hands inside them under her underwear, touching her buttocks, according to the July 6 ruling.

“Love, I was kidding,” the doorman told her in the testimony of the teenage girl mentioned in the sentence.

During the trial, the janitor admitted that he had touched the student, but had done so “as a joke.”

The judges accepted the defense’s argument that the act was intended as a “goofy prank” without “voluptuous intent” towards the girl.

The decision sparked outrage among students and sparked a viral trend on social media.

A local union representing secondary school students, “Rete degli Studenti Medi del Lazio”, said on Facebook that “this is not a joke, and there is nothing funny about it”.

“It is unacceptable that we do not feel protected at school. Once again, patriarchy has triumphed, with the tacit support of institutions and politics. This model does not represent us, we will always be on the other side of the fence, for a society based on respect,” they said on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Italians have taken to Instagram and TikTok to post videos of themselves touching a sensitive part of their body for 10 seconds, tagged with a timer, in an effort to show that it’s actually a very long time that can make people uncomfortable. And change human life. She accompanies the videos with the hashtags #10sec (10 seconds) and #palpatabreve (brief touch).

Among those who took to social media was “The White Lotus” actor Paolo Camelli, who posted a video with the caption, “Shouldn’t the state protect us?” on his Instagram account.