American-Maltese judge ‘Barracuda Aquilina’ for Malta Book festival

The National Book Council is pleased to present Judge Rosemarie Aquilina as the main guest of the 2019 Malta Book Festival.

Aquilina, daughter of a Maltese father and German mother, both emigrants, is most notable for presiding over the 2018 USA Gymnastics sex abuse scandal, which found former Olympic doctor Larry Nassar guilty of sexually abusing 156 girls and women over the previous two decades.

The way she guided the court hearings and her strong language directed to the accused made the headlines, but the most significant part was when she allowed 140 victims tell their story in front of the aggressor.

[WATCH] ‘Barracuda Aquilina’, the American-Maltese judge turned icon for women and survivors

Outside of her usual working schedule, Judge Aquilina is very vociferous and active in issues regarding sexual abuse and the dignity of human beings. Amongst others, she was instrumental in amending a statute so as to make things harder for child abusers in the future.

Judge Rosemarie Aquilina is also a writer, and has two crime novels to her name: Feel No Evil (2003, Porch Swing Press) and Triple Cross Killer (2017, Fiery Seas Publishing).

The public attending the Malta Book Festival will have the opportunity to meet this year’s special guest during activities dedicated to her both as a writer but also as a very strong supporter of human rights.

The Malta Book Festival is running from 6 to 10 November, and is held at the Mediterranean Conference Centre, Valletta.