Giusy Vitale

Giuseppa Vitale (born in Partinico, 1972), better known as Giusy, is the sister of Mafia bosses Leonardo, Michele and Vito Vitale from Partinico, Sicily. Giusy took over the command over the clan when her brothers were in prison or fugitives, despite the formal Mafia rule that excludes the participation of women in the criminal organisation. As such she was considered one of a new breed of 'bosses in skirts'. Later she became a pentita, a state witness breaking the "omertà," or code of silence, testifying against her own family.

Mafia heritage She was raised in a traditional Mafia family in Partinico, 40 kilometres from Palermo. The Vitale clan had taken over the Partinico mandamento from Nenè Geraci in 1991–92.

At the age of 13 she left school. Her brother Leonardo, who was 17 years her major and acted as her father, was jealous, she explained. "I'd reached the third year of middle school but he wouldn't let me go any further." Other Mafia bosses accepted the nomination by her brothers, and she could be considered a veritable donna d'onore.

Pentita While in jail, Giusy, mother of two, met a pentito, Alfio Garozzo, a former head of the Cursotti clan from Catania. Her husband, Angelo Caleca, was serving time for a killing that she allegedly ordered. In February 2005, she became a state witness (pentita), from behind bars.

She justified her decision to testify simply "for the good of my children." She said: "I want to be a mother and I want to be near my children. They've got to grow up with me. If I stay in prison, I'll lose them." "While I was in jail, they brought my son, who is now 12, to see me. He was about six then.

She petitioned for divorce, violating yet another of the Cosa Nostra's strict rules, which forbids adultery. Vitale today lives outside Sicily under Italy's witness protection programme, and is making a new life for herself with her children.

Biography Vitale, Giusy & Camilla Costanzo (2009), Ero cosa loro, Milan: Mondadori,