TWO maintenance men have been given suspended jail sentences for the death of a York academic who was killed on a walkway at an Italian railway station.

Professor Sally Baldwin, 62, was killed in October last year when she fell through a gap and was dragged into the gears of a moving walkway at Tiburtina station, in Rome.

Prosecutors argued that Sergio Marfut and Massimo Migotto, who were carrying out maintenance work at the time, did not take the necessary measures to prevent the public from using the walkway.

The men had both faced four-year jail terms for manslaughter in the fast track case at Rome's central criminal court, but yesterday received lower sentences after plea bargaining from their lawyers.

Marfut, 30, was given a 15 month suspended sentence and Migotto, 38, who was more experienced, one of 22 months.

They were also found guilty of causing grievous bodily harm to Vincenzo Pratico, an Italian railway worker who suffered horrific leg injuries when he and a colleague tried to help the professor.

In July, Mr Pratico, 38, was given the Queen's Commendation for Bravery by Britain's ambassador to Italy, Sir Ivor Roberts.

Prosecutor Roberto Staffa told the court that Professor Baldwin's death was "terrible".

"It's hard to imagine how someone could die in such a way in 2003," he said.

"Both these men have to think of their responsibility in the fact that a woman has lost her life and another has had his life dramatically altered."

Professor Baldwin lived in St John's Street, York, with her husband, Joe Callan. The couple have two daughters, Emma and Julia.

The Scottish-born professor was a semi-retired social policy expert whose groundbreaking research highlighted the plight of families with disabled children.

She worked at the University of York for 30 years and was also a board member of York NHS Trust.

Four buildings housing the Institute for Research in the Social Sciences at the University, of which the professor was director, were officially renamed in her honour last week.

A University of York spokeswoman said today that they did not wish to comment on the sentence of the Italian court but said that they "feel a great sense of loss at Professor Baldwin's death".

Three other people working for the same company as Migotto and Marfut have been ordered to go on trial on February 16, next year.

Updated: 10:23 Tuesday, October 05, 2004