Captain on trial in Italy wants tests on shipwreck

The captain of the capsized Costa Concordia has asked the judge at his manslaughter trial to order tests on the cruise liner's wreckage to determine why electrical and other systems failed after the vessel struck a reef off an Italian island in 2012, killing 32 people.
The outcome of the request from Francesco Schettino, the sole defendant, won't be known until at least September. After only two full days of hearings, Judge Giovanni Puliatti today adjourned the trial until Sept. 23.
Schettino is also charged with causing the shipwreck and abandoning ship before all aboard had been evacuated. His defence claims that no one died in the collision itself, but that the failure of a backup generator and water-tight compartments created problems during the evacuation, when the deaths occurred.