The mother bear that disembowelled a jogger in northern Italy while apparently defending her cubs has escaped the death penalty and experts are now considering whether she can be relocated to a sanctuary in Romania.

Andrea Papi was killed by JJ4, a mother bear with three cubs, in April this year, before the bear was captured along with two of her young.

Some, including the victim’s girlfriend, had initially called for the bear to be killed, while others, including animal rights organisations, had argued that it should be relocated.

The final decision by the Italian Council of State comes after the culling order was already suspended by the Council of State in June.

The judges said that “the provision which provides for the slaughter of the animal appears disproportionate and inconsistent with the supranational and national regulations which require the adequate evaluation of intermediate measures, without prejudice to the captivation ordered to protect public safety, the order to kill the animal”, according to local media.

The judges in Rome also reportedly spared a second bear, MJ5, which has yet to be captured and was also facing the cull after injuring a man in March.

The animal rights organisation LAV welcomed the ruling by the court on Friday, with the organisation’s Massimo Vitturi saying: “There’s no more reason to delay JJ4’s transfer to a safe and authorised refuge in Romania.”

The next hearing to decide where JJ4 will live is currently scheduled for 14th December, with the Italian Council of State arguing the date should be brought forwards.

The LAV said that this was further reason to expedite relocating JJ4 to Romania.

JJ4 killed Andrea Papi, 26, in the Caldes woods in Val di Sole on 5th April.

Its capture came following a culling order that was signed by the president of the Province of Trento, Maurizio Fugatti, after the young man was found mauled to death.