Scientists jailed for manslaughter for not predicting earthquake in Italy, cleared Town of L'Aquila was struck by quake, which measured 6.3 on Richter Scale Hundreds were killed and thousands were left homeless in 2009 disaster Scientists visited town days before but concluded there was little risk They were sentenced to six years each in prison following 2012 trial Some of the Italy's most respected seismologists were among those jailed By Hannah Roberts for MailOnline Six scientists who were each sentenced to six years in prison because they failed to predict a deadly earthquake in Italy which left 309 people dead have been cleared. The group, which includes some of the country's most respected seismologists, was jailed for manslaughter after underestimating the risks that an earthquake posed to the town of L'Aquila. The medieval mountain town was decimated by the killer quake in 2009, which measured more than 6.3 on the Richter Scale and killed more than 300 people and left thousands homeless. Devastation: The mountain town of L'Aquila, pictured after the deadly earthquake which struck in 2009 Warning: Local residents, pictured among debris, experienced tremors in the lead-up to the earthquake Mourning: The earthquake, which measured 6.3 on the Richter Scale, killed more than 300 people The scientists were members of a Major Risks committee that met in the town after a series of small tremors but concluded that there was little risk. But just days later, at 3.32am on 6 April, the town was struck by the earthquake - injuring more than a thousand people and killing hundreds in their sleep. Judges in the first trial in 2012 said the committee members gave a 'misleadingly reassuring statement' that prompted at least 29 people who wanted to leave the town to stay instead. They were jailed in October that year. A seventh man, government official Bernardo De Bernardinis, who claimed there was "no danger," was absolved of the main charges and his sentence reduced to two years. 59 shares The experts were also ordered to pay more than €9 million (roughly £7million) in damages to survivors. There was widespread outrage at the verdict, particularly from those within the scientific community. The journal Nature called it 'perverse' and the sentencing 'ludicrous' given the recognised difficulty of predicting earthquakes. Some compared the sentence to the torture of Galileo, the astronomer who was imprisoned as a heretic until he repudiated his claim that the Earth moves around the Sun. Outrage: The scientific community spoke out against the sentencing of the seismologists in 2012. Above, rescue workers search for people trapped under a building that was brought down by the killer quake Distraught: One family looks at what remains of their town the morning after the earthquake struck Rubble: Firefighters sort through debris after the earthquake. Victims' families today said that overturning the verdict was a 'misjustice' and their lawyer described it as 'an earthquake within an earthquake' Following the appeal verdict on Monday the victims' families' lawyer Attilio Cecchini said the overturned verdict was a misjustice calling it 'an earthquake within an earthquake'. Members of the public in court shouted "Shame on you. Shame on you!," Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera reported. One resident said: 'This state does not carry out justice it only defends itself.' Another relative said: "They have murdered them a second time with this verdict." The father of a victim said: "The divine law of God sees everything and justice will be done ultimately." The prosecutors could still appeal the innocent verdict to Italy's highest court but are expected to wait until the judges' reasoning in published, within the next three months. The case was watched closely by seismologists around the world who insist it's impossible to predict earthquakes and that no major temblor has ever been foretold. In 2011, about 5,200 international researchers signed a petition supporting their Italian colleagues and the Seismological Society of America wrote to Italy's president expressing concern about what it called an unprecedented legal attack on science. But prosecutors focused on a memo issued after a March 31, 2009 meeting of the Great Risks commission which was called because of mounting concerns about the months of seismic activity in the region. According to the commission's memo - issued one week before the big quake - the experts concluded that it was "improbable" that there would be a major quake though it added that one couldn't be excluded. In 2011, a spokesman for the U.S. Geological Society told FoxNews.com that the investigation 'has a medieval flavour to it - like witches are being put on trial.' Despite the difficulty in predicting earthquakes, Boschi had warned - prior to the 2009 disaster - that a large earthquake would hit Italy but that he didn't know when, his lawyer said. Widespread damage: Bodies were still deing discovered three days after the devastating earthquake which hit the medieval mountain city and its province Speaking at the time of the sentencing, Dr David Rothery, senior lecturer in Earth Sciences, Open University, said:'I hope they will appeal. Earthquakes are inherently unpredictable. The best estimate at the time was that the low level seismicity was not likely to herald a bigger quake, but there are no certainties in this game. Prof Malcolm Sperrin, director of Medical Physics, Royal Berkshire Hospital, Reading, said: 'Assuming that negligence and malpractice are not factors here then the prosecution, and now sentences, of the Italian seismologists comes as a considerable surprise. In seismology, as with many other branches of the pure and applied sciences, opinions are derived from observables and the application of experience and training. It is never the case that predictions are completely without uncertainty and any scientist will make this clear as well as an estimation of how accurate such predictions are. If the scientific community is to be penalised for making predictions that turn out to be incorrect, or for not accurately predicting an event that subsequently occurs, then scientific endeavour will be restricted to certainties only and the benefits that are associated with findings from medicine to physics will be stalled. It is worth pointing out that many of the valuable contributions made by scientists such as penicillin, radiobiology etc have stemmed from the enquiring mind rather than absolute certainty of success.