Salerno – Renato Chestnut, 37 years old, died in prison Get out after a sudden illness: the prisoner, suffering from hypertension and recovering from a stroke, had already manifested serious health problems.
His lawyer, Bianca DeConcilio, had presented a request to the Surveillance Magistrate to verify the compatibility of his conditions with detention, but his death made any attempt at transfer futile. According to the testimonies of his cellmates, Castagno accused a severe chest pain and was accompanied to the infirmary by another inmate.
Shortly after, he fainted. The ambulance, however, would arrive with a delay of more than 45 minutes. "We don't know if he died in prison or during the transfer", declared lawyer De Concilio. «But in the emergency room he was already lifeless». La power of attorney of Salerno, led by the prosecutor Joseph Borrelli, has opened an investigation against unknown persons to clarify the causes of death.
The body has been seized and will be subjected to autopsy. However, several questions remain open: Why did help take so long to arrive? Why was a man with known health problems not adequately monitored? Castagno's death is not only an individual tragedy, but it raises once again serious doubts about health conditions in Italian prisons.
The right to health of prisoners is guaranteed by law, but too often structural and organizational deficiencies put their lives at risk. Now it is up to the judiciary to shed light on what happened, but one thing is certain: Renato Castagno shouldn't have died like this.
Article published on March 25, 2025 - 16pm
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It is truly a shame that a person like Renato Castagno died in prison. His health conditions were known and the lawyer had already requested a transfer. There are many unanswered questions about this case.