Naples – "I won't comment. But the only victim here is Domenico." Patrizia Mercolino doesn't raise her voice. Her grimace is one of suppressed resentment. Her words come immediately after hearing a television interview with Monaldi heart surgeon Guido Oppido, who appeared on the program "Lo Stato delle Cose," where he stated that he, too, feels like a victim of what is happening.
For the mother of little Domenico Caliendo, who died at two years and four months after a heart transplant, the time for public responses has not yet begun. "There's time to mourn. Our goal now is to know the truth, to get justice, and that's it. Enough is enough," she reiterates.
Her husband, Antonio Caliendo, stands beside her. "I'm angry," he says to the cameras. He says he didn't have the strength to tell his other two children that their little brother was gone. "Their mother told them."
The mother insists on one point: "I'm finding out everything now, but I want to know everything. They never told me anything, never. I learned it from the newspapers. Until February 7th, I didn't know anything." And after listening to the content of some chats, which ended up in the investigation, she lets out a question that is both accusatory and painful: "How do they feel inside, inside their consciences?"
The turning point before the investigating judge: one of the experts changes
This morning, before the investigating judge of the Naples Court, Mariano Sorrentino, the order for the expert report will be formalized, which will shed full light on the causes of the child's death.
Yesterday, the first favorable outcome was reached for the parents' defense, represented by criminal lawyer Francesco Petruzzi. The motion to challenge one of the three experts initially appointed was granted. Professor Ugolino Livi of Udine was appointed to replace Professor Mauro Rinaldi.
The defense had highlighted how the first expert had already expressed his opinion publicly on the matter, releasing statements to the media: a circumstance that, according to the family's lawyers, could have compromised the appearance of total neutrality ahead of the autopsy.
In his ruling, investigating judge Sorrentino emphasized "the complexity and sensitivity of the matter" and the need to ensure "the smooth and orderly conduct of the proceedings." He also emphasized how the expert "responsibly" submitted his mandate to the judge's decision.
The appointments of the other two experts, Luca Lorini and Biagio Solarino, remain confirmed.
Key points of the investigation: Bolzano, Naples, and the "frozen" heart
Attention is now focused on the autopsy and the questions raised by the Naples Prosecutor's Office. The prosecutors are asking for clarification:
how the two interventions were carried out, in Bolzano and Naples;
how the donated heart was removed by the team led by Dr. Gabriella Farina;
what the exact timing of the transplant was;
whether there has been a lesion to the left ventricle;
the exact time of aortic clamping.
"We would like further information on the possible injury to the left ventricle, an event reported in the newspapers, and the exact time of the aortic clamping," explained attorney Petruzzi.
And again: "We await confirmation that the aorta was clamped before the heart box from Bolzano arrived in the operating room. We want to know if the anesthesiology records exist, which Monaldi didn't send us."
Beyond the technical terminology, the crux of the matter is this: establishing with certainty when the transplant began and what condition the organ was in at the time of implantation.
December 23rd and that passage in the medical records
The date is December 23rd. The surgery is completed, but Domenico's life remains suspended on a machine for almost two months.
In the medical record, Dr. Oppido notes a passage that would become central to the investigation: the explant team opens the transport system to extract the donor heart while the cardioectomy begins. The contents of the container appear frozen. It is clear that the ice provided by the hospital where the donation was made was dry ice.
The organ extraction, it says, takes about twenty minutes and is extremely difficult. The heart appears "extremely frozen." Multiple rinses are performed to thaw it. "It was decided, however, to attempt to implant the organ, as it was the only option."
It is on that sequence—time, conditions, decisions—that the prosecutor's questions now focus, as do the expectations of a family who insists they learned too late, and too little.
For Patrizia Mercolino, however, one thing is already clear: "The victim here is only Domenico." The rest—responsibility, omissions, possible errors—will have to be determined by the expert report. And then, possibly, a trial.
Source EDITORIAL TEAM
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