Judge Maria Carla Gatto, president of the juvenile court of Milan, do you remember any cases of a mother who has returned to pick up her just abandoned child?
“No, really. It is clear that abandoning a child is a painful and reasoned choice. Perhaps we should ask ourselves, if anything, why the decision to leave him like this in the ‘wheel’ and not instead after giving birth in the hospital”.
What do you think?
“Certainly the problem of the search for the origins of children born to mothers who did not recognize them at birth is the subject of jurisprudential interpretations. The mother who gives birth in hospital could in the future be consulted by a magistrate at the request of her child”.
Is there a law governing access to origins in the event of a mother who has remained anonymous?
“In reality, no, because Parliament has not yet intervened despite the Constitutional Court having invited it to do so. In the meantime, the courts are following different practices in tracing the mother and questioning her on whether or not she wishes to revoke her anonymity”.
Returning to the case of little Aeneas, how long will it take for the court to find him a family?
“After the ten days for a possible rethinking of the biological mother, the procedure will be completed within a month. This happened recently, for example, for that little girl abandoned in Monza inside a box in front of the hospital. National adoption applications will also be examined for little Enea, which in Milan are around 550 every year and remain valid for three years”.
What criteria do you follow in these cases?
“Five couples with the characteristics that appear most suitable for the specific case are identified and, following their comparison, the most suitable one is chosen for the child. For example in the case of Aeneas, who is a newborn, we will certainly find a couple of parents young”.
Even if in reality the average age of couples asking to adopt has risen in recent years.
“Yes, because in general the age of biological parenthood and adoption has increased, then, often it comes only after a long process of assisted fertilization concluded without success”.
Let’s go back to the Milanese child. Specifically, who will be responsible for the final decision on adoption?
“It is a responsibility that lies with the court, which however also makes use of the multidisciplinary support of honorary judges”.