Chiara Petrolini in court: 'I'm not a killer mother, I wasn't sure I was pregnant'

In court in Parma today, the atmosphere was heavy, almost solemn. Chiara Petrolini, the 22-year-old at the centre of a case that has rocked Italy, broke her silence. Before the judge, she took out a sheet of paper and read a prepared statement. Those present describe a voice that was thin, at times breaking, but determined to be heard. She wanted to look her accusers straight in the eye, and perhaps all of us who have been trying for months to make sense of this story.

"I am not a mother who kills her children." That sentence, as stark as a punch, is the cornerstone of her defence. Chiara Petrolini reiterated that at the time of the events – those two secret deliveries – she was not at all aware that she was pregnant. "I wasn't sure," she stressed repeatedly, almost as if trying to convince herself first. She described a body that was changing, yes, but one she interpreted with uncertainty, caught in a spiral of fear and denial. She spoke of a frightened girl, alone, not even knowing who to turn to for help.

From the prosecution's documents, details emerge that have chilled many to the bone: the tiny bodies of the newborns were allegedly abandoned in horrific circumstances. But today, she forcefully rejected the label of "monster" that has been stuck on her. She said her life became a living hell long before her arrest, and that she never meant to kill. Her words reignite the debate: is it really possible not to realise you've been pregnant twice?

Among the benches in the courtroom, I gathered the impressions of some of the lawyers present; for them, the strategy is clear. Chiara Petrolini is trying to shift the focus from premeditated murder to an incapacity to face reality. But the prosecution has its evidence and its version of the truth, and this trial is only just beginning.

Here are the key points from the statements made today by Chiara Petrolini:

• "I wasn't sure I was pregnant": she insisted on her failure to perceive her pregnancy, for both the first and the second birth.
• "I'm not a killer mother": she categorically denied any intention to kill the newborns, rejecting the charge of voluntary manslaughter.
• "I was alone and frightened": she painted a picture of a young woman in the grip of panic, unable to ask for help or even to comprehend what was happening.
• Reading from a sheet: she chose to read a prepared text to avoid being overwhelmed by emotion and to ensure she said everything she had in mind.

Leaving the courtroom, the feeling is that this case is far more complex than can be summed up in a few news reports. It's not just a story of alleged crimes, but also one of youthful isolation, of bodies that change and aren't understood, of fears that become insurmountable walls. Here in Parma, we feel it deeply, because it touches raw nerves. Chiara Petrolini is no longer just a name in the papers: she's a young woman who has spoken and now awaits judgment. And the trial, as they say in these cases, has only just begun.