Doctor tells of trying to save beating victim’s life

SALEM – The neurosurgeon who treated a Lynn native who died in October 2010 after allegedly being beaten with a wooden board testified in Salem Superior Court this morning about the “extraordinary measures and last-ditch effort” he undertook to try and save Chad McDonald’s life.Dr. Wael Asaad said he used drug treatments and other therapy to relieve the pressure in McDonald’s brain, which failed, and performed what he called a “hail Mary procedure,” removing large portions of McDonald’s skull to give his brain room to expand.McDonald, 34, died on Oct. 20, 2010, 11 days after he allegedly fought with Fernando Aristy, 25, outside of a Lynn warehouse.Aristy, 25, is charged with first-degree murder in connection with the beating death of McDonald.Read the complete story in Wednesday’s Daily Item.