Law - Law Med Blog

Md Abortion Docs Murder Trials Dates Set

February 16, 2012 lawmed No comments

A Cecil County judge has set a trial date of June 27 for a Utah abortion doctor charged with murder for the death of a fetus during a 2010 procedure in Maryland and a June 6 date for the trial of a New Jersey doctor charged with 5 counts of murder in the deaths of as many fetuses.

Dr. Nicola Riley of Utah is charged under a Maryland law that allows prosecutors to pursue murder charges in the death of a viable fetus. Her former colleague, Dr. Steven Brigham of New Jersey, has been charged in the deaths of five fetuses, and all of the deaths are related to abortions performed at an Elkton, Md. clinic run by Brigham. While the abortions themselves would have normally been legally performed in any licensed facility, by a license practitioner in Maryland, Brigham was not licensed to practice medicine in the state of … (Continued…)

Lawsuit: Sisters Have Hospital Kill Multi Millionaire Father For Inheritence

February 10, 2012 lawmed No comments

Victorino Noval, 78, entered a Kaiser hospital in Southern California on April 28, 2010, with a diagnosis of aspiration pneumonia. He was intubated, placed on a mechanical ventilator, and sedated. His medical history included early stages of Parkinson’s, and COPD. Noval was totally independent prior to his hospitalization. He lived in his own home, drove his own car, performed his own daily living activities, managed his own finances and investments, and had an annual income of $3 Million. He was worth an estimated $60 Million.

On May 7th, 2010, despite exhibiting improvement in his pneumonia and having a positive prognosis for recovery, Kaiser staff removed Noval from his ventilator, extubated him, and then administered large doses of morphine with the sole intention being to bring about his death. They succeeded. And this was all done without consulting his son, Hector Nova, despite the fact that Kaiser had an executed durable … (Continued…)

Ark Court Rejects Tort Reform Provision On Expert Witnesses

February 06, 2012 lawmed No comments

In 2003 the Arkansas legislature enacted a tort reform law that included a provision that expert witnesses in medical malpractice liability lawsuits must practice in the same specialty as defendant doctors. The requirement that testifying experts must be in the same specialty as a defendant physician when they testify on his/her behalf or against, when that testimony goes to the standard of care in that specialty has been a long standing one in many states. The requirement is sensible to the point of being common sense, and a very important one. But, due to constitutional language specific to Arkansas, the legislature does not have the power pass such a law. That power lies within the courts of Arkansas alone as we shall discuss.

On January 19 the Arkansas supreme court ruled the requirement “violates the separation-of-powers doctrine, Amendment 80, and the inherent authority of the courts to protect the integrity … (Continued…)

Lawyers For Dr Riley Ask To Inspect Fetus In Abortion Murder Case

February 04, 2012 lawmed No comments

Lawyers for Dr. Nicola Riley, charged with murder accused of killing a fetus during a late-term abortion at a Elkton Maryland clinic have motioned the Cecil County Circuit Court to allow them to inspect specimens of that fetus.

Riley and 55-year-old Dr. Steven Brigham of Voorhees, N.J., have been charged with murder in the death of a fetus, Brigham with 5 counts. While in and of itself late term abortion is legal in the state of Maryland, the charges stem from the fact that Brigham, licensed in New Jersey, was not licensed to practice in Md., and Riley knew this yet knowingly practiced in Md. along side him. Riley is licensed in Md.

Stuart O. Simms, one of Riley’s lawyers, filed the motion asking the judge to order the State Medical Examiner’s Office to allow a defense expert to inspect any specimens identified as Male Fetus Brewer.… (Continued…)

Full Circle: Winkler County Atty Tidwell Has License Suspended

February 04, 2012 lawmed No comments

Things have been coming full circle in the extraordinary case of the Winkler County Texas Nurse Whistleblower Case over the past year and that circle may just have closed. The last bit of justice seems to have been served with the suspension of former Winkler County Attorney Scott Tidwell’s license to practice law in the state of Texas.

It all began in 2009 when Anne Mitchell and Vicki Galle, two nurses working at Winkler County Memorial Hospital who were responsible for Quality Assurance, Risk Management and Medical Staff privileges advised hospital administrator Stan Wiley that one of their physicians, Dr. Rolando Arafiles, had violated the standard of care, hospital policies and made some serious medical errors. Wiley refused to take any action and told the two they were prohibited from reporting Arafiles to any outside agency without his approval, in violation of state law.

Concerned over the safety of their … (Continued…)

Ohio Anesthesiologist Convicted Of Murder Seeking New Trial [VIDEO]

February 01, 2012 lawmed No comments

Former anesthesiologist and convicted murderer Mark Wangler is back in an Ohio courtroom asking for a new trial.

His attorney argued before the Third District Court of Appeals the reasons they should overturn the aggravated murder conviction for the death of Wangler’s first wife Kathy. The arguments focused on scientific evidence allowed, and not allowed, during the March 2011 trial. Attorney Christopher McDowell criticized the method scientists used to test chemicals on duct work in the home, calling it junk science. McDowell said Judge Richard Warren shouldn’t have allowed jurors to hear the testimony at all. He also objected to a defense witness not being allowed to refute the evidence. The chemical evidence was key since Wangler was convicted of killing his wife by using carbon monoxide, a deadly asphyxiate gas.

McDowell also says officers collected evidence beyond the scope allowed by a search warrant including a diary. However, assistant … (Continued…)

Pa Supreme Court: Physicians Can Be Sued For Emotional Distress

January 30, 2012 lawmed No comments

The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania has ruled a physician can be sued for causing a patient emotional distress, even when no medical negligence, physical contact or malpractice exists. The ruling stems from a lawsuit filed by a woman who claims her physician did not prepare her for the shock of the severe deformities her infant was born with.

In March of 2003 Jeanelle Toney went to radiologist Maheep Goyal, MD, for a pelvic ultrasound. Dr. Goyal informed her that the results were normal and did not indicate any fetal abnormalities in her unborn child, according to her lawsuit. Rather, Toney was advised that her unborn child was normal and healthy. She gave birth in July delivering a boy who was profoundly deformed. He lacked arms below the elbows and legs below the knee joints, and an incompletely developed tongue and under-sized lower jaw, among other anomalies. Toney was awake and … (Continued…)

Desai Competancy Hearing Held Friday In Nevada Hepatitis C Case

January 29, 2012 lawmed No comments

The issue of the competency of Dr. Dipak Desai to stand trial was again before Clark County District Court Judge Kathleen Delaney on Friday. Back in February of 2011 two court appointed medical experts found Desai incompetent for trial and he was ordered into custody at a state mental health facility.

Dr. Steven Zuchowski, a state psychiatrist, treated Desai last year at the Lakes Crossing state mental facility in Sparks. The goal of treatment at the facility was to determine whether Desai could be made competent and to implement treatment as appropriate if he could.

Zuchowski testified Friday that despite suffering two strokes, the embattled former physician-owner of Las Vegas outpatient colonoscopy clinics at the center of a 2008 Hepatitis C outbreak, is mentally competent to stand trial on criminal charges. He told the court that Desai’s memory was affected by strokes in 2007 and 2008, but that he was … (Continued…)

OH Appelate Court: Disclosure Of Errors To Family Not Peer Review

January 26, 2012 lawmed No comments

Similar to laws on the books in every state, Ohio law protects a hospital that reveals an admission of error in peer review from having that information being discovered and used in malpractice cases. In the case of medical malpractice case Smith v Cleveland Clinic, et al., the defendants attempted to prevent statements made by the hospital’s chief medical officer during a conference with the family being admitted in court claiming they were privileged as part of peer review.

Howard L. Smith, 73, underwent an uneventful knee surgery at Community Health Partners Regional Medical Center, now known as Mercy Regional Medical Center, in Lorain, Ohio, on February 17, 2010. Postoperative routine blood work orders were entered and Smith’s blood was taken on the 18th. One of the ordered tests was for serum potassium. On February 19th Smith suffered a cardiac arrest, was resuscitated, but removed from life support on March … (Continued…)

California Anesthesia Opt-Out Appeal Arguments Set For 2/14

January 26, 2012 lawmed No comments

In the case challenging the California Medicare nurse anesthetist physician supervision requirement opt-out signed by then governor Schwarzenegger, California Society of Anesthesiologists et al. v. Arnold Schwarzenegger as Governor, all of the briefs and responses have been filed and oral arguments (after some rescheduling) have been finally set for February 14, 2012.

One party will not be feeling the love when the decision comes down from this Valentine’s Day event. Read the docket HERE.… (Continued…)

Philly Infant Spinal Cord Cutting Doc Pleads Not Guilty To Drug Charges

January 24, 2012 lawmed No comments

Kermit Gosnell, 70, the West Philadelphia abortionist facing state capital murder charges, pleaded not guilty to federal drug charges yesterday.

Gosnell is presently awaiting a March 2013 trial date in state court, charged with murder in the 2009 death of a Virginia woman undergoing an abortion and with killing seven live newborns by plunging scissors into their necks and severing their spinal cords. Investigators believe he may have killed hundreds of infants in the same manner.

Last month, federal prosecutors charged Gosnell with using his women’s medical clinic as a pill mill to dispense thousands of prescriptions for highly-addictive narcotics to cash-paying customers between 2008 and January 2010. The indictment said Gosnell distributed hundreds of thousands of oxycodone and alprazolam (Xanax) pills and 19,000 bottles of cough syrup containing codeine during that time. Many of the drugs were later sold on the street for cash, prosecutors said. Gosnell faces a … (Continued…)

Search

Subscribe

Meta

Pages

Categories

Archive

Favorites

Share

Category Archives: Law

FEATURED VIDEO

Featured Video

Recent Posts

Recent Comments

Lawmed Top Posts