Sunday, December 2, 2007

Goudge Inquiry: Smith Said He Kept Key Exhibit in Waudby Case At His Home, Former Chief Coroner says;

"HE'D TAKEN IT HOME, AND FOR SOME REASON HE WAS CHOOSING TO DISCLOSE THE EXISTENCE OF THE HAIR AT THIS POINT IN TIME;"

DR. JAMES YOUNG.


The Goudge Inquiry has learned that that Dr. Charles Smith Said He had kept a key piece of forensic evidence from an autopsy at his home.

The evidence is the tiny, dark, curly, male pubic hair found in Baby Jenna's vulva area, which Smith has admitted retaining in his personal possession following the autopsy. (See previous blog: Another shocking revelation: Former Chief Coroner sent letter drafted by Smith's lawyers to College;)

The Inquiry received this evidence from former Chief Coroner Dr. James Young, who testified:

"Well, he (Deputy Chief Coroner James Cairns) told me about
the existence of the hair that -- that Dr. Smith had told
him that the hair had been taken;

that the hair had been offered to a police officer, and that the police officer
had refused to take it as an exhibit;

that he had held onto the hair;

that at one (1) point he had even gone to court with it in his pocket, and no one had asked him anything about it;

He'd taken it home, and for some reason he was choosing to disclose the existence of the hair at this point in time."


The questions raised by this revelation are significant;

First, in terms of continuity, how could one ever be sure that the exhibit in a marked envelope Smith ultimately handed over to the police was the same one he had kept in a pocket when testifying in court, and then kept (in whatever conditions) at his home?

Second: If Dr. Smith kept that exhibit in his home, what other exhibits from autopsies might he also have kept in his home? (The Inquiry did receive an anonymous letter indicating that Dr. Smith maintained a museum in his home in which he kept forensic exhibits - including a collection of earrings seized at autopsies.)

Third: Why would he have kept the exhibit at his home instead of submitting it for forensic analysis;

Fourth: How could the Hospital for Sick Children have failed to maintain a system for tracking forensic exhibits so they could quickly be traced when needed for used in court?. (The Hospital finally put such a system in place - but only after the Smith revelations);

Harold Levy; hlevy15@gmail.com;