"THE HISTORY STATES THAT HE (GAUROV'S BROTHER SAUROB)WAS PLAYING WHEN HE SUDDENLY FELL ON THE GROUND - APPARENTLY THE FATHER GAVE HIM SOMETHING, AND COMPRESSIONS AND MOUTH TO MOUTH. AND THEN THERE'S A SUGGESTION THERE MAY HAVE BEEN A SIMILAR EPISODE LAST YEAR;"
LAWYER JAMES LOCKYER TO COMMISSIONER STEPHEN GOUDGE DURING CROSS-EXAMINATION OF PROFESSOR HELEN WHITWELL;
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"BUT IF WE ASSUME FOR A MOMENT THAT JUST DAYS BEFORE GAUROV DIED HIS ONE (1) YEAR OLD BROTHER, SAUROB HAD BEEN THROUGH, WHAT COULD BE DESCRIBED AS A SIMILAR EXPERIENCE TO GAUROV, WOULD THAT SUGGEST THAT THERE MIGHT BE ANY KIND OF -- OF HEREDITARY PROBLEM WITHIN FAMILY?
DR. HELEN WHITWELL: "I DON'T THINK I CAN REALLY ANSWER THAT. IT MAY OR MAY NOT. I MEAN, WE -- WE JUST DON'T KNOW."
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LAWYER JAMES LOCKYER AND PROFESSOR HELEN WHITWELL;
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In an earlier posting I referred to the shocking disclosure from the Goudge Inquiry that Dinesh Kumar's lawyer's testified that he had not been informed by prosecutors about a disturbing decision from Ontario Court Justice Patrick Dunn in the Amber case.
That decision was was highly critical of the opinions of Dr. Charles Smith and the Hospital for Sick Children SCAN (Suspected Child Abuse And Neglect) team.
Two other shocking disclosures relating to Gaurov's case also emanated from the Inquiry;
The second - the subject of this post - was that Dr. Charles Smith had informed homicide investigators that both he, and Dr. Dirk Huyer, the head of the SCAN team at the Hospital for Sick Children In Toronto were both "struggling" to find criminality in the case - a far cry from the language in their official reports;
Now the third: It has been disclosed during the Goudge Inquiry that in March 1992, just a few days before Gaurov's death his brother Saurob, was seen at a walk-in clinic at the Hospital for Children for spells.
Lawyer James Lockyer told the Inquiry that he had "just obtained" Saurob's medical records through a request.
Lockyer said the the history states that he was playing when he suddenly fell on the ground - - and we don't quite know what -- and was cyanosed. Apparently the father gave him something, andC compressions and mouth to mouth. And then there's a suggestion there may have been a similar episode last year.
Lockyer began this portion of his cross-examination of Professor Helen Whitwell - the independent reviewer of Gaurov's case - by informing Commissioner Steven Goudge that, "Another document that we just obtained through a request is the medical records, or -- the medical records of Dinash's (phonetic) brother, Saurob.
And if we go to PFP302210 -- now it's -- it's the best we have so far, and we're trying to get a better copy of this document -- but if you look at this document, it's addressed to Dr. Rana, who was Saurob's -- and indeed still is -- Saurob's physician.
Saurob is now -- I think I'm right in saying -- seventeen (17) years old and, Mr. Commissioner, he -- he is with his parents, I'm glad to say.
Any event, it's a report from the Hospital for Sick Children.
If we go to the second page, you'll see this document.
I'm afraid you -- we don't know who it's from because you can't quite read it.
But if you look at this document on page 1 -- if you could show us page 1 again? There might a Dr. Bard, if there is such a doctor at the Hospital for Sick Children.
And you'll see -- and this is a matter of days before Gaurov's death.
If you could raise the page, give us the bottom of the page.
COMMISSIONER STEPHEN GOUDGE: Is there a date on it somewhere?
JAMES LOCKYER: Well, it's -- I think it's mark -- I'm right in saying we've worked it out as being March 1st, 1992. It might be March 11th or 21st.
it's -- it's -- there's a one (1) and we have reason to think it's March. And I think that becomes apparent.
CONTINUED BY MR. JAMES LOCKYER:
MR. JAMES LOCKYER: If you could give us the -- the -- to the bottom of this page, please.
Thank you. You'll see here that Saurob, in what's really just a matter of days before Gaurov's death, was seen in the walk-in clinic at the Hospital for Sick Children for these spells.
you see where I'm looking?
DR. HELEN WHITWELL: Yes.
MR. JAMES LOCKYER: The history states -- and -- and we can probably invent some of the lines -- some of the words that are missing -- the history states that he was playing when he suddenly fell on the ground - - and we don't quite know what -- and was cyanosed.
Apparently the father gave him something, and compressions and mouth to mouth.
And then there's a suggestion there may have been a similar episode last year.
And then if we go to the -- over the page, and there's -- you'll see in the last paragraph: "Difficult to elicit exactly what the problem is. In a consideration of the description of this spell, we feel it's worthwhile to do..." And I'm -- I'm sort of translating, Mr. Commissioner, to some extent. "...a reassessment of the patient after an EEG has been done."
We also -- I can also tell you that Gaurov's father used to be an ambulance attendant back in his home country.
DR. HELEN WHITWELL: Right.
MR. JAMES LOCKYER: And so had familiarity with resuscitation and mouth-to-mouth techniques.
DR. HELEN WHITWELL: Yes.
MR. JAMES LOCKYER: So if we -- and I appreciate this is a dreadful document, but it's all we've got at the moment, and as I say, we're trying to get a better copy of it.
But if we assume for a moment that just days before Gaurov died his one (1) year old brother, Saurob had been through, what could be described as a similar experience to Gaurov, would that suggest that there might be any kind of -- of hereditary problem within family?
DR. HELEN WHITWELL: I don't think I can really answer that. It may or may not. I mean, we -- we just don't know.
This Blogster has no doubt that there is no way - at this point of time - that Professor Whitwell, or anyone else could give a definitive answer to this question.
I am however troubled by the fact that the shocking disclosure appears to have merged for the first time almost two decades after Mr. Kumar pleaded guilty to criminal negligence in connection with Gaurov's death.
This is an important investigative fact which should have been discovered by both the corner and police investigators, relayed to the police, and then disclosed to defence counsel - if at that point of time the prosecution was determined to expose Mr. Kumar to criminal proceedings.
It is crucial to recollect that Mr. Kumar felt pressured to enter a plea to criminal negligence causing Gaurov's death shortly after it was offered by prosecutors in order to avoid the oppressive murder charge - while the family was still deeply in mourning.
His lawyers therefore never got down to the type of investigation which would have revealed this kind of information which may have offered a medical defence which indicated that Gaurov, like so many other infants in Dr. Charles Smith's cases, had died a tragic, but natural death.
Harold Levy...hlevy15@gmail.com;
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