"Doctors testified that they believe Magathan died of abusive head trauma and that the symptoms she exhibited were consistent with a violent shaking.
Barnett, Bellamy's attorney, countered that the doctors acknowledged that the girl's symptoms could be explained by other causes, and that they agreed that short falls, in rare cases, can be fatal.
But the doctors were fed information by detectives and so drew a conclusion that targeted Bellamy, he said, someone who could not have physically committed the assault considering her small stature and history of medical problems.
"We know that one's conclusions are the product of the quality of the information we consider," he said."
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"For 39 seconds, a prosecutor said Wednesday, as her 23-month-old granddaughter lay limp and laboring to breathe, Carolyn Bellamy waited," the Oregonian story by reporter Helen Jung published earlier today under the heading, "Judge deliberating case of Gresham grandmother charged in toddler's death," begins.
"Bellamy had just called her daughter -- the girl's mother -- and told her that something was wrong with little Ariana Magathan, Multnomah County deputy district attorney John Casalino said Wednesday. But after hanging up, Bellamy did not immediately dial 911," the story continues.
"Instead, he argued, the 60-year-old Gresham woman was trying to come up with a story to hide the fact that she had shaken the girl so severely she was brain dead.
"She does not know what she is going to say yet," Casalino said, as he watched a courtroom clock and noted as the second hand ticked off seconds. "Why isn't she calling?... She's thinking what is she going to say."
Casalino's comments came as he and defense attorney Russell Barnett offered their closing arguments to Multnomah County Circuit Judge Janice Wilson, who is deliberating whether Bellamy is guilty of felony murder and first-degree manslaughter in Magathan's death.
Magathan died on Oct. 16, 2009, four days after she was rushed to the hospital. Bellamy has maintained that the toddler crawled off the bed and hit the floor. She said Magathan briefly convulsed and then went limp in her arms.
But the state argued that Bellamy was frustrated with her granddaughter for getting into her papers while Bellamy was on hold with Cricket Wireless customer service. Doctors testified that they believe Magathan died of abusive head trauma and that the symptoms she exhibited were consistent with a violent shaking.
Barnett, Bellamy's attorney, countered that the doctors acknowledged that the girl's symptoms could be explained by other causes, and that they agreed that short falls, in rare cases, can be fatal.
But the doctors were fed information by detectives and so drew a conclusion that targeted Bellamy, he said, someone who could not have physically committed the assault considering her small stature and history of medical problems.
"We know that one's conclusions are the product of the quality of the information we consider," he said.
He also questioned the likelihood that Bellamy could be holding the phone while at the same time grabbing the granddaughter and shaking her violently in a fit of anger and then changing her demeanor completely "and put on what would otherwise be an Academy Award winning performance," he said.
But Casalino said while Bellamy's concern is genuine, the death was no accident. There is no other explanation for the combination of symptoms that Magathan showed, he said.
"We work hard to disbelieve painful things," he said. "People do not die from short falls.""
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The story can be found at:
http://www.oregonlive.com/gresham/index.ssf/2011/07/judge_deliberating_case_of_gre.html
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PUBLISHER'S NOTE: The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at:
http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith
Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:
http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html
Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog; hlevy15@gmail.com;
