"There were 32 hours of deliberations, broken up several times by read backs of complicated medical testimony. There were also many family videos of Ina shown to the jury which clearly had an powerful impact.
"There was never any evidence to me that she was in pain or being mistreated," said juror Nathaniel Ekstrom.........
Even though she was extremely grateful and relieved, Melinda McElheny used her time in front of the cameras and microphones to not only admonish the media, but also to criticize the American Justice System for allowing -- what she calls -- an epidemic in this country of innocent parents being falsely accused of harming their children.
"Parents are being targeted, often at the worst moments in their lives by over zealous police and child protective investigators," she said in a prepared statement just outside the courtroom, after the verdict. "These investigators use the parents grief and the memories of their children to coerce them into making statements of self implication."
McElheny accuses police and district attorneys of jumping to the easy conclusions when it comes to investigating injuries and deaths to small children, and in so doing, she believes, they're also influencing what she sees as "under qualified medical examiners.........
The odyssey isn't over yet for the McElhenys. After Joseph's arrest, the couples' other child was taken away from them by child protective services in the state of Vermont. Despite the outcome of the trial, there are no guarantees that they'll automatically get their child back."
REPORTER DAN LEVY; WNYT;
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BACKGROUND: Doctor Patrick Barnes, a pediatric radiologist testifying for the defence testified during the trial that infant Ina Jane McElheny's numerous broken bones were caused by congenital rickets and not by abuse from her father. Barnes, a pediatric radiologist from Palo Alto, Calif., said that the 18 fractures found on the baby postmortem happened because the child was vitamin D deficient in the womb and shortly after birth, causing brittle bones. "Such a baby can get broken bones during diaper-changing and broken ribs just from someone picking her up with their hands on both sides of her torso," Barnes said. Testimony has been heard that the baby's birth was very difficult, and Barnes said the fractures may also have been caused during the birth process. Rensselaer County Assistant District Attorney Elizabeth Kennedy got Barnes to admit that congenital rickets is not accepted by the medical community and that babies who suffer broken bones during birth are a very small percentage of all births. "Well, I can tell you that it is under-reported because doctors don't want to get sued," Barnes said. (Times-Union);
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PUBLISHER'S NOTE: A story in the Bennington Banner says: "(Defence lawyer) Cholakis said that Ina Jane’s death was caused by a hereditary intestinal condition, one which Ina Jane’s aunt testified to having as a child, and reiterated defense witness testimony to congenital rickets and a vitamin D deficiency as the cause for the infant’s multiple bone fractures.BACKGROUND: Doctor Patrick Barnes, a pediatric radiologist testifying for the defence testified during the trial that infant Ina Jane McElheny's numerous broken bones were caused by congenital rickets and not by abuse from her father. Barnes, a pediatric radiologist from Palo Alto, Calif., said that the 18 fractures found on the baby postmortem happened because the child was vitamin D deficient in the womb and shortly after birth, causing brittle bones. "Such a baby can get broken bones during diaper-changing and broken ribs just from someone picking her up with their hands on both sides of her torso," Barnes said. Testimony has been heard that the baby's birth was very difficult, and Barnes said the fractures may also have been caused during the birth process. Rensselaer County Assistant District Attorney Elizabeth Kennedy got Barnes to admit that congenital rickets is not accepted by the medical community and that babies who suffer broken bones during birth are a very small percentage of all births. "Well, I can tell you that it is under-reported because doctors don't want to get sued," Barnes said. (Times-Union);
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"TROY - After 32 hours of deliberations, and a trial that extended more than five weeks, a Rensselaer County jury has come back with eight "NOT GUILTY" verdicts against Joseph McElheny," the WNYT story by reporter Dan Levy published on October 13, 2011 under the heading, "McElheny cleared of charges involving his daughter's death", begins.
"The Hoosick Falls father was staring at murder, manslaughter, and negligent homicide charges in a case that began more than a year ago, in May 2010, when his 4-month-old daughter, Ina, died of a bowel rupture, that a medical examiner said was caused by a broken rib," the story continues.
"The long trial included testimony from six medical doctors, but the most compelling evidence, according to a juror, were family videos of the child, and testimony from the defendant himself and his wife.
After the jury foreman announced the words NOT GUILTY eight straight times, there was hugging, handshakes, and a huge sense of undeniable relief at the defense table, as it began to sink in that Joseph McElheny was a free man.
"Joe has been extremely patient," said Defense Attorney Gregory Cholakis, "He has never wavered from the beginning that he did not do anything wrong. I'm extremely grateful with this jury that they tried so hard and they worked so long."
There were 32 hours of deliberations, broken up several times by read backs of complicated medical testimony. There were also many family videos of Ina shown to the jury which clearly had an powerful impact.
"There was never any evidence to me that she was in pain or being mistreated," said juror Nathaniel Ekstrom.
Ekstrom said the testimony of both Joe and his wife Melinda also proved to be highly influential to many of the jurors.
"It certainly included how they conducted themselves on the stand," he said, "the impressions that we got on them as people and of course what they said."
"We are good, down to earth people," Joe McElheny said, outside the Rensselaer County Jail, where he was released after a 14-month stay. "Justice prevails and I'm going home."
McElheny says the thing he's most looking forward to now is home cooking.
"It's kind of a surreal experience but I'm glad to be going home. It was tough. I'm not going to say that it wasn't but you have to take it one day at a time."
Even though she was extremely grateful and relieved, Melinda McElheny used her time in front of the cameras and microphones to not only admonish the media, but also to criticize the American Justice System for allowing -- what she calls -- an epidemic in this country of innocent parents being falsely accused of harming their children.
"Parents are being targeted, often at the worst moments in their lives by over zealous police and child protective investigators," she said in a prepared statement just outside the courtroom, after the verdict. "These investigators use the parents grief and the memories of their children to coerce them into making statements of self implication."
McElheny accuses police and district attorneys of jumping to the easy conclusions when it comes to investigating injuries and deaths to small children, and in so doing, she believes, they're also influencing what she sees as "under qualified medical examiners."
"We need to shine the light on child abuse but not at the expense of tearing apart innocent families and not with a blind eye toward the injustice that results from jumping to conclusions," she continued.
"I make no excuses for the efforts that we made," said District Attorney Rich McNally. "Our efforts were done with the firm belief that we were doing the right thing."
Melinda McElheny also took a swipe at the media.
"Even though some of you have sat here for days and weeks on end," she began, "almost none of you have gotten the facts completely straight. While I understand this as a human being, I'm not entirely certain that you understand the potential impact of reporting inaccurately."
The odyssey isn't over yet for the McElhenys. After Joseph's arrest, the couples' other child was taken away from them by child protective services in the state of Vermont. Despite the outcome of the trial, there are no guarantees that they'll automatically get their child back."
The story can be found at:
http://wnyt.com/article/stories/S2326472.shtml?cat=300The story can be found at:
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;
