PUBLISHER'S VIEW: (Editorial); The dangerous currents that caused Dr. Waney Squier to be thrown out of the medical profession in England for daring to question the integrity of the science underlying shaken baby syndrome are now being unleashed in the U.S.A. This is evident from the secret letter revealed by the Boston Globe earlier today in which a group representing 1800 pediatricians in Massachusetts - the Massachusetts chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics - calls on Governor Charlie Baker to launch a review of the state medical examiner’s office, after it changed its determination on three infant deaths in the past two years. (A co-signor told the Globe that he had no comment because "he wanted the letter to the governor to remain confidential." The secret letter contains ugly unsubstantiated allegations that "the medical examiners office is allowing defense medical experts to have outsized influence, prior to trial, in cases involving “shaken-baby” death investigations. In the three cases, child fatalities originally deemed to be homicides were later changed to be of “undetermined” cause. Publicly available information questions whether individual examiners may have been influenced by participating attorneys and paid reports from defense medical experts,” according to the letter obtained by the Globe. Sadly, these extraordinary and alarming events call into question both the capacity and independence of our medical examiner’s office.” What really is behind the letter however becomes clear toward the end of reporter Patricia Wen's story in which she notes that, "In the letter to the governor, however, the pediatricians’ group suggested that Massachusetts risks becoming a state that doesn’t see clearly the tragic regularity of “shaken-baby” deaths, and that the medical examiners office must “have sufficient expertise in child abuse injuries to reject controversial and unscientific alternate cause theories.” In other words, a message is being sent to members of the those medical examiners office - and possibly to physicians, researchers, and forensic experts in the state who do not unquestioningly accept the prevailing views on shaken baby syndrome - as defined by the Association - there will be consequences. The story points out that, "In the case of the Malden infant, the defense provided a medical report suggesting the child’s death may be related to Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, a connective-tissue disorder that can cause easy bleeding and bruising; in the death of the Cambridge girl, the defense provided evidence that she may have had some signs of von Willebrand disease, which affects blood clotting; and in the case of the Burlington baby, the defense suggested the child had an undetected cardiac problem. Defense attorneys in the three cases have previously maintained that their medical investigations showed that child abuse was not the cause of death, and emphasized the importance of taking a thorough look at all possible causes of such tragedies." How sad it is to think that medical examiners who do their work with open minds, in a scientific, evidenced-based manner, are now under attack by pediatricians who appear to have no concern that their rigid adherence to a flawed ideology will continue to risk turning innocent parents into murderers, when no crime has occurred. Perhaps this letter to the governor is inspired by the success of the medical profession in the UK in getting rid of Dr. Squier and discouraging other experts from offering their evidence questioning the validity of the Syndrome in court for fear of the personal consequences. Justice for accused parents and caregivers be damned. In their movie documentary 'The Syndrome', Meryl and Susan Goldsmith show the increasingly ugly attacks being experienced by critics of the shaken-baby theory. The pediatrician's letter to the governor is a testament to the prophetic nature of their work.
Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog;
STORY: "Pediatricians call on governor for review of shaken baby cases," by reporter Patrician Wen, reported by the Boston Globe on May 4, 2014.
GIST: "A group representing 1,800 pediatricians in Massachusetts is calling on Governor Charlie Baker to launch a review of the state medical examiner’s office, after it changed its determination on three infant deaths in the past two years. The letter from the Massachusetts chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics suggests the medical examiner’s office is allowing defense medical experts to have outsized influence, prior to trial, in cases involving “shaken-baby” death investigations. In the three cases, child fatalities originally deemed to be homicides were later changed to be of “undetermined” cause. “Publicly available information questions whether individual examiners may have been influenced by participating attorneys and paid reports from defense medical experts,” according to the letter obtained by the Globe. “Sadly, these extraordinary and alarming events call into question both the capacity and independence of our medical examiner’s office.” The governor’s office was not immediately available for comment. The changed rulings from the medical examiner’s office – involving three separate state pathologists -- caused prosecutors to halt two of the three murder prosecutions. They dropped charges in 2014 against Geoffrey Wilson, a Malden father who had been accused of killing his infant son, Nathan. They also dropped charges against Aisling Brady McCarthy, a nanny from Ireland accused of murdering 1-year-old Rehma Sabir of Cambridge......When prosecutors initially went forward with murder indictments, they largely based them on the medical examiner’s original reports, based on autopsies and other forensic information, that the child’s death was caused by inflicted injuries. Testimony from the medical examiners included findings about brain swelling and bleeding, eye damage, as well as bruising in the head area. The letter to the governor appears to represent growing frustration by the pediatricians’ organization, which had originally sought a behind-the-scenes solution to their concerns that fatalities from abusive head trauma – also known as “shaken baby syndrome “ -- may now have begun being wrongfully labeled as deaths caused by rare medical events. The letter to the governor is signed by Dr. Michael McManus, president of the Massachusetts chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics and head of critical care anesthesiology at Boston Children’s Hospital, and Dr. Stephen Boos, chairman of the chapter’s abuse and neglect panel and a child abuse pediatrician affiliated with Bay State Medical Center in Springfield. McManus has not responded to the Globe’s efforts to reach him, and Boos told the Globe that he wanted the letter to the governor to remain confidential; he had no comment...Bennett also said that the office has about 12 full-time pathologists, and that the chief medical examiner, Nields, gives each of them autonomy to come to their own decisions, including changing their minds and accepting input from defense experts prior to trial. Bennett, a seasoned homicide prosecutor, acknowledged that it is highly rare to see three pathologists change their rulings from homicide to undetermined in less than two years. In the letter to the governor, the pediatricians’ group raised concerns about a wave of national attention to questionable shaken-baby cases, leading the public to potentially believe that “well established science is in question.” In the case of the Malden infant, the defense provided a medical report suggesting the child’s death may be related to Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, a connective-tissue disorder that can cause easy bleeding and bruising; in the death of the Cambridge girl, the defense provided evidence that she may have had some signs of von Willebrand disease, which affects blood clotting; and in the case of the Burlington baby, the defense suggested the child had an undetected cardiac problem. Defense attorneys in the three cases have previously maintained that their medical investigations showed that child abuse was not the cause of death, and emphasized the importance of taking a thorough look at all possible causes of such tragedies. They have previously argued in court that their clients were innocent, and ended up victims of prosecutors and child abuse physicians who too quickly see murder behind some fatalities that have unusual medical explanations. In the letter to the governor, the pediatricians’ group raised concerns that recent controversy over shaken-baby cases is leading the public to potentially believe that “well established science is in question.” A study last year found the national conviction rate in shaken-baby cases remains high, though more vigorous challenges to these child-abuse allegations have led to cases being dropped. The study, conducted jointly by the Washington Post and Northwestern University’s Medill Justice Project, found that out of some 1,800 cases going as far back as 2001, about 1,600, or 89 percent, led to convictions, a rate higher than for other violent crimes. Still, there were 200 other cases over that time period that did not lead to convictions, including cases where charges were dropped or dismissed, or the defendant was acquitted or the convictions overturned. In its letter to Baker, the pediatricians’ group said the latest decisions out of the medical examiner’s office makes them concerned that Massachusetts will become a state that doesn’t see clearly the tragic regularity of “shaken-baby” deaths. It called on the governor to make sure that the medical examiner’s office has “sufficient expertise in child abuse injuries to reject controversial and unscientific alternate cause theories.”
The entire story can be found at:
https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2016/05/04/pediatricians-call-governor-for-review-shaken-baby-cases/qc5frqP8R49scPFWICkM0N/story.html
See 'The Syndrome" home page at the link below: "A mother of
three spent 11 years in prison for killing a baby she never harmed.
That’s what happens when widely held beliefs based on junk science lead
to the convictions of innocent people. The explosive documentary The Syndrome follows
the crusade of a group of doctors, scientists, and legal scholars who
have uncovered that “Shaken Baby Syndrome,” a child abuse theory used in
hundreds of U.S. prosecutions each year, is not scientifically valid.
In fact, they say, it doesn’t exist. Filmmaker Meryl Goldsmith and
national award-winning investigative reporter Susan Goldsmith document
the unimaginable nightmare for those accused and focus on the men and
women dedicating their lives to defending the prosecuted and freeing the
convicted. How did the myth of “SBS” begin and who are the shocking
people behind it who have built careers and profited from the theory?
Both are unflinchingly identified. Shaken baby proponents want to
silence their critics even as countless lives are ruined."
http://www.resetfilms.com/
PUBLISHER'S NOTE:
I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.
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/
Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:
http://smithforensic.blogspot.
Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com;
Harold Levy;
Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog;
