Thursday, August 18, 2016
Melissa Calusinski: Illinois: Major (if not shocking) Development; The case takes a new turn when court hears that a doctor who previously told jurors that Melissa Calusinski was responsible for what he called the child’s violent death, may have never even examined the body - and that Dr. Maneul Montez — who testified at trial that he examined the boy and manipulated the skull fracture — wasn’t telling the truth...."Calusinski’s father says she’s waited years for this day. “Going to use the word like I did earlier she was framed for murder that she didn’t do.” “He testified that he held it in his hands that he touched it that he felt it and that’s not an accurate statement,” former deputy coroner Paul Forman said. “Montez made it all up,” defense attorney Kathleen Zellner said. “He said ‘I don’t need to look at an x-ray to see if there’s a skull fracture ‘cause I felt it.’ Well, he didn’t feel it.” A local pediatric nueroradiologist says Montez couldn’t have felt the skull, because the x-rays show there was no skull fracture. When asked if it could be a wrongful conviction since the x-rays show there was no skull fracture, Dr. Robert Allen Zimmerman, a pediatric radiologist, said Calusinski’s confession couldn’t be true, because her description of what happened simply doesn’t match the injuries."..." Meanwhile, the hearing to determine whether Calusinski gets a new trial continues Friday." CBS; Chicago;
"The case of a north suburban
woman currently serving a 31-year sentence for the murder of a
16-month-old child at the daycare where she once worked, has taken an
unexpected turn. A doctor who previously told jurors
that Melissa Calusinski was responsible for what he called the child’s
violent death, may have never even examined the body. A deputy coroner told the court that
Dr. Maneul Montez — who testified at trial that he examined the boy and
manipulated the skull fracture — wasn’t telling the truth.........“Montez made it all up,” defense
attorney Kathleen Zellner said. “He said ‘I don’t need to look at an
x-ray to see if there’s a skull fracture ‘cause I felt it.’ Well, he
didn’t feel it.” A local pediatric nueroradiologist
says Montez couldn’t have felt the skull, because the x-rays show there
was no skull fracture. When asked if it could be a wrongful
conviction since the x-rays show there was no skull fracture, Dr. Robert
Allen Zimmerman, a pediatric radiologist, said Calusinski’s confession
couldn’t be true, because her description of what happened simply
doesn’t match the injuries. Asked whether Calusinski deserves a new trial, Zimmerman says, “I’m no lawyer I guess the answer is yes.”.........Meanwhile, the hearing to determine whether Calusinski gets a new trial continues Friday."
