Rebecca Hernandez: Alabama: "Baby separated from mother, after a false positive shines light on Alabama hospital drug testing policies," AL.com (Reporter Amy Yurkanin) reports..."The North Alabama mother who lost her children briefly after a false positive drug test did not know she had agreed to any sort of screening, according to advocates fighting on her behalf. Rebecca Hernandez gave birth last week at Crestwood Medical Center and lost custody of her newborn and toddler after a drug test came back positive. Kirsten Clark, representative of the Alabama Cohosh Collaborative, said staff at Crestwood Medical Center did not ask for permission to test Hernandez before running her urine through a quick screen for controlled substances. Hernandez, who had eaten poppy seeds right before her admission, tested positive on the initial screen, triggering a call to DHR. Clark said Hernandez might have unknowingly signed a consent form when she entered the hospital."

PUBLISHER'S NOTE: This disturbing story had me thinking about  Motherisk , the former discredited hair-strand drug and alcohol testing lab at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto - the subject of nunerous posts on this Blog. As the Wikipedia entry notes;  "An independent review commissioned by the Ontario Ministry of the Attorney General concluded in 2015 that "hair-strand drug and alcohol testing used by the Motherisk Drug Testing Laboratory between 2005 and 2015 was inadequate and unreliable for use in child protection and criminal proceedings and that the Laboratory did not meet internationally recognized forensic standards." The US State of Colorado was one of the jurisdictions that in 1993 described the lab's results as "not competent evidence". The report called for further investigation of some of the 16,000 child protection cases where testing by Motherisk had been requested and sometimes used as evidence in child protection and criminal proceedings, citing "serious implications for the fairness of those proceedings".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motherisk

Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog .

------------------------------------------------------------

PASSAGE OF THE DAY:  "Crestwood was one of several hospitals that declined to participate a survey of drug testing policies conducted by Al.com and ProPublica in 2015. Results indicated that few hospitals in the state seek permission from mothers before initiating drug tests that can lead to loss of custody and even criminal charges. Alabama leads the nation in charging women with felonies for drug use during pregnancy, with hundreds of cases since 2012. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2001 that pregnant women could not be involuntarily drug tested if the results could be used for criminal prosecution. Hernandez was not charged under Alabama’s chemical endangerment law but did suffer several hours of separation from her child. “She suffered a lot of trauma from being separated from her child,” Clark said. “Especially because she is a breastfeeding mom.” Clark said her organization has since heard from other women who had false positive drug tests after birth. “What we’re hearing from other moms in the community is that a lot of moms don’t know that they’re being screened,” Clark said."

---------------------------------------------------------------

STORY: "Baby separated from mother, after a false positive shines light on Alabama hospital drug testing policies," by reporter Amy Yurkanin, published  by AL.com on February 03, 2020. Thanks to the Marshall Project for bringing this story to our attention. HL)

GIST: "The North Alabama mother who lost her children briefly after a false positive drug test did not know she had agreed to any sort of screening, according to advocates fighting on her behalf. Rebecca Hernandez gave birth last week at Crestwood Medical Center and lost custody of her newborn and toddler after a drug test came back positive. Kirsten Clark, representative of the Alabama Cohosh Collaborative, said staff at Crestwood Medical Center did not ask for permission to test Hernandez before running her urine through a quick screen for controlled substances. Hernandez, who had eaten poppy seeds right before her admission, tested positive on the initial screen, triggering a call to DHR. Clark said Hernandez might have unknowingly signed a consent form when she entered the hospital. Crestwood Medical Center tests all mothers for drugs, according to policy documents provided to Al.com. Crestwood was one of several hospitals that declined to participate a survey of drug testing policies conducted by Al.com and ProPublica in 2015. Results indicated that few hospitals in the state seek permission from mothers before initiating drug tests that can lead to loss of custody and even criminal charges. Alabama leads the nation in charging women with felonies for drug use during pregnancy, with hundreds of cases since 2012. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2001 that pregnant women could not be involuntarily drug tested if the results could be used for criminal prosecution. Hernandez was not charged under Alabama’s chemical endangerment law but did suffer several hours of separation from her child. “She suffered a lot of trauma from being separated from her child,” Clark said. “Especially because she is a breastfeeding mom.” Clark said her organization has since heard from other women who had false positive drug tests after birth. “What we’re hearing from other moms in the community is that a lot of moms don’t know that they’re being screened,” Clark said. A spokeswoman from Crestwood did not answer specific questions about the case, but did give the following statement: “Crestwood Medical Center is committed to following the law and regulatory requirements as well as ensuring the health and safety of our patients. Our hospital also incorporates patient care practices that are established by credentialed members of our medical staff so as to further insure safe and quality care for all of our patients.""

The entire story can be read at:
https://www.al.com/news/2020/02/false-positive-shines-light-on-alabama-hospital-drug-testing-policies.html?utm_source=Newsletter&utm_medium=Newsletter%20-%20Reckon%20Women&utm_campaign=reckon_women_02062020&utm_source=The+Marshall+Project+Newsletter&utm_campaign=cdd8d1936d-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2020_02_07_12_34&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_5e02cdad9d-cdd8d1936d-174331221
 

PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. 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 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;

-----------------------------------------------------------------

FINAL WORD:  (Applicable to all of our wrongful conviction cases):  "Whenever there is a wrongful conviction, it exposes errors in our criminal legal system, and we hope that this case — and lessons from it — can prevent future injustices.""

Lawyer Radha Natarajan:

Executive Director: New England Innocence Project;