A few years ago, I read a book titled “Whores of the Court” by Margaret A. Hagen, a professor of Psychology at Boston University. Professor Hagen presented an argument regarding the dangers of using psychiatric and psychological experts during criminal trials, particularly in cases involving charges against defendants for child abuse. Though it was met with mixed reviews, the book did offer some very solid examples of how competing experts can persuade juries in all directions, often confusing them in their role as finders of fact.
Do a search on Amazon for books about expert testimony, and you’ll get thousands of results. You’ll find that a good number of them will help just about anyone become an expert-for-hire. I’m actually surprised that no one has written “Expert Testimony for Dummies” yet, but some are close. This phenomenon has reached outside the courtroom and found it’s way into the media, in ever increasing numbers. Every network has more than their share. Some of these television experts, however, have gone beyond merely entering into some grey areas, and may actually be doing more harm than good.
Television experts are nothing new, but their numbers have recently sky rocketed. Everyone with a couple of letters after their names is putting themselves out there, spewing advice and opinion that becoming more suspect and less trustworthy. Some are still reliable, but they are becoming a dying breed. Those of us who once thought that the doctor was always right are now starting to question if this new crop knows, or even cares, about what they are telling us.
Phil McGraw came upon his fame and fortune because he was hired to be a jury consultant for Ms. Winfrey during a lawsuit brought against her by some people in the beef industry. She was impressed with his work, particularly after the jury found in her favor. When I first saw Dr. Phil McGraw, as a regular guest on Oprah, I thought he was refreshing and honest. His style of homespun advice sounded pretty fair and reasonable, particularly when he offered his “expertise” to families in crisis.
After a number of guest appearances, Phil became one of Oprah’s favorite things and his future was set. With his own show, and a five day a week schedule to fill, things have changed. He expanded his role as expert to subjects like diet and exercise, and has penned over a dozen books as a way of further spreading his message. He is still an affable man but he just doesn’t resonate in the same way he once did. He, like all television personalities, has ascended to a new role, and the doctor is now a star.
Partially due to his success, other have tried to follow suit, all of them claiming to be experts in something, hoping for similar results. One of these experts is Dr. Drew Pinsky. Dr. Drew has spent his professional life, in equal parts, as a media personality and a physician. While still in medical school, he did commentary on a radio program during a segment called “Ask the Surgeon”. This segued into another part of the program “Loveline”, which became a national program, at first on radio and then onto MTV, where he co-hosted with Adam Carolla. His career in media grew, while he continued his medical career. The most widely known of his television shows include “Celebrity Rehab”, and the HLN program “Dr. Drew”, which premiered in early 2011.
HLN is CNN’s version of the National Enquirer. The hosts of programs on HLN know that they will always be the bridesmaid, never the bride. There is more than a small dose of sensationalism in their style of reporting. They chase stories in paparazzi fashion. How can we forget Jane-Velez Mitchell running after Jose Baez and his team, through the streets of Orlando, during the Casey Anthony trial? Nancy “Hey, y’all, I’m a lawyer” Grace often looks like a junkyard dog when she is trying to get her points across. I’ll bet she’s made a fortune uttering the words “Tot Mom”, over and over. They are warriors and neither of these women want to hear anyone’s opinion if it doesn’t mesh perfectly with their own. Guests who dare to disagree are met with derision and, sometimes, mysteriously disappear during commercial breaks.
Dr. Drew appears to be doing his level best to fit right in with them. He wants to be Sanjay Gupta, but he’s been relegated to his own corner of the market. His work in the medical field and on television has made him the go-to guy on addiction. If there is a story involving drugs, alcohol and celebrities, he is on it. The list doesn’t end there, because he strong opinions about the cast of “Jersey Shore” and their inability to wean themselves off of tanning beds. It seems, however, at least from where I’m sitting, that the price of fame, again, is one’s reputation, character and professionalism. He’s saying a lot of things, but not all of them make much sense. I guess, given a 24 hour news cycle and a shot at stardom, that happens.
He has started to become more of a hindrance than a help for some people, and that’s getting a lot of attention. His remarks have come under a great deal of fire, from viewers and other media sources. His own blog is filled with angry responses to some comments he has made about Charlie Sheen, Michael Jackson and, now, Whitney Houston. Perhaps more disturbing are those who are just as ardent in their defense of Dr. Pinsky, and slam those who criticize him, on that very same blog. I’ve read some of them and it certainly doesn’t sound like a place that is open to any honest dialogue.
Since Ms. Houston’s passing, Dr. Drew has made it his mission to tell us how very dangerous prescription drugs, and the doctors who prescribe them, can be. Certainly, there are inherent dangers in just about everything we ingest or do. There are a lot of people who will abuse just about anything. There should be a clear line, however, between cautioning people and fear-mongering. We know it can be done – we’ve seen it.
During Dr. Conrad Murray’s trial, an anesthesiologist, Dr. Stephen Shafer, took the stand as a witness for the State. He explained that part of his reason for being there was that he was appalled at Dr. Murray’s actions, while part of him wanted to assuage his patients’ fears about anesthesia and, in particular, the use of the drug Propofol. He said that his patients had expressed questions and concerns about their safety while under the drug, during surgical procedures. His careful and reasoned explanation did much to calm those fears, and certainly did a lot of damage to Dr. Murray’s defense. The TV experts applauded him for his efforts, yet, apparently, learned nothing.
Dr. Drew is also in the habit out of diagnosing celebrities’ psychological and/or personality disorders, based solely on what he has seen or read in the media. This cavalier form of diagnosis has drawn criticism from people like Tom Cruise and Lindsay Lohan, who were the targets of his public pronouncements about their issues, without benefit of personal examination. Yes, I know, we all think that they’re a little nuts, but we’re not on TV, painting them with broad brushes and relying on nothing more than RadarOnline. To support his claims, he relies on his own book, “The Mirror Effect”, in which he describes the personalities, mostly narcissistic, of celebrities. His findings brought him to conclude, by using the Narcissistic Personality Inventory, that most celebrities average about an 18 out of 40. He, by the way, scored a 16. (You can take the test yourself, if you want to. It’s on a number of sites. I’m not revealing my score.)
During Charlie Sheen’s “let’s watch a guy go crazy” tour, Dr. Drew added his own pearls of wisdom to the conversation. Again, from the comfort of his own home and armed, I guess, with a few issues of People magazine, Dr. Drew concluded that Sheen was in a “manic state”. He went on to say that Sheen had made a good point in rejecting both the need for and the success of the 12-step program. Not only had he never met Sheen, crossing ethical boundaries right there, but with those remarks, Dr. Drew managed to upset a whole lot of folks who had found help with this recovery program. He, apparently, had also done a complete turnaround regarding his own, previously steadfast, faith in the 12-step program. In two prior and separate statements surrounding addiction and recovery, Dr. Drew first said that the possibility of recovery does not exist without the program, and secondly, that it is essential and necessary to the treatment of addiction. How much trust can you have in a guy who alters his views based on Charlie Sheen’s?
Just like his female colleagues at HLN, Dr. Drew is not one to allow disparate views on his topic du jour. He, like they, surrounds himself with sycophants who extol his virtue and expertise. Often, his guests include those who are considered success stories from their time on “Celebrity Rehab”. To be certain, there have been successes from this program. Some are still clean and sober, long after their particular season of “Celebrity Rehab” has ended.
The question remains, however, what one can claim success for, given the fact that this is a reality show, and that the participants are, for the most part, in the entertainment industry. There have been those who lobbied, with the help of publicists – a la Michaele Salahi – to get on the show. There have also been celebrities, like Gary Busey, who would only appear if it was on their terms – Busey wanted to be shown in the role of mentor, not as an addict. It is difficult to separate what is real, given what we now know about reality television, and what is, in part, performance. We’ve seen how the presence of cameras can make people act. Now, add in a few movie or television roles to the participants’ resumes, and we don’t know who or what we can believe.
We listen to doctors when they give us their expert opinion and advice, and we want to trust them. More often than not, our lives depend on what they tell us. Most of them, like Dr. Shafer, are competent, professional individuals. Some, like Dr. Drew and others, are going beyond being provocative, with potentially serious consequences. Those who provide expert testimony in court can sway a jury and, perhaps, bring people to justice, or ruin people’s lives. Television doctors have a much greater audience and, therefor, a greater potential to influence discourse by providing us with useful and real information. We viewers are trying to be the finders of fact. I think that those with the much larger stage should realize the part they are playing and the power they wield. Maybe they should just stop shouting at us for a minute and listen to themselves.
Empress
realhousewifeofaiken 
Ola Empress……..Thank you for another great blog.
I am thoroughly ashamed now that I’ve come to realize (thanks a lot Empress) that I’ve been watching The National Enquirer. For many years while living in the S.F. Bay Area I listened primarily to KPFA/Pacifica to the degree that my receiver became frozen, more than once, at 94.1 on the FM dial. I listened to KPFA both at home and in my car, twenty-four/seven. It was a way of life; one might say that I was addicted and one would be correct in saying that.
Well, how the mighty have fallen. Now tucked away in the boonies, as I have been for the past almost nine years, where I cannot tune into KPFA, I found myself rudderless. I’m in Canada but, after living in the U.S. for 23 yrs., not particularly interested in listening to Canadian news, I began to watch CNN. During the last election cycle, the primary season, I became so discouraged with the treatment that Hillary received from the media…..discouraged doesn’t really even begin to cover my feelings actually. I was completely repulsed, nauseated, sickened and the talking heads at CNN became intolerable to me eventually for their role in the whole disgusting spectacle. I needed a new home and somehow I ended up at HLN.
But now that you’ve forced me to face the fact that HLN is akin to the National Enquirer there is no way that I can possibly continue to go there. Why I’ve continued to subject myself to the raving madness of their talking heads is puzzling to me but I know it is not beneficial to my mental health and I do plan to wean myself from it. Thanks Empress…….I’m not really even kicking and screaming as I say adieu to those idiots, and I am grateful to you for dragging me away from the mind-numbing madness of HLN.
Oh, and Dr. DrooPoo…….he certainly loves his celebrities. Too bad he’s not capable of really helping them. Behind his smoke and mirrors routine is a long list of former patients who were formerly alive but are no longer because of his smoke and mirrors and his incompetence. He becomes wackier and wackier every day; he really is just a caricature of himself today. He’s helping no one at this point and, in fact, he does a disservice to many on a daily basis.
Without getting on my own political soapbox, suffice it to say that we pretty much knew how the 2008 election was going to go once Chris Matthews announced that Barack Obama made him “tingly”. Sure makes you miss Walter Cronkite.
is this the radio station (KPFA 94.1) ? I’m listening to it now on the internet….
http://radio-locator.com/cgi-bin/finder?call=KPFA&x=11&y=6&sr=Y&s=C
Hi bluesky…….so good to see you here. I’ve missed your presence and your voice. Thank you for the link. I really have no excuse for the terrible choice I’ve made when I could so easily tune into KPFA online. Thank you for the reminder of where it’s at.
PG, my husband listens to NPR all the time, on his laptop. Glad to be of help.
Any “arm chair” doctoring has always bothered me. Some advice is just plain common sense but some can be very dangerous to those who take it as gossip. Dr Drew was recently on Realtime with Bill Maher and I found their discussion of recreational drugs leading to prescription drugs fascinating. Bill made a point that one thing that fame could not buy was “sleep” and when I look at some celebs in the very public throws of addiction – they all look like they that is exactly what they have been chasing – real sleep.
Dr Drew is in the entertainment end of medicine and frankly I just don’t think it is a good mix.
wcw1,
This “armchair” form of diagnosis is actually forbidden as part of the principles of ethics for the American Psychiatric Association – Sec. 7.3 which reads as follows “On occasion psychiatrists are asked for an opinion about an individual who is in the light of public attention or who has disclosed information about himself/herself through public media. In such circumstances, a psychiatrist may share with the public his or her expertise about psychiatric issues in general. However, it is unethical for a psychiatrist to offer a professional opinion unless he or she has conducted an examination and has been granted proper authorization for such a statement.”
It became know as the “Goldwater Rule” when media doctors began to give their “expert” opinions about candidates’ fitness for office.
Thanks for the thoughtful column.
I recently read a book by John Douglas, one of the early FBI profilers. He touched on the edcuation required both in a pyschology field and criminal justice as well as the number or years on the job that an applicant to the FBI Behavioral Sciences division needs. The FBI gives courses to law enforcement professionals on a single topic, like ransom notes, that take weeks to complete. Mr Douglas complained that many people rush to Community Colleges and Adult Schools to take a Profiling course and then think they understand this complex field. In his opinion it impedes solving crimes and pollutes the courtrooms.
No comment about my attraction to True Crime books. LOL.
I also admire John Douglas – he is an expert’s expert.
(BTW, I’m a big fan of Ann Rule’s books)
🙂
Ann Rule … sigh. What a terrific writer. She usually picked the most complicated cases to write about in detail. I don’t know how she managed to organize the sheer volume of material into a thrilling story.
Sounds like something I’d enjoy. Could you share with me some of your fave books of hers please?
Adgirl… I so LOVE True Crime ANYTHING….
Diva
Empress …AWESOME POST….thanks…
Your comment about ETHICS….. now do you think that is going to stop the likes of these charlatans from dishing out the shit they do on a nightly basis…!!!!
Charlie Sheen…. I never once thought he was in a MANIC State..I think he had just about ENOUGH and let lose…. GOOD FOR HIM… When people were saying they gave him six weeks before he killed himself or some crap like that..I was WHAT !!!! He’s just VENTING and at the end he will come back for air and be fine…. We all SHOULD learn to VENT….and BREATHE again…It does a MIND and SOUL a world of Good…The Drs POO and ILL and SOAPY need to be removed from the TV….
And most of you know my stance on PAIN PILLS….So I wont go there ……AGAIN…winks
Hugs and Peace
Diva……
Hi Empress!
You are SO funny. “Guests who dare to disagree are met with derision and, sometimes, mysteriously disappear during commercial breaks.” So cute, and so you.
I don’t have much to add, except I think Dr. Drew is a pig. I used to listen to him in L.A. in college on Loveline, then I head about Celebrity Rehab (which I never watched) and next thing I knew, he was “interviewing” Taylor Armstrong with leading opinions from the Recovery 1989 Playbook. Disgusting.
Enjoyed your blog Empress. “Dr.” Drew has certainly pissed off many real doctors with his “celebrity diagnosing” on tv. Prescription drugs have been tragically mixed with alcohol for a very long time (Marilyn Monroe & so many others). The bottles are clearly labeled “do not take with alcohol” now but many people think that a drink or two or more before taking their ambien, xanax, etc. is really not a problem. Sadly it is – for anyone taking sleeping pills & tranquilizers you are a ticking time bomb when you think you can drink and still take your pills. How many have lost track of how much they were drinking, or how many pills? Whitney Houston was not a sweet innocent. She didn’t like anyone telling her what to do. Although she had body guards & many people right in the room next to the bathroom she died in, they could not save her. She could have taken 20 xanax or ambien tablets & survived. Combined with the alcohol in her system, it didn’t take much to kill her, as her body was incapable of “waking up” once she was unable to breathe in the water….very sad. It is unknown if she died even before becoming submerged in the bath tub. That is a possible outcome, just alcohol & the pills could have been enough to kill her. The tragedy is that there are so many people out there, mostly non-celebrities, that will learn nothing from Whitney’s death.
Overdoses are the biggest killer in this country right now.
Whitney death was so unnecessary. Very sad. I feel
so sorry for her daughter.
Nancy,
I’m a little confused by your statement “Overdoses are the biggest killer in this country right now”. Neither the CDC or WHO lists alcohol or drug overdoses as even being in their top 50 causes of death. Deaths by drowning are twice those of alcohol and drug-related deaths combined.
Hi Empress,
I meant to say accidental deaths.
Nancy, I appreciate your qualifying remark, however, even among accidents, both alcohol and drug overdoses fall far behind falls, fires, motor vehicle accidents, drownings and accidental poisonings – e.g. the ingestion of household products – among the statistics provided by both of the groups I mentioned. Do you have a source for your figures? If I am incorrect, I will gladly own my error.
Empress…have you seen the numbers for people who died as a result of taking meds that were designed to improve their lives… Vioxx and others….. I am still looking for that report and will post when I find it…..
Diva
NO problem let me get it for you.
Hi Empress,
I can’t put links up with my computer but you can find it here on Yahoo
Discovery News
Drugs now leading Accidental Death Cause
After you pull it up there is another article right below it.
EDPM Blog. It will give you the stats.
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&frm=1&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CCIQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cdc.gov%2Fnchs%2Ffastats%2Flcod.htm&ei=deFLT5yCC8Xg0QGN1KT-DQ&usg=AFQjCNF7JFYzAMRl_44qXTSHerwdm4byGg&sig2=pV9fiaxa0Z_F1So0N0TTXw
From the CDC…. Leading causes of deaths….DATA
Very Interesting.
You are so funny. At any given moment on any given subject you somehow manage to instantly have your finger on the pulse, so to speak, and can always be counted on to support your comments with data. And that you do it so readily never ceases to amaze me.
I don’t watch these types of shows, I have caught Dr. Oz a couple of times when having my nails done (a little treat for me after retirement). I think they are a witch doctors in disguise.
Whitneys death was SELF INDUCED just like all the others out there that indulge in not following directions for pill usage…..and slugging alcohol ….. She KNEW and HAD knowledge that she was abusing her body and for that alone she is responsible.. and YES it is sad that her daughter now will never the LOVE of her Mother…..
diva
Nancy, I dropped down here because it was getting a little too narrow above. I did see that both the LA and NY times confirmed your statement so far as the fall in motor vehicle accidents versus the rise in drug overdoses. I stand corrected to the extent of the comparison of those two causes of death.
No problem Empress.
Is that article poorly written? Seems to me that where distinctions should be made they are not and I have to wonder then about the overall accuracy of the article. For example, they say, “Drug-related accidental deaths have officially outnumbered those caused by car accidents for the first time since the government began collecting data on the behavior in the late 1970s, according an analysis by the Los Angeles Times.” Is that all drugs? prescription drugs? over-the-counter drugs? legal drug? illegal drugs? Then in the last paragraph they state that heart disease is still the number one killer.
Maybe Michael Jackson. Heath Ledger and Whitney Houston earn bonus points?
PG,
My problem with the way these statistics were reported is that the CDC played a little fast and loose with their numbers. All poisonings – ingesting a bottle of furniture polish or anti-freeze – were lumped in with the drug-related statistics. They also used numbers for suicides by overdose, something that, in their year over year stats, would normally be a separate figure. Suicide is suicide, and will happen by whatever means available to the person so inclined to do so. Representing it as a part of the world’s drug problem just doesn’t sit well with me.
The comparison only to MVAs is misleading, also, as they didn’t bother to lump in all deaths by external forces. If you’re going to lump, at least be equal opportunity lumpers.
Take out all other means of poisoning, and MVAs still have an ever so slight lead over drug overdoses. – 12.5% versus 12%.
I think the CDC was trying to make a point about the growing drug epidemic, but I think they missed their mark in their presentation.
God help us. How can we trust any of these agencies or media outlets? Thanks for doing the heavy lifting, by the way, because you obviously looked beyond this article for a more in-depth explanation of their premise. However, most people are not going to do that, nor are they even going to consider that it’s necessary to do so to get a more accurate picture. That is what makes it so frustrating. People read this article and base their decisions and attitudes on their assumption that what it outlines is in fact accurate and true. Equal opportunity lumpers indeed…….you are a funny lady and oh so droll. I love it.
Empress my family has a drugstore for 3 generations. There are a few doctors in the family too. My brother used to tell me that the number of women addicted to tranquilizers was horrific. These women were proscribed the pills back in the 60s & 70s, and after so many years, would have had great difficulty getting off them. The dosage they were on would have killed me, according to my brother. There was one crazy doctor that got many women hooked. Strangely he ended up being shot to death by his business manager (he had 3 clinics in 3 towns….and was abusing pills himself). His business manager shot in self defense.
Now with drugstores being robbed for narcotics I do worry about my brother. He’s turned in quite a few people that had fake prescriptions, or were shopping for ingredients for meth making. He has been threatened by drug pushers/meth cookers that went to prison because he called the police. It’s a small town, and he feels a responsibility for the safety of the public.
One of the doctors in town lost his license because he was addicted to adderall, used to treat ADHD. A local pharmacist was caught selling narcotics and was sent to jail. How the heck all this happens in a town of less than 6,000 people beats me!
That’s amazing……in a town of 6000 people. Whodda thunk of that ever being the case. It does seem that there’s a trend these days of pharmacy shakedowns and that’s pretty alarming. A friend of mine, a pharmacist, bought a small, independent “family” pharmacy in S.F. and when I was between jobs at one point I worked there parttime. It was very interesting to me how telling it was about the lives of those who shopped at that pharmacy. We had some high profile customers which unfortunately I can’t say much about although I’d love to. One couple came in regularly, maybe twice a month, and bought the same items every time: several large boxes (4-6) of disposable plastic/rubber/gloves, the kind they use in food prep and each box contained 50 or 100 gloves I guess; 6 packs of paper towels and some kind of lubricant. He was 5th or 6th generation San Francisco and in age probably 60-70 something; she was maybe 15 or 20 yrs. younger. Another lady had a standing order for 6 sets of false eyelashes and a couple of other things. She’d call to say she was on her way over and 15 minutes later she’d pull up in front of the store in her Cadillac and we’d run out with her order. Another was a big movie actress who was married to a man in the media world let’s say and the list of medications she was on was quite mind boggling. It really was interesting to me.
Last week I saw a story on the news about a guy trying to rob a pharmacy and the female pharmacist and, I believe, owner of the store, pulled out a container of mace and the spray that came out it was amazing and it stopped the guy dead in his tracks. He had to be hospitalized because he was so badly burned. It was like an industrial strength spray from a fairly large sized container, not some innocuous little thing. It looked like serious business and that is what every pharmacist should have on hand. The woman pharmacist said the same guy had been in before and had either attempted to rob the pharmacy or maybe even succeeded. He totally deserved what he got.
wow PG what in the world were they using all those gloves for! lol perhaps they were worried about germs? I found it odd to observe a clerk in the post office wearing latex gloves. I guess she’s allergic to stamps/envelopes.
Working in a pharmacy used to be a lot of fun. My brother doesn’t keep anything to use against robbers, sad that nowadays they need to think about that. Some pharmacies in the NYC area are installing buzzers so only known customers are allowed in. Like most jewelry stores in this area.
It’s a town surrounded by farms & other small towns, but still over the years plenty of stuff has happened. Of course nowhere near what goes on in metro NYC. The first few years that we moved here, it actually bothered me to watch the local news. Murders, fires, rapes, kidnappings, gangbanging….every night. NYC is less is about 30 miles (Staten Island….even closer!) from us. That’s why I cannot stomach the Mob Wives. Too close for comfort.
For goodness sakes…….
We always wondered about that couple and just what the heck they were up to with that stuff. I figured it was some kinky sex thing.
When I read your comment, PG, my first thought was
Sharon Stone.
posted in the wrong spot…………
For goodness sakes!
an interesting comment in that article…
The one nancy posted…….
Still, the data only include accidental deaths, which may account for some off-record suicides, too. But, as pointed out in one Time blog post, it’s not the patients being prescribed such medications that are having the most issues,^^^^^^ it’s the people buying and using them recreationally.^^^^^^^^
MY COMMENT…. and it’s ASSHOLES like that is why the real people who count on and NEED these meds are being LABELED….. Pills like everything else have their place in society..But when STARS die right away people want to place blame on everyone BUT the person who took the pill in an irresponsible fashion… Thats what upsets me the most…….Lack of accountability…
Diva,
I couldn’t agree with you more.
ditto!
Hi Empress,
I love to read your blog. The way you put together your thoughts is so wonderful. Intelligent, witty and educational. Of all the things I miss, sometimes I miss my mind the most! It is getting to the point where I don’t really look forward to anything on TV. I have to wait until November for Downton Abbey. I was watching some behind the scenes last night and my daughter was watching and has decided to watch it from the beginning. I was thrilled.
As far as Dr. Phil….he made a HUGE impact on my way of thinking about our judicial system and the Death Penalty. I watched an episode of Oprah and it showed his offices and how they prepared for trials. They had a mock courtroom that was just gorgeous. And I sat there watching and all of a sudden my mind just kind of broke in half….. I finally realized what people who say “Our justice system isn’t fair” meant. I am a proud American…not as proud as I use to be in the days of being naive, but proud just the same, and I would argue that our legal system is one of the fairest that there is. But after seeing that show, I think they should say our justice system isn’t “Even”, as in a rich person can pay to have experts and witnesses and jury experts, etc.. And a poor person gets a Public Defender who is probably overworked and underpaid. It made me sad.
Dr. Drew, I change the channel.
Princess, you bring up a very good point about our judicial system. I’ve often told my son, if you ever are arrested, do not talk voluntarily, call mom & dad first! Now he’s 18, and interested in becoming a police officer. Maybe those years of watching real life crime shows with me had an effect lol.
I’m from a tiny town in the midwest. The police officers never knew much about the drug activity going on when I was in high school in the 70s. Then a 16 year old girl was murdered. I’ll never forget how the police had no clue. Yet there were people shaking in their boots – for real – because they knew who committed the crime. Eventually spring came, and an Amish farmer found her body in a ditch. He thought it was a decomposing deer. Fortunately the psycho that killed her didn’t clean up his car after driving over her body numerous times before throwing her in the ditch. So they caught him. He escaped from prison twice, once from the county jail and another time from prison in Denver. Now he’s safely locked up forever. He killed her because he thought she wasn’t turning over all the money from selling drugs for him. This maniac married a girl in my class. She was so in love with him, she helped him escape from jail twice & spent time incarcerated for that.
People in this little town are not suspicious of foul play. A farmer divorced his wife of many years and married a younger woman that had some young children with another man. Soon after, he accidentally backed up his truck & killed her youngest child, who was 2 or 3 at the time. Years later, he sold the farm & had over a million in the bank. The farmer had some older children with his ex-wife. A short time after selling the farm, his wife accidentally backed up her vehicle & killed him. There was no investigation. My mom said she threw herself on his coffin at the funeral. Now there’s one that I think got away with murder, & control of the money…nothing went to his other children or the ex-wife. My mom was shocked, shocked I tell you that I thought there should have been a more thorough investigation into the farmer’s death.
Both my children know, her from Law & Order, and him because she and I have beat it into his head, don’t talk. Which is sad, because I consider myself a “Good Citizen”, remember, they taught that to us in school…. We were even laughing at this one show, I can’t remember the name it was just on this summer, where the 2 people get the briefcase full of money and have to hide it. Then the detectives come and ask questions of the couple. These people couldn’t stand being alone in a cell for 48 hours. It was ridiculous. We were all laughing about how we would not say a word and just go to sleep. I would have loved to have a cot when I was waiting in the ER or the hospital with my daughter. They were alone in the cell, sorry, but that sounds like a vacation to me!! 🙂 I think there are a lot of crimes that go unsolved in small towns….sounds like that wife payed him back for killing her child.
Hey, princess,
It’s really good to hear from you. Public defenders are not equal across the country. In Connecticut, the PDs office has very capable attorneys who truly work their butts off for their clients. They also have what is known (within the circle, not actually) as the “Death Squad”. This division of the PDs office does nothing but death penalty cases, from the original trials though the final appeals’ stage. They are paid well, and their resources are not limited.
On the flip side, in law school we read a case where a man on death row tried for an appeal on the basis of ineffective counsel – his lawyer napped through much of the trial. The judge denied the appeal, stating that the lawyer had been awake for the important parts.
I am very happy that I have never had to deal with any court proceedings except once having to testify at a small claims for a roommate. I can’t imagine having to have a client facing the death penalty. Most of my knowledge of court proceedings is from TV and Michael Connelly and Linda Fairstein novels. Of course, David Baldacci has convinced me I could be a spy.
PG,
Looks like we left you just hanging there about Ann Rule’s books. I would recommend, to start – “Small Sacrifices”, “The Stranger Beside Me”, “Bitter Harvest” and “Too Late to Say Goodbye”. Those should get you hooked.
🙂
Thanks Empress
I really did not where to post this..But just felt the need…
It’s been one of those PRETZEL LOGIC days it seems….
CRANK IT UP….. It’s got my man…Mr Mac in it…WHOOP WHOOP
Smart girl and KUDOS to Tatum for CHOOSING the RIGHT THING>..
Supervised use of DRUGS for MEDICINAL PURPOSES….
http://www.eonline.com/news/true_false_tatum_oneal_back_in_rehab/297659
Well…now that we have the OFFICIAL COD for Whitney Houston..I wonder how all these ADDICTION DOCTORS will spin it….. Cocaine and alcohol…heart disease…equals DEATH….
By her own hand…… Not an OD on pills that Drs wrote..No another Dr Murray thing…Just another STAR who thought that abusing the body was okay…Maybe now some people will back off …….
I imagine that Dr. Drew is not about to issue any retractions of the statements, rumors and misinformation he is responsible for spreading in the name of being an “expert”.
LOVE WHEN DIRTY DOCTORS AND THEIR WIVES GET BUSTED….ALL STATES SHOULD DO THIS…. MAYBE EVEN IN CALIFORNIA….WHERE ALL THOSE MOVIE STARS AND PRIVLEGED PEOPLE LIVE….
http://www.tcoasttalk.com/2012/03/23/port-st-lucie-doctor-wife-arrested-at-home-on-prescription-drug-related-charges/
Thanks for posting that dd. I know you’ve been through your own problems with the attitude of doctors and your receiving necessary prescriptions meds – apparently they themselves are part of the problem.
Any news about Mr. Ford coming home yet?
Mr ford is home…daddy long legs…he is SOOOO SKINNY…OMG
Off to shop for some fresh fruit vegs and fish….
Fill you in later
Hugs and THANKS for all the prayers and well wishes…
Diva and Mr Ford…
He couldn’t be in better hands… 🙂
Who knew huh? These guys deserve to be imprisoned, never mind sanctions and diversion programs.
PG…. yeppers… seems the drs are just legal dope pushers…the “average” Joe that does not have MD or other letters before or after their name get thrown in jail…while “others” get the PROGRAM….wink
That is one scary looking dude. No way would he be my doctor even if his was the only game in town and the next closest doctor was 50 miles away. What a creep.
DANG…Looks Like Cali is on board with BAD DRS.. doing the drug script thing…WIth HIS WIFE… go figure….
Cant imagine throwing away all those years of education for DRUGS…… and yet the poor average American still suffers…. and we are the ADDICTS…Right……
http://www.bakersfieldcalifornian.com/local/x345547555/Doctor-investigated-for-alleged-prescription-drug-fraud