One could be forgiven for believing that the walls wept in the West Hartford, Connecticut, home of former endocrinologist Dr. George Reardon. The reason for those tears will soon be on public display in a lawsuit filed by one of the nearly 150 plaintiffs against the St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center and Saint Francis Care, Inc., in Hartford. The tears belong to children abused by a doctor the community, and the hospital, trusted. Evidence begins in on April 5 in Waterbury.
Dr. Reardon, a bachelor, died in 1998. He was the chief of endocrinology at the Hartford hospital from 1963 to...
March 15, 2011
Another lost weekend is behind me. It was spent fussing over a manuscript, reading the same words for the umpteenth time, trying to force the garbage out of my prose, and hoping to catch errors before they see the light of day in the form of a book. It strikes me now, and with fury, that there is a difference between blogging and writing.
I’ve been a mad scribbler for many years, My first job after college and graduate school was as an editorial writer. For five years, I wrote opinions that appeared under the masthead of a couple of newspapers. I left newspapers because I did...
March 14, 2011
Call someone a victim, and they are at once framed in a sympathetic light. Bad things happen to victims, we are drawn to them, wanting to help them in any way we can. It is horrible to be a victim.
We don’t feel the same way about accusers. These folks are suspect. They point a finger, whether with justification or not lies in the proof. An accuser might be entitled to our sympathy, but they might just as easily merit our scorn if it turns out that their accusations are false.
To a victim goes immediate sympathy and support; to the accuser, a cautious ear. A victim has...
March 12, 2011
Everyone plea bargains in the criminal courts; sometimes the bargaining resolves a case. It is part of the process. But not all parties approach the bargaining process as equals. Indeed, one party is never present at all. I learned that lesson again today in a case that was set for trial, but ended in pleas of nolo contendere.
My client was accused of vicious acts of violence. His former fiancé was the accuser. The medical evidence about what, if anything, took place was contested. The former fiancé was rip-roaring to go, however. She wanted to testify, despite all...
March 11, 2011
March 10, 2011
I understand that times are hard for lawyers statewide. Receipts are down, the public defender’s offices of the state are swamped, and judges...
March 7, 2011
"It would be a disgrace to us if amongst us men should burn a rattlesnake or a mad dog. The badness of the victim is not an element in the case at...
March 7, 2011
If you cannot imagine enjoying, of even finding wise counsel, in a book recommending a return to something like polytheism, you are not alone. I have...
March 6, 2011
The law is, and always shall be, a late-comer to any crisis. By the time legal doctrines and rules evolve, take shape and respond to a crisis, the...
March 4, 2011
I am lucky I came of age many years ago. Were I a college student today, I am sure I would be expelled, or perhaps even imprisoned. College was a...
March 4, 2011
I was in New Haven the other day, crossing the street near one of the courthouses.
"Gimme your money," a voice said. He was young, black, and...