Friday, February 1, 2013
TWO PSYCHS SUED FOR PROZAC INDUCED STABBING
Sun News
Teen who blames Prozac for his fatal stabbing of friend suing doctors
January 13th, 2013
By JAMES TURNER
WINNIPEG — A Manitoba teen who blames the antidepressant Prozac for causing him to fatally stab his friend is suing three doctors who treated him in the months before the killing, claiming they should pay up if his victim’s kin win a lawsuit against him and members of his family.
In what appears to be a Manitoba first, the now-19-year-old has launched a third-party claim for financial damages against two psychiatrists and a physician who he says treated him at various points between June-September 2009.
“The killing would not have happened if: Dr. David Miller had not prescribed Prozac; Dr. Robert Steinberg had cancelled the Prozac prescription (and if) Dr. Keith Jenkins had not increased the Prozac prescription,” the killer alleges in recently filed court documents.
The claim effectively asks the Court of Queen’s Bench to transfer any financial liability for Seth Ottenbreit’s death the killer may be found to have onto the three doctors.
Ottenbreit’s mother, Donna Noble, is in the midst of suing the killer, his parents and a grandparent.
The killer also seeks unspecified “special damages” from the physicians to foot the bill for his legal fees stemming from his high-profile criminal case.
The man pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and was sentenced as a youth to seven years of custody and conditional supervision in November 2001 for the fatal knifing of Ottenbreit, 15, in West St. Paul on Sept. 20, 2009.
Court heard Ottenbreit was stabbed after he damaged a piece of hardwood floor at the killer’s parents’ home. The two were sitting in the garage talking when the accused reached under a blanket, pulled out a knife, and stabbed Ottenbreit in the abdomen.
A U.S. psychiatrist hired by the defence to offer expert evidence told court giving the then-teen Prozac and ignoring the signs it was only worsening his situation was “a prescription for violence” which drove him into a “state of severe agitation.”
Some studies have linked the drug to emotional and behavioural disturbances in children. Health Canada does not recommend prescribing the drug to children or youths under age 18.
Provincial Court Judge Robert Heinrichs ruled the drug “clearly affected (the youth) in an alarming way.” While in custody, he stopped taking Prozac and was deemed not to be a public danger any longer, the judge said.
The killer’s claim against his doctors outlines how he started taking Prozac by prescription on June 24, 2009, and describes warning signs the medical system allegedly missed or ignored prior to the killing.
All three doctors named in the lawsuit are accused of negligence. They have not filed statements of defence and the allegations against them have not been proven. The killer’s civil lawyer, Gene Zazelenchuk, could not be reached Friday for comment.
Friday, January 11, 2013
Like All School and Mall Shooters The Batman Shooter James Holmes has been Reported taking Pharma Drugs.
Will the Government or Media ever make the connection? Not likely there is too much money in making Pharma drugs
The ‘Batman shooter’ James Holmes was using prescription painkiller Vicodin. Holmes even took heavy dosages of a pharmaceutical cocktail just before the shooting.
Side effects of Vicodin use, even at ‘recommended’ levels which Holmes likely far exceeded, include‘altered mental states’ and ‘unusual thoughts or behavior’.
The most deadly elementin the mass murder of 12 people and the wounding of 58 others was not all the weapons including an AR-15 type weapon but the pharmaceutical cocktail he was on. He was also seeing a psychiatrist, who will be blameless as usually.
The Denver Post reported Jan. 7 that, according to newly released court papers, police removed a four prescription medication bottles.
"The disclosures come in a back-and-forth between prosecutors and defense attorneys over whether those items should be subject to doctor-patient confidentiality. The judge ultimately ruled in October that prosecutors could keep the items," the paper said, adding that the names of the medications had been redacted from court documents.
Reports confirm he was seeing a psychiatrist and that always means he was prescribed psychotropic drugs. Seeing a psychiatrist equals being prescribed psychotropic drugs and add a gun and you have the mass murder that is so well known in the US and Europe.
The debate is always about guns in these shootings, but rarely a mention of psychotropic drugs involvement. If a drunk kills someone with their car, the car is not to blame but alcohol is. Why always blame the gun, and not the precursor “psychotropic drugs”.
Guns are an easy target for the government and the main stream media hates guns. The media gets lots of advertising from BigPharma and they are a huge lobby in D.C. It is easy to blame a gun but hard to pinpoint pharma drugs, so nobody wants to do the hard work.
The ‘Batman shooter’ James Holmes was using prescription painkiller Vicodin. Holmes even took heavy dosages of a pharmaceutical cocktail just before the shooting.
Side effects of Vicodin use, even at ‘recommended’ levels which Holmes likely far exceeded, include‘altered mental states’ and ‘unusual thoughts or behavior’.
The most deadly elementin the mass murder of 12 people and the wounding of 58 others was not all the weapons including an AR-15 type weapon but the pharmaceutical cocktail he was on. He was also seeing a psychiatrist, who will be blameless as usually.
The Denver Post reported Jan. 7 that, according to newly released court papers, police removed a four prescription medication bottles.
"The disclosures come in a back-and-forth between prosecutors and defense attorneys over whether those items should be subject to doctor-patient confidentiality. The judge ultimately ruled in October that prosecutors could keep the items," the paper said, adding that the names of the medications had been redacted from court documents.
Reports confirm he was seeing a psychiatrist and that always means he was prescribed psychotropic drugs. Seeing a psychiatrist equals being prescribed psychotropic drugs and add a gun and you have the mass murder that is so well known in the US and Europe.
The debate is always about guns in these shootings, but rarely a mention of psychotropic drugs involvement. If a drunk kills someone with their car, the car is not to blame but alcohol is. Why always blame the gun, and not the precursor “psychotropic drugs”.
Guns are an easy target for the government and the main stream media hates guns. The media gets lots of advertising from BigPharma and they are a huge lobby in D.C. It is easy to blame a gun but hard to pinpoint pharma drugs, so nobody wants to do the hard work.
Tuesday, January 1, 2013
Erika Menendez NY Subway Pusher Off Her Meds?
Psychotropic Drugs can manifest aggressive behavior when on them or abruptly taken off them. The following is a report from AP
NEW YORK (AP) — The family of a woman accused of shoving a man to his death in front of a subway train called police several times in the past five years because she had not been taking prescribed medication and was difficult to deal with, authorities said Monday.
Erika Menendez, 31, was being held without bail on a murder charge in the death of Sunando Sen. She told police she pushed the 46-year-old India native because she thought he was Muslim, and she hates them, according to prosecutors.
They had never met before she suddenly shoved him off the subway platform because she "thought it would be cool," prosecutors said. The victim was Hindu, not Muslim.
It wasn't clear whether Menendez had a diagnosed mental condition. But her previous arrests and legal troubles paint a portrait of a troubled woman.
Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly would not say what medication she was taking or whether she had a psychiatric history. Authorities were called to her home five times since 2005 on reports of an emotionally disturbed person.
In one instance, police said, she threw a radio at the responding officers.
Menendez had been arrested several times, starting when she was young. In 2003, she was arrested on charges she punched a 28-year-old man in the face inside her Queens home, but the case was later dropped. She pleaded guilty later that year to assaulting a stranger on the street near her home. The victim, retired Fire Department official Daniel Conlisk, said the attack was violent and relentless.
He said he was sorting recyclables outside his home one night when Menendez approached him and punched him in the face, screaming that he was having sex with her mother.
"It was such a shot," Conlisk said. "And I was surprised she hit so hard, because she was just a girl."
He said he tried to fend her off as she clawed at his skin. He eventually broke free and went inside his home, where he called police. When they arrived, he said, she was still outside screaming about him having sex with her mother, and saying he had stolen jewelry from her in high school.
"That's when everyone realized there's really something wrong with her," he said. Conlisk, 65, said he took out two restraining orders against her but never saw her after he was attacked.
He said that he felt bad that he pressed charges, but that she seemed dangerous.
"I really believe if she had a knife, she would have killed me," he said.
In December 2003, Menendez was arrested for cocaine possession. She was given a conditional discharge after pleading guilty.
Last Thursday, witnesses said a woman pacing and mumbling to herself suddenly shoved Sen off the elevated platform of a No. 7 train that travels between Manhattan and Queens. She fled.
Menendez was spotted by a passer-by who called 911 and said she resembled the wanted suspect. When she was arrested, she told police she shoved Sen because she blamed Muslims and Hindus for the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and had been "beating them up" ever since, according to authorities. She said she thought Sen was Muslim.
Sen, a Kolkata native, owned a print shop and had lived in Queens for decades.
She laughed and snickered so much during her court hearing last weekend that the judge admonished her. The attorney who represented her only for her arraignment said she acted the same way with him when he tried to speak with her. He had no further comment.
Calls to Menendez's home on Monday were unanswered. Angel Luis Santiago, who used to work at the Queens building where Menendez's mother and stepfather live, said he was shocked by her arrest on the murder charge.
"It surprised me what she did," he said. "She never acted that way."
.
NEW YORK (AP) — The family of a woman accused of shoving a man to his death in front of a subway train called police several times in the past five years because she had not been taking prescribed medication and was difficult to deal with, authorities said Monday.
Erika Menendez, 31, was being held without bail on a murder charge in the death of Sunando Sen. She told police she pushed the 46-year-old India native because she thought he was Muslim, and she hates them, according to prosecutors.
They had never met before she suddenly shoved him off the subway platform because she "thought it would be cool," prosecutors said. The victim was Hindu, not Muslim.
It wasn't clear whether Menendez had a diagnosed mental condition. But her previous arrests and legal troubles paint a portrait of a troubled woman.
Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly would not say what medication she was taking or whether she had a psychiatric history. Authorities were called to her home five times since 2005 on reports of an emotionally disturbed person.
In one instance, police said, she threw a radio at the responding officers.
Menendez had been arrested several times, starting when she was young. In 2003, she was arrested on charges she punched a 28-year-old man in the face inside her Queens home, but the case was later dropped. She pleaded guilty later that year to assaulting a stranger on the street near her home. The victim, retired Fire Department official Daniel Conlisk, said the attack was violent and relentless.
He said he was sorting recyclables outside his home one night when Menendez approached him and punched him in the face, screaming that he was having sex with her mother.
"It was such a shot," Conlisk said. "And I was surprised she hit so hard, because she was just a girl."
He said he tried to fend her off as she clawed at his skin. He eventually broke free and went inside his home, where he called police. When they arrived, he said, she was still outside screaming about him having sex with her mother, and saying he had stolen jewelry from her in high school.
"That's when everyone realized there's really something wrong with her," he said. Conlisk, 65, said he took out two restraining orders against her but never saw her after he was attacked.
He said that he felt bad that he pressed charges, but that she seemed dangerous.
"I really believe if she had a knife, she would have killed me," he said.
In December 2003, Menendez was arrested for cocaine possession. She was given a conditional discharge after pleading guilty.
Last Thursday, witnesses said a woman pacing and mumbling to herself suddenly shoved Sen off the elevated platform of a No. 7 train that travels between Manhattan and Queens. She fled.
Menendez was spotted by a passer-by who called 911 and said she resembled the wanted suspect. When she was arrested, she told police she shoved Sen because she blamed Muslims and Hindus for the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and had been "beating them up" ever since, according to authorities. She said she thought Sen was Muslim.
Sen, a Kolkata native, owned a print shop and had lived in Queens for decades.
She laughed and snickered so much during her court hearing last weekend that the judge admonished her. The attorney who represented her only for her arraignment said she acted the same way with him when he tried to speak with her. He had no further comment.
Calls to Menendez's home on Monday were unanswered. Angel Luis Santiago, who used to work at the Queens building where Menendez's mother and stepfather live, said he was shocked by her arrest on the murder charge.
"It surprised me what she did," he said. "She never acted that way."
.
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
California's Top Paid Public Employee Psychiatrist Dr. Mohammad Safi Suspended
By Thomas Peele/ San Jose Mercury News
Posted: 12/12/2012 01:02:21 AM PST
More details on the mental health bidding war can be found via Bloomberg News
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-12-12/california-psychiatrists-paid-400-000-shows-bidding-war.html
After raking in half a million dollars for being "on call," California's top paid public employee of 2011 -- a prison psychiatrist from Newark -- has been suspended with pay for allegedly falsifying time records, officials said Tuesday.
Dr. Mohammad Safi, 54, was paid more than $803,000 last year as a supervising senior psychiatrist at a Department of State Hospitals facility within Salinas Valley State Prison in Monterey County, records show.
That amount included more than $503,000 for on-call pay -- in Safi's case being available to respond quickly to emergencies.
His suspension was first reported Dec. 5 by Bloomberg News, which published an extensive analysis of state government pay that ranked California tops in the nation. It showed Safi was paid more than twice as much as any state psychiatrist in the 12 states Bloomberg examined.
Efforts to reach Safi were unsuccessful Tuesday but his lawyer, Edward Caden, called his client "a scapegoat" for a staffing crisis created by the state.
As a manager, Safi was forced to volunteer for many on-call shifts when others refused, his attorney said, because the state failed to build a required housing unit for doctors to stay overnight at the facility in Soledad.
"He was on call for extended periods of time," said Caden, who said Safi often stayed at a motel near the facility.
At one point, Caden said, Safi was paid for either working or being on call around the clock for fours weeks straight -- 672 consecutive hours.
He is paid roughly $130 an hour, state payroll records show.
On-call duty is voluntary at Salinas Valley because the facility does not have sleeping quarters for doctors, said both Caden and Kathy Gaither, the state hospitals' chief deputy director.
"They are claiming he worked an extended period of time without authorization," Caden said. But, he added, "every time sheet he (submitted) has been signed by the (hospital department's) executive director."
Gaither confirmed that Safi "is being investigated for his use of time," but would not discuss details because the case remains under investigation. He was placed on leave with pay in July, and the investigation is expected to be "completed soon," she said.
An analysis of 2011 pay records by The Mercury News for the 370-bed psychiatric hospital within Salinas Valley State Prison where Safi worked, shows his pay far exceeded that of other doctors last year. The five people he supervised were paid an average of $313,348, records show -- about half a million dollars less then their boss.
Records also show that 21 doctors with Safi's title of supervising chief psychiatrist working for the hospitals department at other state prisons in 2011 averaged about $283,000.
Safi remains in good standing with the California Medical Board, where he is listed as a surgeon.
State Superior Court records show Safi was sued last year by a collections agency for an unspecified amount. Property records show that a five-bedroom Newark house he bought in 2007 for nearly $1 million is now valued at $730,000.
Caden said Safi's taking of on-call shifts had nothing to do with any financial difficulties he might have faced.
"He was the manager," Caden said. "He had to do it."
Posted: 12/12/2012 01:02:21 AM PST
More details on the mental health bidding war can be found via Bloomberg News
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-12-12/california-psychiatrists-paid-400-000-shows-bidding-war.html
After raking in half a million dollars for being "on call," California's top paid public employee of 2011 -- a prison psychiatrist from Newark -- has been suspended with pay for allegedly falsifying time records, officials said Tuesday.
Dr. Mohammad Safi, 54, was paid more than $803,000 last year as a supervising senior psychiatrist at a Department of State Hospitals facility within Salinas Valley State Prison in Monterey County, records show.
That amount included more than $503,000 for on-call pay -- in Safi's case being available to respond quickly to emergencies.
His suspension was first reported Dec. 5 by Bloomberg News, which published an extensive analysis of state government pay that ranked California tops in the nation. It showed Safi was paid more than twice as much as any state psychiatrist in the 12 states Bloomberg examined.
Efforts to reach Safi were unsuccessful Tuesday but his lawyer, Edward Caden, called his client "a scapegoat" for a staffing crisis created by the state.
As a manager, Safi was forced to volunteer for many on-call shifts when others refused, his attorney said, because the state failed to build a required housing unit for doctors to stay overnight at the facility in Soledad.
"He was on call for extended periods of time," said Caden, who said Safi often stayed at a motel near the facility.
At one point, Caden said, Safi was paid for either working or being on call around the clock for fours weeks straight -- 672 consecutive hours.
He is paid roughly $130 an hour, state payroll records show.
On-call duty is voluntary at Salinas Valley because the facility does not have sleeping quarters for doctors, said both Caden and Kathy Gaither, the state hospitals' chief deputy director.
"They are claiming he worked an extended period of time without authorization," Caden said. But, he added, "every time sheet he (submitted) has been signed by the (hospital department's) executive director."
Gaither confirmed that Safi "is being investigated for his use of time," but would not discuss details because the case remains under investigation. He was placed on leave with pay in July, and the investigation is expected to be "completed soon," she said.
An analysis of 2011 pay records by The Mercury News for the 370-bed psychiatric hospital within Salinas Valley State Prison where Safi worked, shows his pay far exceeded that of other doctors last year. The five people he supervised were paid an average of $313,348, records show -- about half a million dollars less then their boss.
Records also show that 21 doctors with Safi's title of supervising chief psychiatrist working for the hospitals department at other state prisons in 2011 averaged about $283,000.
Safi remains in good standing with the California Medical Board, where he is listed as a surgeon.
State Superior Court records show Safi was sued last year by a collections agency for an unspecified amount. Property records show that a five-bedroom Newark house he bought in 2007 for nearly $1 million is now valued at $730,000.
Caden said Safi's taking of on-call shifts had nothing to do with any financial difficulties he might have faced.
"He was the manager," Caden said. "He had to do it."
Saturday, December 1, 2012
Please Support Us and Make a Donation for 2012
We are sure you are aware of the important role we can all play in helping people whose lives are impacted by Antidepressants. Our important work is supported largely by the support of generous donors who contribute to our annual capital campaign. This year’s goal is $45,000 which will allow Stoprx.org to continue providing much needed information and assistance to those in around the world who are in need of the real information on pharmacuetical drugs, and to be aware of the deathly effects of psychotropic drugs. Without the continued support of generous donors like you, these needs will likely not be met.
In order to continue making a difference in the lives of individuals affected by the work of Stop Foundation Inc. it is vital for this year's capital campaign to be a success. Can we count on you to make a donation to this important cause? By making a tax deductible donation to our campaign, you'll be directly contributing to helping people struggling to cope with thoughts of suicide, and BigPharma drug induced aggressive behavior.
Stop Foundation Inc. (stoprx.org) is depending on your assistance and generosity. Please visit www.stoprx.org to pledge your support by using the Paypal Donate button on the contact us donate page, or mail a check to Stop Foundation Inc. 1450 Sutter Street San Francisco, Ca. 94109. Your donation is fully tax deductable in the US as we are a 501(C) 3. We are happy to accept even small donations of $10, $15, $20 and more, which helps our mailing campaigns. Larger donations will help us expand and spread the word about the true effects of antidepressants.
Thank you for your consideration and continued support.
Stop Foundation Inc
Saturday, November 10, 2012
9 Year Old Girl's Mother Files Wrongful Death Suit Against Mental Health Care Provider
Psychiatrists and Mental Health facilities never have to take responsibility for the loss of life that takes place under their care. Thousands of children and young adults commit suicide yet the psychiatrist who prescribes these killing pills are never held to account. A mother loses her nine year old daughter which clearly should not have happened.
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – The mother of a slain 9-year-old Missouri girl is suing a mental health clinic saying it was in a position to know and prevent the violent tendencies of the teenager who killed her daughter.
Patricia Preiss filed the wrongful death lawsuit against Pathways Behavioral Healthcare, two employees and 18-year-old Alyssa Bustamante, who was convicted in Elizabeth Olten's death. Bustamante was 15 years old at the time of the October 2009 slaying in St. Martins, a small community just west of Jefferson City. She was sentenced in February to life in prison with the possibility of parole after pleading guilty to killing Elizabeth.
The lawsuit says Pathways personnel knew of Bustamante's violent tendencies and threats, and should have detained the teen, the Jefferson City News-Tribune (http://tinyurl.com/8w2vrlk ) reported. The suit seeks "fair and just expenses" for Elizabeth's death, plus monetary damages for her pain and suffering and punitive damages.
During Bustamante's sentencing hearing in February, Cole County prosecutors and the teen's public defenders presented evidence that Bustamante had cut herself a number of times and had been hospitalized at the Mid-Missouri Mental Health Center in Columbia after a 2007 suicide attempt. She became a Pathways client after she was released from the hospital.
Bustamante admitted in court that she strangled Elizabeth, stabbed her and slit her throat, then buried the child in a wooded area behind their homes. During the hearing, prosecutors pointed to a journal entry written by Bustamante on the night of the slaying in which she described it as an "ahmazing" experience. In court, Bustamante apologized for her actions.
The lawsuit by Preiss alleges that Bustamante had indicated to Pathways personnel that she wanted to harm Elizabeth.
Pathways' employees "were aware of the same violent propensities of Bustamante, as well as the specific, identifiable threats to harm Olten," the lawsuit says. But "none of these defendants took actions to detain Bustamante" and "none warned Olten or Preiss of the specific threat on Olten, nor did they take any action that might have prevented Bustamante from harming Olten."
Pathways counselor Ron Wilson, who was named as a defendant in the lawsuit, had testified during Bustamante's sentencing hearing that she had not indicated she was a threat to anyone but herself. The lawsuit also names Pathways psychiatrist Niger Sultana as a defendant.
Mel Fetter, president and CEO of Pathways' parent company Compass Health, told the News-Tribune that he couldn't comment on pending litigation.
The lawsuit, which was filed Oct. 18, was assigned to Cole County Circuit Judge Patricia Joyce, who also presided over Bustamante's sentencing hearing. No hearings had been scheduled as of Monday.
Preiss previously filed a separate wrongful death lawsuit against Karen and Gary Brooke, who are Bustamante's grandparents and were her legal guardians at the time of Elizabeth's slaying. St. Louis County Circuit Judge Gloria Reno ordered a $400,000 judgment in that case, after an Oct. 3 hearing.
Thursday, November 1, 2012
Some Psychiatrist Say Creativity closely connected with Mental Illness
In a BBC article recently psychiatrists say creativity is often part of a mental illness, with writers particularly susceptible, according to a study of more than a million people.
Writers had a higher risk of anxiety and bipolar disorders, schizophrenia, unipolar depression, and substance abuse, the Swedish researchers at the Karolinska Institute found. They were almost twice as likely as the general population to kill themselves.The dancers and photographers were also more likely to have bipolar disorder according to their report. The BBC article mentions several novelists with “disorders”.
Novelist Virginia Woolf, who wrote A Room of One's Own and To the Lighthouse, had depression and drowned herself
Fairy tale author Hans Christian Andersen, who wrote The Ugly Duckling and The Little Mermaid, had depression
US author and journalist Ernest Hemingway, who wrote For Whom the Bell Tolls, had depression and killed himself with a shotgun.
Author and playwright Graham Greene, who wrote the novel Brighton Rock, had bipolar disorder.
We don’t subscribe to this idea that creativity is close to mental illness. Creativity is one thing and an illness is another. Just because someone who writes a book is also depressed doesn't make a case in our view. Writing a novel is a large undertaking for anyone and it also involves risk, and potential fear of failure. These are normal feelings of normal people. Psychiatry’s only solution to depression or a person with a mental issue is to drug them. There methods in the past of shock treatment, involuntary confinement, and lobotomies didn't work and there “solutions” using drugs also doesn't work. In fact they make people worse. These drugs may also destroy the creativity of an artist or musician as a pharma drugs alters an artist’s viewpoint and vision. Drugs be it recreational or pharma drugs dump down a person and kills their creativity.
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