Doctor guilty of killing patients
Source: Agencies |
June 30, 2010, Wednesday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
AN American doctor accused of botching a string of operations while he was the chief surgeon at an Australian hospital was found guilty yesterday of killing three of his patients and grievously harming another.
Jayant Patel, 60, was ordered into police custody until tomorrow's sentencing after a jury returned guilty verdicts on all charges against him.
Patel had pleaded innocent to three counts of manslaughter and one count of causing grievous bodily harm to four patients he treated while working as director of surgery between 2003 and 2005 at a public hospital in Queensland state.
He faces a maximum penalty of life in prison.
The trial came more than 25 years after questions were first raised about Patel's competency, and marks a milestone for many former patients and their families who have waited years to face the man they accuse of irreparably damaging their lives.
Patel did not react when the guilty verdict was read out.
The trial heard that Patel had been banned by US authorities from carrying out some procedures he undertook when he later moved to Australia. He had failed to inform his new employers about the restrictions.
At the trial, prosecutor Ross Martin described Patel as a "bad surgeon motivated by ego" who tried to restore his reputation by carrying out surgery he was not competent to perform.
Patel's lawyer said he was a hardworking doctor devoted to his patients, and that all of them named in the case had consented to the surgeries and knew the risks.
The India-born Patel was found guilty of the manslaughter of patients Mervyn John Morris, James Edward Phillips and Gerry Kemps, and the grievous bodily harm of Ian Rodney Vowles.
Judy Kemps, Gerry's widow, said she was relieved it was over.
"I'm just so happy," she said. "I'm free. It's closure all right."
The jury heard evidence that Patel rushed Kemps, 77, into surgery on his esophagus, then failed to spot profuse internal bleeding and stitched up the patient. Kemps died of blood loss.
Jayant Patel, 60, was ordered into police custody until tomorrow's sentencing after a jury returned guilty verdicts on all charges against him.
Patel had pleaded innocent to three counts of manslaughter and one count of causing grievous bodily harm to four patients he treated while working as director of surgery between 2003 and 2005 at a public hospital in Queensland state.
He faces a maximum penalty of life in prison.
The trial came more than 25 years after questions were first raised about Patel's competency, and marks a milestone for many former patients and their families who have waited years to face the man they accuse of irreparably damaging their lives.
Patel did not react when the guilty verdict was read out.
The trial heard that Patel had been banned by US authorities from carrying out some procedures he undertook when he later moved to Australia. He had failed to inform his new employers about the restrictions.
At the trial, prosecutor Ross Martin described Patel as a "bad surgeon motivated by ego" who tried to restore his reputation by carrying out surgery he was not competent to perform.
Patel's lawyer said he was a hardworking doctor devoted to his patients, and that all of them named in the case had consented to the surgeries and knew the risks.
The India-born Patel was found guilty of the manslaughter of patients Mervyn John Morris, James Edward Phillips and Gerry Kemps, and the grievous bodily harm of Ian Rodney Vowles.
Judy Kemps, Gerry's widow, said she was relieved it was over.
"I'm just so happy," she said. "I'm free. It's closure all right."
The jury heard evidence that Patel rushed Kemps, 77, into surgery on his esophagus, then failed to spot profuse internal bleeding and stitched up the patient. Kemps died of blood loss.
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