Calgary Sun - Sat, June 21, 2008
Brainwashing lawsuit tossed out
UPDATED: 2008-06-21 02:33:07 MST
By KEVIN MARTIN, SUN MEDIA
The lawsuit of a Calgary man who claimed his daughter was brainwashed into rejecting blood transfusions by members of her Jehovah's Witness church has been thrown out.
But Lawrence Hughes vowed yesterday to continue his fight and appeal the ruling of Court of Queen's Bench Justice Alan Macleod.
Macleod tossed out all portions of Hughes' claim against the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society, Jehovah's Witness members, and lawyers who acted for his daughter and ex-wife.
The judge said a small portion of the lawsuit, against doctors at Edmonton's Cross Cancer Institute, could continue, because it had not been challenged.
Lawyer David Gnam, who was one of the defendants, said he was relieved his name has been cleared.
"Mr. Hughes was on national television ... claiming I murdered his daughter," noted Gnam. "Those were very regrettable claims against me as a lawyer."
Hughes' lawsuit alleged Gnam and others influenced his daughter Bethany to reject blood transfusions when she contracted leukemia -- a disease which took her life seven months later -- in February 2002, when she was 16.
Gnam helped the teen challenge a government court bid to force her into chemotherapy and transfusions, an application eventually won by the province.
He said he never tried to influence Bethany, saying as a lawyer his duty was to represent his client's interests. "There has been no evidence to support any claims against us as lawyers," Gnam said.
Macleod ruled Hughes' lawsuit could not succeed because it was clear Bethany's own deep-rooted religious convictions caused her to reject the concept of blood transfusions.
"Her strong belief system and her spiritual development gave her comfort."
http://calsun.canoe.ca/News/Alberta/2008/06/21/5946061-sun.html
Posts by fjtoth
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53Help - Ask Newspapers To Report On Lawrence Hughes's Hearing This Week
by AndersonsInfo inplease write newspapers to request them to cover the lawrence hughes.
matter.
lawrence hughes is scheduled to argue in court on may.
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fjtoth
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Help - Ask Newspapers To Report On Lawrence Hughes's Hearing This Week
by AndersonsInfo inplease write newspapers to request them to cover the lawrence hughes.
matter.
lawrence hughes is scheduled to argue in court on may.
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53
Help - Ask Newspapers To Report On Lawrence Hughes's Hearing This Week
by AndersonsInfo inplease write newspapers to request them to cover the lawrence hughes.
matter.
lawrence hughes is scheduled to argue in court on may.
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fjtoth
Calgary dad's bid to sue church blocked
Blamed Jehovah's Witness church in daughter's death
Michelle Lang, Canwest News Service
Published: Friday, June 20, 2008
CALGARY - A Calgary man has suffered a major legal setback in his bid to sue the Jehovah's Witness church and its lawyers over the death of his daughter, who fought against blood transfusions to treat her leukemia.
On Friday, Alberta Court of Queen's Bench Justice Alan Macleod dismissed most of the claims in Lawrence Hughes' wrongful death lawsuit, which alleged the defendants gave his teenage daughter, Bethany Hughes, misinformation about her medical treatment.
The judge ruled the majority of Hughes' case, including allegations against lawyers Shane Brady and David Gnam and the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Canada, had little chance of success.
"I hope Mr. Hughes will reflect carefully on this whole thing and if he does (proceed with the case), I hope he gets a lawyer," the judge said.
Hughes, who represented himself in the proceedings, vowed to continue his legal fight. He added he is looking for a lawyer willing to take on the case.
"I'll definitely appeal," said Hughes, standing outside of court in Calgary.
"I believe Bethany didn't stand a chance. She was under tremendous pressure (not to take blood transfusions)."
Bethany died of acute myeloid leukemia in September 2002 - despite 80 blood transfusions and other treatments for her cancer.
A court order mandated the transfusions after she refused them because they were contrary to her Jehovah's Witness faith.
Bethany - who used the name Mia in the media to protect her identity - fought the protection order, claiming it was her right as a mature person to make her own medical decisions.
Bethany even tried to pull the medical tubes from her arms while bedridden at Alberta Children's Hospital.
Doctors who first determined she would die without transfusions eventually decided that she was too sick to face further chemotherapy sessions and gave up their custody of Bethany.
Hughes later launched a lawsuit against the Watch Tower society and Bethany's lawyers as well as some of the physicians involved with her care.
Among the allegations in the lawsuit, Hughes claimed the lawyers, whose major client is the Watch Tower society, were in a conflict of interest and misrepresented information about treatments for her disease.
Gnam said he was pleased the claim against him was dismissed and said he will seek costs in the case.
Arliss Hughes, Bethany's mother, released a statement Friday saying the ruling is "most appreciated."
Bethany's illness did more than claim her life - it also tore her family apart and bankrupted her father.
All members of the family had been Jehovah's Witnesses for nearly 20 years and were opposed to receiving blood products when Bethany was diagnosed with leukemia in February 2002.
But Lawrence Hughes changed his mind after discussions with doctors and fought to have his daughter receive what he believed was the best medical care.
"There is no question that Bethany's illness led Mr. Hughes to seriously question and ultimately reject the teaching of his and his family's religion, and that he paid a high price for that moral and religious decision, including the shunning by the Jehovah Witness congregation and alienation from his wife and children," Court of Queen's Bench Justice Rosemary Nation wrote in her 2003 divorce settlement decision.
"You'd think the religious belief would provide comfort to a husband and wife whose child was stricken with a life-threatening illness and guide the family throughout the crisis," said Calgary lawyer Vaughn Marshall, who assisted Lawrence Hughes in the divorce proceedings.
"But, in this case, it not only failed to do that, it destroyed the family. First, Lawrence Hughes lost his daughter, then his family."
Lawrence Hughes testified during the trial he incurred more than $200,000 in legal fees and paid $20,000 of it out of his own pocket, pushing him into bankruptcy.
© Calgary Herald 2008
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/national/story.html?id=670174aa-de0c-4856-9280-f4fe88016d2a
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501
Warren Schroeder from Bethel on Freddy, Kline and the apostate books!
by Dogpatch inhaving problem pasting this...
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fjtoth
Buckster,
Yes, I knew Floyd Cormican when I was at Bethel, but only casually. I have JW relatives in the congregation where Floyd's mother-in-law was a member before she died about 5 years ago. Floyd and his wife Laura were still at Brooklyn Bethel at that time.
Frank
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53
Help - Ask Newspapers To Report On Lawrence Hughes's Hearing This Week
by AndersonsInfo inplease write newspapers to request them to cover the lawrence hughes.
matter.
lawrence hughes is scheduled to argue in court on may.
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fjtoth
CBC News
Alta judge dismisses bulk of lawsuit against Watch Tower Society over girl’s death
Published: Friday, June 20, 2008 | 4:38 PM ET
Canadian Press: Bill Graveland, THE CANADIAN PRESSCALGARY - Provisions of a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the grieving father of a Jehovah's Witness girl were largely dismissed by a judge Friday.
Lawrence Hughes alleged that the Watch Tower Society, its lawyers, religious leaders and doctors deliberately misinformed his daughter Bethany about her medical treatment in 2002, and counselled her to refuse transfusions necessary to treat her leukemia. She died almost six years ago.
"It is my belief that the claims are bound to fail," said Justice Alan Macleod of the Alberta Court of Queen's Bench.
Macleod urged Hughes to get a lawyer and to carefully consider his options if he is to continue with the only part of the lawsuit that still stands - against two doctors at the Cross Cancer Institute in Edmonton where his daughter received an experimental treatment just before she died. Macleod said he couldn't throw out the case against the doctors because they didn't request a summary dismissal.
Jehovah's Witnesses believe it's wrong to accept transfusions because of certain passages of the Bible forbidding the ingestion of blood.
Bethany Hughes did receive blood treatment in 2002 against her will after an Alberta court ruled she was pressured by her religion and didn't have a free, informed opinion.
The Alberta government won temporary custody of her and she was given 38 transfusions, although she tried to pull the medical tubes from her arms while she was bedridden at Alberta Children's Hospital in Calgary. She died in September of that year.
Hughes was shunned from the church after he rejected its teachings about blood transfusions and agreed that Bethany should undergo transfusions along with chemotherapy. He and his wife Arliss are now divorced.
He commenced his wrongful death suit in 2004 after a court approved him as administrator of the estate.
"It is a sad day for justice, it is a sad day for Jehovah's Witness children, it is a sad day for mankind," Hughes told reporters immediately after the ruling.
"This is a classic example of a judge protecting doctors and protecting lawyers."
Hughes said he intends to appeal the ruling but admitted he may not be able to afford a lawyer.
"To get a law firm to represent me is going to cost a suitcase full of money, so I'm hoping there is a lawyer in town that would be willing to help me out."
Lawyer David Gnam, who represents the Watch Tower Society and was named in the lawsuit, seemed relieved the case is over. He said Hughes should let the matter rest.
"Justice Macleod very reasonably was telling Mr. Hughes to get a lawyer, think about what the repercussions of continuing this are - particularly in terms of costs and court time - and what you are really aiming at," said Gnam.
"Mr. Hughes has been on national television and in front of Osgoode Hall Law Society saying I murdered his daughter. I do not appreciate those comments because they are obviously untrue."
The Watch Tower Society will seek to have Hughes pay its court costs, he said.
Bethany's mother released a statement following Friday's ruling.
"Throughout my daughter's six-month battle with leukemia in 2002, I supported her own medical treatment choices as an intelligent, mature 16-year-old," said Arliss Hughes.
"Justice Macleod's ruling dismissing Lawrence Hughes's hurtful allegations is most appreciated.
"I deeply miss Bethany's smile, sense of humour and joy in life. She is sadly missed by me, her sisters and all who knew her."
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501
Warren Schroeder from Bethel on Freddy, Kline and the apostate books!
by Dogpatch inhaving problem pasting this...
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fjtoth
Tom,
This discussion is fantastic!!! It's great to read your recollections of those exciting times.
Seeker4,
Kathleen Campbell changed my life. She saw me as I was, a shy and awkward hick from the hills of New Jersey, even though I had recently been appointed as the school servant. That was in the Flatbush congregation in Brooklyn. She invited me to her home for a meal and recommended that I read Norman Vincent Peale's "The Power of Positive Thinking" and Dale Carnegie's "How to Win Friends and Influence People." She gave me both books and asked me to tell her what I thought after finishing each chapter. Since reading anything by a clergyman was more than merely frowned upon, I made a fuss about Peale, but Kathleen said, "Would you hesitate if you saw the book in the Bethel library? I've been there and I know it's there, so why should there be a problem?" I thoroughly read both books on the following weekend. I became a new person, and I'll always remember and appreciate Kathleen for that.In fact, I credit both books with contributing to the courage I needed to make the break from JWs. Thanks so much, Kathleen!
Frank -
53
Help - Ask Newspapers To Report On Lawrence Hughes's Hearing This Week
by AndersonsInfo inplease write newspapers to request them to cover the lawrence hughes.
matter.
lawrence hughes is scheduled to argue in court on may.
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fjtoth
Alta judge dismisses bulk of lawsuit against Watch Tower Society over girls death
Published Friday June 20th, 2008THE CANADIAN PRESS
CALGARY - A Calgary judge has dismissed most of a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the father of a teenage Jehovah's Witness who refused blood transfusions.
Lawrence Hughes alleged that the Watch Tower Society, its lawyers, religious leaders and doctors deliberately misinformed his daughter Bethany about her medical treatment in 2002, and counselled her to refuse transfusions for leukemia.
The court forced her to get them, but she died two months after stopping the transfusions when doctors determined they weren't helping.
Queen's Bench Justice Alan Macleod dismissed most of the lawsuit, including all parts against the Watch Tower Society, saying the claims were bound to fail.
Hughes said he will appeal.
A claim against doctors at the Cross Cancer Clinic in Edmonton, who provided an experimental treatment to Bethany, remains because they didn't request a dismissal.
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53
Help - Ask Newspapers To Report On Lawrence Hughes's Hearing This Week
by AndersonsInfo inplease write newspapers to request them to cover the lawrence hughes.
matter.
lawrence hughes is scheduled to argue in court on may.
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fjtoth
Calgary Dad's Battle Over Blood Transfusions Rejected In Court
CHQR Newsroom
6/20/2008
A Calgary man is vowing to appeal after a judge today dismissed most of a wrongful death suit he filed against the Watch Tower Society, its lawyers, and doctors over the death of his daughter.
Lawrence Hughes began the court battle after the death of his teenage daughter Bethany in 2002.
Bethany, a Jehovah's Witness, refused blood transfusions to treat her leukemia.
Her dad Lawrence told the Rutherford Show on QR77 he's not giving up the fight yet.
He says he'll only stop when the Supreme Court turns him down, but even then, he'll continue his battle in the court of public opinion.
In a statement, Bethany's mom says she backs the judge's decision.
Justice Alan Mcleod dismissed all claims against the Watchtower Society, saying that part of the lawsuit was bound to fail.http://www.am770chqr.com/Channels/Reg/NewsLocal/Story.aspx?ID=1013116
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Help - Ask Newspapers To Report On Lawrence Hughes's Hearing This Week
by AndersonsInfo inplease write newspapers to request them to cover the lawrence hughes.
matter.
lawrence hughes is scheduled to argue in court on may.
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fjtoth
Quoted from above:
I also believe there will not only be coverage of this from papers in Canada and Maclean's which is Canada's number one long-time news magazine, around something like 50 years, but probably global news.
Right now those in the ExJWs&Friends community who have had personal experiences concerning the blood issue can be writing or re-writing those as what they write may be going into news articles after the decision is rendered. They would be another line of news in their own right. So, please be asking people to be getting them ready for use on or shortly after June 20."
"Were reporters from the two Calgary papers there?"
"No, they'll be present for the big decision day on June 20th. That's when it's going to be covered. I'll be sure to give other information to you."
The BIG DAY is TODAY, June 20th! Let's hope we hear some REALLY GOOD NEWS. Hopefully many of us will be doing our part to get in those letters to the news media!
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JW Mom killed in house
by Wordly Andre inhttp://www.pe.com/localnews/murrieta/stories/pe_news_local_s_sdead29.4016de2.html
murrieta - a 40-year-old mother of two was killed in her murrieta home monday morning, authorities said.
coroner's officials identified the woman as isabelle jarka.
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fjtoth
The above article about the street sale has been moved to the following page:
