Inquest into death of Anna Nicole Smith's son on hold pending challenge
Jessica Robertson, Canadian Press
Published: Thursday, March 29, 2007
NASSAU, Bahamas (AP) - An inquest into the death of Anna Nicole Smith's 20-year-old son was put on hold Thursday pending a legal challenge filed by Howard K. Stern, the lawyer-turned-partner of the former Playboy Playmate.
A judge in the Bahamian Coroner's Court had picked a seven-member jury and was preparing to call witnesses when Stern's lawyers persuaded him to halt the proceedings until the island's Supreme Court could rule on a motion to submit a questionnaire to potential jurors to gauge any bias.
Stern's lawyer Wayne Munroe argued it would be "reckless" to continue the inquest before the Supreme Court had ruled on the issue.
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Font: ****No date has been set for a Supreme Court hearing on the issue and it was unclear when the inquest would resume, though jurors were instructed to return to court on April 11.
"I'm very disappointed with the delay tactics they are using," Virgie Arthur, Anna Nicole Smith's mother, told reporters as she left the court. "But I'll be here every day. I'll be here until the end."
Daniel Smith died Sept. 10 as he visited his mother three days after she gave birth in a Nassau hospital to her daughter, Dannielynn. Authorities say he died from a combination of drugs including methadone and antidepressants, but an inquest was convened to determine whether the death was accidental, suicide or perhaps even a homicide.
Anna Nicole Smith died Feb. 8 in Florida from an accidental overdose of prescription drugs, including a powerful sleep aid that a lawyer for Stern said she took to cope with grief over her son's death.
Bahamian officials had summoned dozens of witnesses for the inquest, including Stern and Larry Birkhead, a California photographer and former boyfriend of Smith's who claims he is Dannielynn's father and has petitioned for custody of the girl.
A Bahamian court had ordered DNA tests of Dannielynn to determine paternity, but that order has been appealed by Stern to the island's Court of Appeal, which was scheduled to hold a hearing on the matter on Monday.
http://www.steadyhealth.com/How_long_do_methadone_withdrawal_symptoms_last_and_what_they_t80438.html
This is info from someone who went through it:
METHADONE--
Methadone is considered more difficult to get off, because the withdrawal symptoms are more difficult than even heroin. The reason for this is because of the synthetic opiates' storage in your tissue--and more importantly, the half-life of Methadone is (on average) 25 hours (13-47 hours), with peak absorption in 4 hours. However, Methadone lasts for approximately 25 hours for the average patient, BUT there are a few of us who have taken it every 8 hours to reduce the amount of Methadone needed (for pain management), by reducing the zig-zag effect of depleting and replenishment of Methadone within our tissues.
As a result, Methadone patients may not experience many withdrawal symptoms for 24-48 hours after their last dose. [Everyone is different]. After 48 hours, the symptoms of withdrawal will peak within 7-10 days and begin to lessen over the next 7-14 days; however, it depends on a number of variables: how long the patient was taking Methadone; the amount the patient was taking; how quickly the patient has chosen (or been forced) to detox; what the last amount—with respect to the patient’s peak dosage—was; a person’s weight (especially if the patient has experienced quick weight gain, because more Methadone will be stored in your tissues with less blood absorption); age; etc.
The symptoms of withdrawal, and the severity of the symptoms, depend on the variables above; but, and most importantly, it depends on the patients state-of-mind and preparation for detoxification. Most patients do not realize that there are two types of cravings—mental addiction and physical dependency. If a patient is on the Methadone for medicinal reasons, it will be easier for the patient to recover from the withdrawal symptoms, but if the patient has a mental addiction, the patient will be faced with craving to withdraw and take the Methadone as an out. Fortunately, Methadone does not have the same level of euphoria as do other chemical compounds, but nonetheless, it is still significant enough in the patient’s mind that it may not matter the chemical side.
Before covering the symptoms of withdrawal, it is important to point out one last key component of Methadone—in that, it mimics the level of peptides—such as, Endorphins, Enkephalines, and Dynorphins, which causes the brain to assume that your ARTIFICIAL level of good feeling is required for normal life functioning. As a result, the most difficult withdrawal is a MENTAL withdrawal that your brain feels you need in order to survive. This is affectionately referred to as “cravings.” These cravings WILL FORCE most patients into taking Methadone, because the cravings are too intense; hence, most professionals recommend that you seek professional help (detoxification center), so that they may monitor you for your health and to give you the support needed to NOT GIVE IN to the CRAVINGS! (IMPORTANT NOTE: I almost died coming off of my Methadone too quickly, because I wanted to show myself that I could do it as long as I WANTED to. I was wrong! I seized, and I was VERY lucky that my family was with me at the time, because the doctors had to resuscitate me and push Methadone into me to prevent an immanent heart attack. Don’t be foolish, we know you are mentally strong, why else would you be interested in reading this? Be alive to live your life after this necessary evil—PLEASE!!!)
So, what are the symptoms? Here you go! Sneezing, yawning, tearing of eyes, runny nose, excessive perspiration (cold sweats and hot sweats, especially at night), fever, dilated pupils, abdominal cramps, nausea, body aches, tremors, irritability, not to be morbid, but even death in extreme cases. Finally, sleep is your best friend during withdrawals, BUT you will find it next to impossible to sleep. I recommend taking 25-50 mg of Dyphenhydramine (Benadryl), but NOTHING ELSE! You don’t want to exchange one craving today with another craving in two months, once you are beginning to see the other side of the tunnel. (IMPORTANT: Benadryl SHOULD NEVER BE ingested in amounts greater than 50 mg every 4-6 hours, and no more than 8 pills per 24 hours, because of severe respiratory concerns. Muscle relaxants can assist (for many reasons), but again—be reasonable; DRINK lots of WATER; ensure that you get your electrolytes (banana a day, Gatorade); Ensure or Boost are excellent meal replacements, because you will lose your appetite; and make certain that you take care of your hygiene (shower, brush your teeth, put on comfortable, but NOT bedtime clothes for mental effectiveness). Lastly, there are medications (Clonidine, for example) that MAY significantly assist you while you detoxify, but reports of significant exhaustion and tiredness may make it worse, not to mention the fact that it will lower your blood pressure. I have chosen not to go this route, because the ‘cravings’ are psychological and I can beat it in my mind—‘mind over matter.’