Tainted blood judge to rule in August

Canadian Press via Sun Media ^ | 2005-07-19

[Clive]

TORONTO (CP) - The doctor at the centre of the tainted blood tragedy that left thousands infected with HIV and hepatitis C will know next month whether he will stand trial.

Defence lawyer Eddie Greenspan says any insinuations that Dr. Roger Perrault, the former head of the Canadian Red Cross, wants to escape justice are "dead wrong."

Greenspan says Perrault appreciates the enormity of the disaster and that if he were healthy he would stand trial "in a New York minute."

Perrault is charged with criminal negligence causing bodily harm and common nuisance endangering the public.

The 68-year-old is applying for the charges to be stayed, which would effectively withdraw them without presenting evidence, because he says the stress of a year-long trial could kill him.

But James Kreppner, who was infected with HIV and hepatitis C after a blood transfusion about 20 years ago, says it's bitterly ironic that Perrault is arguing he is too sick to stand trial.

It's alleged Perrault failed to screen blood products and take adequate measures to prevent people infected with HIV-AIDS from donating blood.

More than 1,000 Canadians became infected with blood-borne HIV and up to 20,000 others contracted hepatitis C after receiving tainted blood products.

It's not clear how many people have lost their lives to tainted blood, but the death toll was 3,000 as of 1997.

It has been called the worst public health disasters to strike Canada last century.

[T'wit]

I'm pretty sure I recall Canadian news footage of James Kreppner from years ago, his body wasted by the diseases he contracted from tainted blood, but his spirit strong. I'm delighted he's still with us and still wielding his sharp tongue in the quest for justice.

[T'wit]

> While he was AG in Arkansas, he did more than just rape campaign workers.

He supported the blood plasma scheme throughout his six terms as governor. There is good reason to suspect that involvement with the tainted blood scheme cost Vincent Foster his life.

[JerseyHighlander]

Thanks for the post.

Amongst the continuous barrage of daily crap, important issues fall to the wayside of the public consciousness.

Enough waxing philosophically, when are they going to name names?!

[the gillman@blacklagoon.com]

Now that you remind me, the blood scandal made the most sense with Foster, whether you hold with the suicide or the murder.

He just didn't seem cut out to be part of that nest of serpents. Somewhere inside him existed a shred of humanity.

Either he threatened to tell and they whacked him or he did himself over it and they dumped him in the park.

Unless the Republic and us both make another 44 (?) years, we'll never see the truth, since Ken Red Starr got ALL the most damning evidence locked up for the mandatory fifty.

[thoughtomator]

I'll wager that he won't live to see the trial. Anyone want to take me up on it?

[The SISU kid]

...snip from article...Greenspan says Perrault appreciates the enormity of the disaster and that if he were healthy he would stand trial "in a New York minute."

Ironic some "Canuck Barrister" from up North citing a reference to New York, BTW who's the freshman senator to that state???

}^)

[sandydipper]

Finally Bill Clinton will have to answer for his HIV blood donor program - maybe??

[T'wit]

No way he could have killed himself.

Maybe the truth will come out, who knows. Maybe one of the Dixie mafia will crack someday.

[the gillman@blacklagoon.com]

I don't believe he killed himself, but it is possible.

Even if he did, the destruction of the crime scene and the conspiracy to cover it up should have fetched them all twenty years.

Nothing has done more damage to my faith in republicans than them going along with turning it all into Monica.

Nothing they have done since has altered my view, unfortunately.

[Cicero]

I'm very sorry to hear it.

The tainted blood in question came from AIDS and hepatitis infected criminals in the Arkansas state prison system, courtesy of Governor bill clinton.

This tainted blood was sold for profit, and presumably clinton got his cut, one way or another.

[Salamander]

I know.
Her mother is livid beyond words and enraged that Slick got away with it.

[how unusual for him]....:-\

[timestax]

This is August.

[timestax]

bttt

[timestax]

bump to the top

[Eva]

They still aren't mentioning the fact that the tainted blood was gathered from the Arkansas prison system while Bill Clinton was the govenor.

[timestax]

bump to the top

[timestax]

.....

[Eva]

Someone, with more time than I, needs to research the tainted blood scandal and bump some of those threads to the present. A google search is the only way to get those old threads.

[Eva]

Here's a link to the old story with some links of it's own. I even found an article that claimed that Vince Foster was killed to cover up the Arkasas tainted blood story.

[timestax]

bttt