Prominent Attorney Alan Dershowitz Says He’d ‘Like to Help Out’ Parents of Justina Pelletier in Custody Battle
Prominent attorney Alan Dershowitz is offering to help the parents of 15-year-old Justina Pelletier reclaim custody of their daughter.
“I’d like to help out…” the Harvard Law professor and media figure said during an appearance on “Huckabee” Saturday night, noting he’s a member of the Massachusetts bar and could offer his legal expertise.
“When you hear about a case like this you scratch your head and you say ‘something else must be going on,’” he noted.
Pelletier was removed from her parents’ custody in February 2013 following accusations of medical child abuse. Lou and Linda Pelletier had been treating Justina for mitochondrial disease, but when they brought her to Boston Children’s Hospital with the flu, doctors there said she had somatoform disorder, a psychiatric disorder, instead. The commonwealth stepped in when the hospital raised concerns after the Pelletiers disagreed with the new treatment plan, which would shift to treatment for somatoform.
Lou and Linda Pelletier have been fighting to regain custody ever since, appearing in court many times and arguing that they had been treating their daughter for mitochondrial disease at the direction of a doctor.
Dershowitz cautioned that he’s not certain where Justina would get the best care or who is “right,” but added that “under our legal system when there’s a conflict between medical opinion, the parents get to resolve that for a 15-year-old, not the state.”
“The gag order is clearly unconstitutional,” he also insisted. “You can’t stop parents form bringing a petition about their grievances” to anyone.
Dershowitz added that if what the parents are saying is true, then the Pelletier case is a “horrible abuse of human rights, of civil liberties.”
Here’s the Fox News clip via The Right Scoop:
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Image source: Fox News via The Right Scoop
“When you hear about a case like this you scratch your head and you say ‘something else must be going on,’” he noted.
Pelletier was removed from her parents’ custody in February 2013 following accusations of medical child abuse. Lou and Linda Pelletier had been treating Justina for mitochondrial disease, but when they brought her to Boston Children’s Hospital with the flu, doctors there said she had somatoform disorder, a psychiatric disorder, instead. The commonwealth stepped in when the hospital raised concerns after the Pelletiers disagreed with the new treatment plan, which would shift to treatment for somatoform.
Justina Pelletier with her parents, Linda and Lou. Justina has been in the custody of the state of Massachusetts since last year. (Image source: Facebook)
Dershowitz cautioned that he’s not certain where Justina would get the best care or who is “right,” but added that “under our legal system when there’s a conflict between medical opinion, the parents get to resolve that for a 15-year-old, not the state.”
“The gag order is clearly unconstitutional,” he also insisted. “You can’t stop parents form bringing a petition about their grievances” to anyone.
Dershowitz added that if what the parents are saying is true, then the Pelletier case is a “horrible abuse of human rights, of civil liberties.”
Here’s the Fox News clip via The Right Scoop:
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