UPDATE: Check out my new book, The Definitive Dossier of PTSD in Whistleblowers, and in chapter three this story, and especially its mentally debilitating effects, is explored in much greater detail.
Introduction: If this is your first introduction of this story please read part one, part two, and part three. I will be referencing them often and you will be confused if you haven't read them.
Let's review what I have laid out. In 1986, Jim Singer was a practicing psychologist in Dubois, Pennsylvania. He treated a patient with a series of problems including alcoholism and a history of abuse. Singer suggested that the patient go through counseling with the rest of his family. During the course of that treatment, Singer began to suspect that the patient's younger 16 year old sister was being abused. When the sixteen year old was confronted, she admitted, in front of several witnesses, that she was being abused.
Singer immediately called the proper authorities as he was required to by his status as a mandated reporter. From the beginning, DCFS was more interested in protecting the abuser than the child. The child was never given an attorney and her father continued to make contact with her.
Within a year of reporting the incident, Singer began losing many of the patients and then he was accused of wrongdoing by seven separate patients all at roughly the same time. Singer had been a practicing psychologist for nearly fifteen years and never had a complaint. Now, he was facing seven different complaints all at once. Even though this should have raised all sorts of red flags, the Psychology board proceeded with charges against Singer. In fact, there was even evidence that DCFS paid off patients to turn on Singer and make false claims against him.
Within a few years, Singer was nearly out of money and eventually his license was suspended indefinitely. Singer never regained his license in Pennsylvania and only recently had it reinstated in West Virginia.
Since the beginning of his case, he reached out to nearly single politician. Most were initially helpful. Letters were written to folks like Janet Reno and Bill Clinton himself. Tom Ridge even tried to get Singer's case heard in front of the appropriate Senate Committee. In fact, politicians local, state, and national were attempting to help Singer. Most peculiar, politicians helped a lot more prior to the release of this police report (summarized here). Even though this police report confirmed everything that Singer had been saying for nearly a decade, and accused much of the Pennsylvania political apparatus of criminal wrongdoing. Despite, or maybe as a result, of this new police report, the powerful politicians of Pennsylvania began to be strangely non responsive.
As such, Singer's case continues to be unresolved. Neither the accused or anyone else involved in wrongdoing has been brought to justice. The whole entire affair has been swept under the proverbial rug. How does this happen? The accuser worked for the phone company. Did he really have enough power to orchestrate a sham that sweeps his abuse under the rug while at the same time ruining Singer's career? If it wasnt' him, who was it? Those are all questions that no one has the answer to. What is clear is that DCFS and everyone else mandated to protect children in Pennsylvania failed miserably in their jobs in this case. Mark Spotz, who went on a spree killing, was also a product of the DCFS in Pennsylvania.
Given what I have reported here, can anyone imagine the horror that Spotz likely went through when the state was supposed to be protecting him? If the state of Pennsylvania protected the abuser and attacked the reporter in this case, how many other cases are there? What is going on here?
While this case is complicated with many twists and turns, it comes down to this simple narrative. The state of Pennsylvania was supposed to protect the abused child and keep the reporter anonymous and protected. Instead, the child was given no protection. The accuser was protected, and on top of it, the state looked the other way (or worse) while the reporter was retaliated against. As such, an affair that started more than twenty years ago continues unresolved today. A career is ruined, and who knows what has happened to the life of a then sixteen year old child. On top of it, no one seems to care.
Finally, here are some other similar cases of doctors being taken advantage of in other parts of the country... stories like a doctor in South Carolina that was targeted for reporting on a serial killer nurse, a doctor in Texas targeted by Blue Cross/Blue Shield, a nurse that was targeted after he reported on illegal drug testing at his hospital, the Texas Medical Board's systematic targeting of doctors, and the tragic case of obscene corruption at Atlanta's Grady Hospital. Finally, you can check out a similar case in which a doctor in Rhode Island was also targeted after she reported on suspected child abuse.
Showing posts with label Tom Ridge. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tom Ridge. Show all posts
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Monday, June 23, 2008
Child Abuse and Sham Peer Review...Corruption in Pennsylvania III
UPDATE: Check out my new book, The Definitive Dossier of PTSD in Whistleblowers, and in chapter three this story, and especially its mentally debilitating effects, is explored in much greater detail.
If this is your first introduction to this series, here is part one and part two. I will be making references to both so hopefully you will read each of them prior to reading this. After Jim Singer lost his psychology license, he wound up reaching out to nearly every single powerful politician in Pennsylvania. Each gave him different levels of help and yet ultimately he still has never had his license re instated in Pennsylvania more than fifteen years after it was removed. Here is how each of the major politicians contributed.
Bob Casey Sr. ( Democrat, Governor of Pennsylvania 1987-1995)
Jim Singer attempted to reach the governor immediately after he took office. He wrote letters however it was his son that wound up in a chance face to face meeting with the Governor himself. Singer's son was an undergraduate at Yale at the time. Singer's son was chosen to debate on behalf of the students with Governor Casey Sr. After the debate the two spoke in private. At that meeting Singer's son told the Governor some of what happened in his dad's case. He even handed the governor documents regarding perjury at his trial among many other abuses. The Governor must have been moved because within months Singer's son received this letter. It was from James Haggerty, the Governor's personal attorney. Haggerty stated that he would investigate the claim personally.
Whatever interest there was in this case from the Governor's office, it soon died down. Only weeks after receiving that positive letter from James Haggerty,Singer's son received this letter. This particular letter was also from Haggerty. Haggerty indicated that the matter had been investigated and was found "without merit".
What caused the sudden turnaround is something only James Haggerty can answer. His involvement with this case didn't start with these two letters and the investigation I assume he had in between. In fact, about a year and a half prior a meeting between himself, Christopher Lewis, the President's Secretary of Commonwealth, as well as three State Senators Dan Surra, Ted Stuban, and Sam Smith was arranged. In fact, Dan Surra actually also taught at the victim's school and had also written this letter to the Governor himself. As such by the time, Casey Sr. handed over investigation of this matter to Haggerty, he should have already been well familiar with it.
In other words, the same James Haggerty who should have known how badly Jim Singer was wronged was telling his son that there was nothing to the story. Now, I don't what you would call that but I call it sweeping the matter under the proverbial rug.
Rick Santorum (Republican Congressman 18th District 1991-1995, Senator Pennsylvania 1994-2006)
The extent of Rick Santorum's involvement is a few letters like this one. Singer said they were always cooperative but beyond writing a few letters they never did much. He had contact on and off with their office from the early 1990's all the way into 2001. It's ironic because the letter paints quite a stark picture and of course the recipient of the letter was none other than Bill Clinton himself. Within the letter Santorum starts like this.
Now, this letter indicates that the Clinton was informed by the top Pennsylvania politicians about Singer's case. How many politicians need to write letters before this case was looked at by someone at the Justice Department? Yet, if this is so bad that each of the major politicians of the state is complaining about it to the President himself why aren't each of them doing more? After all, it is now 2008 and Singer still hasn't received his license back. This particular letter was written in 1993 when Santorum was still a Congressman.
Tom Ridge (Republican Congressman 1983-1995 Governor Pennsylvania 1995-2001)
Singer first approached Ridge in 1993. By then, he had already started campaigning for Governor, and his main rival in the Republican primaries was Ernie Preate. Preate was then the current Attorney General of Pennsylvania. Ridge wrote a letter of his own to Janet Reno, then Attorney General of the United States, complaining about the case. He was very resourceful beyond that. Even though he was in the House of Representatives, he was able to talk the Senate Health, Education, and Labor Committee to have Singer testify at one of their hearings. Now, a big spectacle would not only bring spotlight to the case, but also to Preate's failure in dealing with it. Of course, that is a cynical view and nothing about this case should make cynical, should it.
In any case, the Hearing were scheduled April 27, 1994. This just happened to coincide with Richard Nixon's death and that day was a day of mourning at the Capitol and the hearing was postponed. It has never been re scheduled in nearly fifteen years for reasons only known to the committee itself.
By the end of January 1995, Ridge was governor. He initially was also gung ho about taking on the case. He appointed Robert DeSouza to investigate. DeSouza was a high level prosecutor in the Justice Department of Pennsylvania. This appointment came in January of 1995, or immediately after he took office. By spring of 1995, his posture changed 180%. By the spring, the State Senate wanted to run its own headed by Steve MacNett. They were hoping to coordinate the investigations. Yet, when approached, the governor's office was stand offish. Neither investigation went anywhere. Ridge, who was very receptive to this story when he was still running for Governor, became quite unhelpful to Singer once he actually became Governor. (as this letter indicates)
Arlen Spector (Republican U.S. Senator Pennsylvania 1981-Present)
Singer began to correspond with Senator Spector's office in the late 1980's. The office was receptive. Then, in 1993 the Senator received this letter. This letter was special because it was from another of Singer's patients and it told of another patient that was paid off by members of DCFS to make up stories about Singer. In other words, while DCFS was supposed to protect the child and the identity of the mandated reporter, they were doing the exact opposite.
Spector's office was helpful until this police report came out. Even though (or maybe as a result) it was a damning indictment of not only DCFS but the entire political apparatus, this police report only most politicians more hesitant to work with Singer. Furthermore, its author Lt. Ivan Hoover had his career go downhill soon after its completion.
Spector's office is the best example. Up until the release of this police report, they were very helpful. They wrote several letters and were instrumental in helping procure the hearing along with then Congressman Ridge. They even apparently asked that Shay Bilchik, who was being confirmed as a top prosecutor in U.S. Justice, to look into the matter during a private session of his confirmation. Once the police report came out, their attitude changed.
Just a couple months ago, Spector's Chief of Staff Scott Hoeslich, got into an argument with Singer because Hoeslich refused to say that Singer's case had anything to do with child abuse.
Bob Casey Jr. (Democrat Pennsylvania State Auditor 1997-2005 U.S. Senator Pennsylvania 2007- Present)
Singer first approached Casey Jr. in 1999 when he was Pennsylvania's State Auditor. In his role, he investigated misuse of state funds. By 1999, this sham had been going on for more than a decade. That was quite a lot of time and money spent prosecuting a frivolous and baseless case.
In the initial meeting, Casey Jr. was excited by what he heard. He was looking to help, however Singer was rather skeptical. That's because he noticed that the Auditor's General Counsel was a woman named Sally Ulrich. Singer had run into Ulrich while he was being shammed. In fact, she was the Judge for the Psychology Board during his trial. In other words, it was Ulrich herself that handed down his sentence.
Another individual with ties to this case was Peter Smith. Smith had been head of the Inspector General's office at the time that incident was first unfolding. In fact, Hoover attacked the Inspector General's Office specifically in his police report in 1997.
Furthermore, much of this happened on the watch of his father's administration. He would have certainly done a great deal of damage to his father's legacy if he investigated the matter properly. We will never know because his initial exuberance for an investigation went the way of the DeSouza investigation and the U.S. Senate hearings.
In fact, it appears that all these so called powerful politicians have given Singer the run around for nearly twenty years. Why wouldn't any step up and do what it took to re instate his license and investigate the obscene corruption at the Psychology board, DCFS, and beyond? That is a question to answer in part four.
Here is part four...
If this is your first introduction to this series, here is part one and part two. I will be making references to both so hopefully you will read each of them prior to reading this. After Jim Singer lost his psychology license, he wound up reaching out to nearly every single powerful politician in Pennsylvania. Each gave him different levels of help and yet ultimately he still has never had his license re instated in Pennsylvania more than fifteen years after it was removed. Here is how each of the major politicians contributed.
Bob Casey Sr. ( Democrat, Governor of Pennsylvania 1987-1995)
Jim Singer attempted to reach the governor immediately after he took office. He wrote letters however it was his son that wound up in a chance face to face meeting with the Governor himself. Singer's son was an undergraduate at Yale at the time. Singer's son was chosen to debate on behalf of the students with Governor Casey Sr. After the debate the two spoke in private. At that meeting Singer's son told the Governor some of what happened in his dad's case. He even handed the governor documents regarding perjury at his trial among many other abuses. The Governor must have been moved because within months Singer's son received this letter. It was from James Haggerty, the Governor's personal attorney. Haggerty stated that he would investigate the claim personally.
Whatever interest there was in this case from the Governor's office, it soon died down. Only weeks after receiving that positive letter from James Haggerty,Singer's son received this letter. This particular letter was also from Haggerty. Haggerty indicated that the matter had been investigated and was found "without merit".
What caused the sudden turnaround is something only James Haggerty can answer. His involvement with this case didn't start with these two letters and the investigation I assume he had in between. In fact, about a year and a half prior a meeting between himself, Christopher Lewis, the President's Secretary of Commonwealth, as well as three State Senators Dan Surra, Ted Stuban, and Sam Smith was arranged. In fact, Dan Surra actually also taught at the victim's school and had also written this letter to the Governor himself. As such by the time, Casey Sr. handed over investigation of this matter to Haggerty, he should have already been well familiar with it.
In other words, the same James Haggerty who should have known how badly Jim Singer was wronged was telling his son that there was nothing to the story. Now, I don't what you would call that but I call it sweeping the matter under the proverbial rug.
Rick Santorum (Republican Congressman 18th District 1991-1995, Senator Pennsylvania 1994-2006)
The extent of Rick Santorum's involvement is a few letters like this one. Singer said they were always cooperative but beyond writing a few letters they never did much. He had contact on and off with their office from the early 1990's all the way into 2001. It's ironic because the letter paints quite a stark picture and of course the recipient of the letter was none other than Bill Clinton himself. Within the letter Santorum starts like this.
I am writing this letter on behalf of Jim Singer, a psychologist from Dubois, Pennsylvania. I would like to join my colleagues Senator Spector, Congressman Bud Shuster, Congressman Tom Ridge, and Congressman Bud Cramer who have recently expressed their concern over the handling of Dr. Singer's case by state and federal officials as a result of his mandate reporting of child abuse in 1986
Now, this letter indicates that the Clinton was informed by the top Pennsylvania politicians about Singer's case. How many politicians need to write letters before this case was looked at by someone at the Justice Department? Yet, if this is so bad that each of the major politicians of the state is complaining about it to the President himself why aren't each of them doing more? After all, it is now 2008 and Singer still hasn't received his license back. This particular letter was written in 1993 when Santorum was still a Congressman.
Tom Ridge (Republican Congressman 1983-1995 Governor Pennsylvania 1995-2001)
Singer first approached Ridge in 1993. By then, he had already started campaigning for Governor, and his main rival in the Republican primaries was Ernie Preate. Preate was then the current Attorney General of Pennsylvania. Ridge wrote a letter of his own to Janet Reno, then Attorney General of the United States, complaining about the case. He was very resourceful beyond that. Even though he was in the House of Representatives, he was able to talk the Senate Health, Education, and Labor Committee to have Singer testify at one of their hearings. Now, a big spectacle would not only bring spotlight to the case, but also to Preate's failure in dealing with it. Of course, that is a cynical view and nothing about this case should make cynical, should it.
In any case, the Hearing were scheduled April 27, 1994. This just happened to coincide with Richard Nixon's death and that day was a day of mourning at the Capitol and the hearing was postponed. It has never been re scheduled in nearly fifteen years for reasons only known to the committee itself.
By the end of January 1995, Ridge was governor. He initially was also gung ho about taking on the case. He appointed Robert DeSouza to investigate. DeSouza was a high level prosecutor in the Justice Department of Pennsylvania. This appointment came in January of 1995, or immediately after he took office. By spring of 1995, his posture changed 180%. By the spring, the State Senate wanted to run its own headed by Steve MacNett. They were hoping to coordinate the investigations. Yet, when approached, the governor's office was stand offish. Neither investigation went anywhere. Ridge, who was very receptive to this story when he was still running for Governor, became quite unhelpful to Singer once he actually became Governor. (as this letter indicates)
Arlen Spector (Republican U.S. Senator Pennsylvania 1981-Present)
Singer began to correspond with Senator Spector's office in the late 1980's. The office was receptive. Then, in 1993 the Senator received this letter. This letter was special because it was from another of Singer's patients and it told of another patient that was paid off by members of DCFS to make up stories about Singer. In other words, while DCFS was supposed to protect the child and the identity of the mandated reporter, they were doing the exact opposite.
Spector's office was helpful until this police report came out. Even though (or maybe as a result) it was a damning indictment of not only DCFS but the entire political apparatus, this police report only most politicians more hesitant to work with Singer. Furthermore, its author Lt. Ivan Hoover had his career go downhill soon after its completion.
Spector's office is the best example. Up until the release of this police report, they were very helpful. They wrote several letters and were instrumental in helping procure the hearing along with then Congressman Ridge. They even apparently asked that Shay Bilchik, who was being confirmed as a top prosecutor in U.S. Justice, to look into the matter during a private session of his confirmation. Once the police report came out, their attitude changed.
Just a couple months ago, Spector's Chief of Staff Scott Hoeslich, got into an argument with Singer because Hoeslich refused to say that Singer's case had anything to do with child abuse.
Bob Casey Jr. (Democrat Pennsylvania State Auditor 1997-2005 U.S. Senator Pennsylvania 2007- Present)
Singer first approached Casey Jr. in 1999 when he was Pennsylvania's State Auditor. In his role, he investigated misuse of state funds. By 1999, this sham had been going on for more than a decade. That was quite a lot of time and money spent prosecuting a frivolous and baseless case.
In the initial meeting, Casey Jr. was excited by what he heard. He was looking to help, however Singer was rather skeptical. That's because he noticed that the Auditor's General Counsel was a woman named Sally Ulrich. Singer had run into Ulrich while he was being shammed. In fact, she was the Judge for the Psychology Board during his trial. In other words, it was Ulrich herself that handed down his sentence.
Another individual with ties to this case was Peter Smith. Smith had been head of the Inspector General's office at the time that incident was first unfolding. In fact, Hoover attacked the Inspector General's Office specifically in his police report in 1997.
Furthermore, much of this happened on the watch of his father's administration. He would have certainly done a great deal of damage to his father's legacy if he investigated the matter properly. We will never know because his initial exuberance for an investigation went the way of the DeSouza investigation and the U.S. Senate hearings.
In fact, it appears that all these so called powerful politicians have given Singer the run around for nearly twenty years. Why wouldn't any step up and do what it took to re instate his license and investigate the obscene corruption at the Psychology board, DCFS, and beyond? That is a question to answer in part four.
Here is part four...
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Child Abuse and Sham Peer Review...Corruption in Pennsylvania II
UPDATE: Check out my new book, The Definitive Dossier of PTSD in Whistleblowers, and in chapter three this story, and especially its mentally debilitating effects, is explored in much greater detail.
If you haven't already, please check out part one. I am about to make some serious accusations against the entire state apparatus of Pennsylvania, and some of the supporting evidence is found in that part.
In 1986 Jim Singer was a practicing psychologist in Dubois, Pennsylvania. He maintained his own private practice and at the same time at the Maple Avenue Dubois Regional Medical Center. He treated a patient that would change his life forever and expose him to corruption at all levels of the Pennsylvania state apparatus as well as possibly the national level.
This patient was 25 years old and he had a history of being abused. He had recently moved out of his parent's home and was living with his aunt. He also had a history of alcoholism. Furthermore, he thought he might even have a sexually transmitted disease. After consulting with the patient, Singer suggested he consult with a physician for a full physical examination. At Dubois, the patient was treated by Dr. Al Varacallo, a family physician. Upon examining him, Dr. Varacallo admitted to Dubois Regional Medical Center, he and Singer decided that the proper course of action moving forward was family counseling with Singer leading the counseling and Dr. Varacallo sitting in for observation.
Once Singer had a chance to interact with the entire family, he observed a family full of dysfunction. For instance, the daughter was dressed rather provocatively especially for a fifteen year old. He noticed that as soon as the father entered the room, the two siblings went from being outgoing to quiet. Furthermore, the father admitted that not only did he have a tendency to drink too much alcohol, but would get violent when overly inebriated.
Finally, during one of the breaks, the daughter approached Singer and insisted on having a private session with Singer. Singer explained that this was improper and that if she wanted to have a private session she would need to get her school's guidance counselor to give her written permission. That happened on Thursday evening and when the family came back for the next session on Friday, the daughter had two permission slips signed by two separate guidance counselors.
Furthermore, during one of the breaks, a nurse on the floor, who also happened to be a neighbor of the family, revealed to Singer that the daughter had bags packed and was planning on running away. Furthermore, the nurse said that the daughter also drank a lot and had a tendency to date older men.
At this point, Singer suspected that the daughter was being abused. He decided to confront her brother, the 25 year old that was originally his patient. Singer suspected abuse but the brother was resistant. He refused to answer and demanded to be left alone. Finally, after being grilled for a while, the brother demanded to be left alone and verbally fired Singer as his psychologist.
At this point, Singer was stuck between the proverbial rock and hard place. He still suspected abuse. He was a mandated reporter and must report abuse even if he only suspected it, however since he was fired, he couldn't seek to treat anyone in the family. He consulted with Dr. Varacallo. They both decided that the proper course of action was for Dr. Varacallo to approach the family, and the daughter specifically, and see if she wanted to move forward with treatment.
Not only did the daughter agree, but later in the day on Saturday, her aunt, the father's sister, called Singer and offered to come in with her niece and her daughter. They all came in the next day Saturday. After meeting separately with Dr. Varacallo, the daughter, her aunt, and her cousin met together with Singer. Singer probed whether she was being abused, and she admitted that she was being abused by her father.
At this point, there was no longer any options for Singer. Medical ethics and procedures demand that he call the proper authorities in this case. That's exactly what he did and the Department of Children Services of Pennsylvania were contacted. In the meantime, Singer left the hospital to attend to another patient. The case worker, John Bennesse, didn't appear to be terribly interested in the case according to witnesses. It was a Saturday and he appeared to want to be elsewhere. That said, after interviewing several medical professionals, he removed the child and placed her in protective custody of her aunt.
There is standard procedure that is supposed to be followed moving forward in any case of abuse. Of central importance, DCFS is supposed to immediately get the child legal representation. This way all contact between the accused abuser and the victim can be handled through the third party, the attorney. This never happened, and soon the parents were showing up at her school and threatening the child. The father began threatening Singer and his daughter.
It got so bad that the daughter began contacting Singer and begging for help. She indicated that she was suicidal. Upon realizing that no attorney was ever hired for her, Singer went to legal aid and found her representation. Only months later DCFS finally got the child their own representation.
Months later, the child contacts Singer again and sends him a letter of thanks for saving her life. Singer then contacted the Pennsylvania Department of Welfare to complain about the unprofessional behavior of DCFS. Initially, DPW sent in an investigator and the investigator agreed with Singer's concerns. Months went by and nothing was done as a result of the investigation. Singer sent DPW a letter complaining that action was being stalled. DPW responded and now they said that they found nothing wrong and that it was all a "misunderstanding".
In March of 1987, the daughter called Singer again in tears. She said that she was sorry that she had gotten him into so much trouble and that her father was about to get even with him.
Singer didn't know it yet, but he was about to be on the receiving end of a well orchestrated sham peer review. Later that same day, he was called in to examine a patient that was hysterical. What Singer didn't know was that this patient was a neighbor of the accuser and likely was a plant. The patient was speaking in gibberish. He refused to take his medication and claimed that since a psychologist was called in then it must all be "in my head". The patient was entirely uncooperative, however Singer didn't make much of this bizarre encounter until months later.
Over the next several months, Singer began losing patients. What he didn't know was that someone was poisoning the proverbial waters about his reputation in the relatively small town of Dubois. In early 1988, Singer was informed by the Pennsylvania Board of Psychology (PBOA) that he was being formally investigated. There was seven patients in all, including the peculiar one I mentioned and the abuser himself, that filed complaints. Now, Singer first became a psychologist in 1973. Prior to these complaints, he'd never had any complaints. It should have been a red flag to any legitimate licensing board that a doctor usually doesn't go nearly fifteen years with no complaints and suddenly has multiple complaints all at once. Of course, what Singer didn't know was that he wasn't dealing with a legitimate board but rather a corrupt one.
The whole entire affair was nothing more than a sham. There was evidence that not only were witnesses bribed in order to make up testimony but that this was done at the behest of DCFS itself. Furthermore, through the course of the trial it was even revealed that DCFS actually revealed Singer as the source of the complaint of child abuse. Of course, this is a total aversion to any proper procedures. Anyone that reports child abuse is always supposed to have their anonymity maintained. Singer was initially charged with 58 counts, and was put through a legal loop that wound up nearly bankrupting him. He finally needed to reach out to the National Child Abuse Center for legal help.
He was finally found guilty of billing errors. He was put on probation. In 1992, while the case was under appeal the board removed his license because they claimed he didn't pay the fine the board punished him. (Singer told me that he didn't pay the fine upon the advice of his lawyer)
He has never recovered his license in Pennsylvania. In fact, only about a month ago, he had license restored in the state of West Virginia. No one was ever seriously investigated, let alone punished, for looking the other way or incompetently protecting the child in this case. Mark Spotz is currently on death row following a killing spree. He found himself in the Pennsylvania DCFS system at about the same time as this case was starting. Not only did Spotz have a history of being abused, but serious questions remain about just how much DCFS protected him against his abuser when he found himself in their care. His attorneys have been claiming that had the trial jurors known of the extent and nature of abuse suffered as a youngster, as well as his previous diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder, and substance abuse, they might have spared his life. The alleged abuse included mandatory sex acts as a 10-year-old, introduction to drugs, beatings, confinements and situations that, according to a psychologist, ranked “at the very bottom of bad.” How many kids were under the care of Pennsylvania DCFS and wound up being neglected like Spotz and the child in this case?
In Part three, I will discuss all the "powerful" politicians that Singer reached out to for help. They include both Bob Casey Jr. and Sr., Tom Ridge, Arlen Spector, and Rick Santorum. Their behavior in the subsequent fifteen years after Singer's license was removed is nearly as deplorable as that of the Psychology Board and DCFS.
Here is part 3
If you haven't already, please check out part one. I am about to make some serious accusations against the entire state apparatus of Pennsylvania, and some of the supporting evidence is found in that part.
In 1986 Jim Singer was a practicing psychologist in Dubois, Pennsylvania. He maintained his own private practice and at the same time at the Maple Avenue Dubois Regional Medical Center. He treated a patient that would change his life forever and expose him to corruption at all levels of the Pennsylvania state apparatus as well as possibly the national level.
This patient was 25 years old and he had a history of being abused. He had recently moved out of his parent's home and was living with his aunt. He also had a history of alcoholism. Furthermore, he thought he might even have a sexually transmitted disease. After consulting with the patient, Singer suggested he consult with a physician for a full physical examination. At Dubois, the patient was treated by Dr. Al Varacallo, a family physician. Upon examining him, Dr. Varacallo admitted to Dubois Regional Medical Center, he and Singer decided that the proper course of action moving forward was family counseling with Singer leading the counseling and Dr. Varacallo sitting in for observation.
Once Singer had a chance to interact with the entire family, he observed a family full of dysfunction. For instance, the daughter was dressed rather provocatively especially for a fifteen year old. He noticed that as soon as the father entered the room, the two siblings went from being outgoing to quiet. Furthermore, the father admitted that not only did he have a tendency to drink too much alcohol, but would get violent when overly inebriated.
Finally, during one of the breaks, the daughter approached Singer and insisted on having a private session with Singer. Singer explained that this was improper and that if she wanted to have a private session she would need to get her school's guidance counselor to give her written permission. That happened on Thursday evening and when the family came back for the next session on Friday, the daughter had two permission slips signed by two separate guidance counselors.
Furthermore, during one of the breaks, a nurse on the floor, who also happened to be a neighbor of the family, revealed to Singer that the daughter had bags packed and was planning on running away. Furthermore, the nurse said that the daughter also drank a lot and had a tendency to date older men.
At this point, Singer suspected that the daughter was being abused. He decided to confront her brother, the 25 year old that was originally his patient. Singer suspected abuse but the brother was resistant. He refused to answer and demanded to be left alone. Finally, after being grilled for a while, the brother demanded to be left alone and verbally fired Singer as his psychologist.
At this point, Singer was stuck between the proverbial rock and hard place. He still suspected abuse. He was a mandated reporter and must report abuse even if he only suspected it, however since he was fired, he couldn't seek to treat anyone in the family. He consulted with Dr. Varacallo. They both decided that the proper course of action was for Dr. Varacallo to approach the family, and the daughter specifically, and see if she wanted to move forward with treatment.
Not only did the daughter agree, but later in the day on Saturday, her aunt, the father's sister, called Singer and offered to come in with her niece and her daughter. They all came in the next day Saturday. After meeting separately with Dr. Varacallo, the daughter, her aunt, and her cousin met together with Singer. Singer probed whether she was being abused, and she admitted that she was being abused by her father.
At this point, there was no longer any options for Singer. Medical ethics and procedures demand that he call the proper authorities in this case. That's exactly what he did and the Department of Children Services of Pennsylvania were contacted. In the meantime, Singer left the hospital to attend to another patient. The case worker, John Bennesse, didn't appear to be terribly interested in the case according to witnesses. It was a Saturday and he appeared to want to be elsewhere. That said, after interviewing several medical professionals, he removed the child and placed her in protective custody of her aunt.
There is standard procedure that is supposed to be followed moving forward in any case of abuse. Of central importance, DCFS is supposed to immediately get the child legal representation. This way all contact between the accused abuser and the victim can be handled through the third party, the attorney. This never happened, and soon the parents were showing up at her school and threatening the child. The father began threatening Singer and his daughter.
It got so bad that the daughter began contacting Singer and begging for help. She indicated that she was suicidal. Upon realizing that no attorney was ever hired for her, Singer went to legal aid and found her representation. Only months later DCFS finally got the child their own representation.
Months later, the child contacts Singer again and sends him a letter of thanks for saving her life. Singer then contacted the Pennsylvania Department of Welfare to complain about the unprofessional behavior of DCFS. Initially, DPW sent in an investigator and the investigator agreed with Singer's concerns. Months went by and nothing was done as a result of the investigation. Singer sent DPW a letter complaining that action was being stalled. DPW responded and now they said that they found nothing wrong and that it was all a "misunderstanding".
In March of 1987, the daughter called Singer again in tears. She said that she was sorry that she had gotten him into so much trouble and that her father was about to get even with him.
Singer didn't know it yet, but he was about to be on the receiving end of a well orchestrated sham peer review. Later that same day, he was called in to examine a patient that was hysterical. What Singer didn't know was that this patient was a neighbor of the accuser and likely was a plant. The patient was speaking in gibberish. He refused to take his medication and claimed that since a psychologist was called in then it must all be "in my head". The patient was entirely uncooperative, however Singer didn't make much of this bizarre encounter until months later.
Over the next several months, Singer began losing patients. What he didn't know was that someone was poisoning the proverbial waters about his reputation in the relatively small town of Dubois. In early 1988, Singer was informed by the Pennsylvania Board of Psychology (PBOA) that he was being formally investigated. There was seven patients in all, including the peculiar one I mentioned and the abuser himself, that filed complaints. Now, Singer first became a psychologist in 1973. Prior to these complaints, he'd never had any complaints. It should have been a red flag to any legitimate licensing board that a doctor usually doesn't go nearly fifteen years with no complaints and suddenly has multiple complaints all at once. Of course, what Singer didn't know was that he wasn't dealing with a legitimate board but rather a corrupt one.
The whole entire affair was nothing more than a sham. There was evidence that not only were witnesses bribed in order to make up testimony but that this was done at the behest of DCFS itself. Furthermore, through the course of the trial it was even revealed that DCFS actually revealed Singer as the source of the complaint of child abuse. Of course, this is a total aversion to any proper procedures. Anyone that reports child abuse is always supposed to have their anonymity maintained. Singer was initially charged with 58 counts, and was put through a legal loop that wound up nearly bankrupting him. He finally needed to reach out to the National Child Abuse Center for legal help.
He was finally found guilty of billing errors. He was put on probation. In 1992, while the case was under appeal the board removed his license because they claimed he didn't pay the fine the board punished him. (Singer told me that he didn't pay the fine upon the advice of his lawyer)
He has never recovered his license in Pennsylvania. In fact, only about a month ago, he had license restored in the state of West Virginia. No one was ever seriously investigated, let alone punished, for looking the other way or incompetently protecting the child in this case. Mark Spotz is currently on death row following a killing spree. He found himself in the Pennsylvania DCFS system at about the same time as this case was starting. Not only did Spotz have a history of being abused, but serious questions remain about just how much DCFS protected him against his abuser when he found himself in their care. His attorneys have been claiming that had the trial jurors known of the extent and nature of abuse suffered as a youngster, as well as his previous diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder, and substance abuse, they might have spared his life. The alleged abuse included mandatory sex acts as a 10-year-old, introduction to drugs, beatings, confinements and situations that, according to a psychologist, ranked “at the very bottom of bad.” How many kids were under the care of Pennsylvania DCFS and wound up being neglected like Spotz and the child in this case?
In Part three, I will discuss all the "powerful" politicians that Singer reached out to for help. They include both Bob Casey Jr. and Sr., Tom Ridge, Arlen Spector, and Rick Santorum. Their behavior in the subsequent fifteen years after Singer's license was removed is nearly as deplorable as that of the Psychology Board and DCFS.
Here is part 3
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Child Abuse and Sham Peer Review...Corruption in Pennsylvania Part I
UPDATE: Check out my new book, The Definitive Dossier of PTSD in Whistleblowers, and in chapter three this story, and especially its mentally debilitating effects, is explored in much greater detail.
This is a police report done by then Lieutenant Ivan Hooper of the Pennsylvania State Troopers.. ( Part II here) It is a police report that should have finally brought to an end a nightmare that lasted nearly ten years for Dr. Jim Singer. That's because this report confirmed everything that Dr. Singer had been saying for nearly ten years not only about a case of child abuse but systemic corruption at all levels of Pennsylvania government that tried to cover it up. Instead, following the release of this report much of the political help that Mr. Singer received from Pennsylvania politicians dried up. This police report and the case surrounding it open a Pandora's box to corruption in which the Department of Children's Services in Pennsylvania protected child predators and helped orchestrate retaliation against medical professionals that try to report on it.
Back in 1986, Mr. Singer received a patient with a plethora of mental issues including alcoholism and a history of abuse. After having this patient meet with a physician, the two medical professionals decided that the best approach for treatment was family counseling. During family counseling, Mr. Singer found a dysfunctional family with all sorts of problems. After a couple of days, Mr. Singer had confirmed to him in front of multiple witnesses that the daughter in the family was being abused by the fath
er. As a mandated reporter, Dr. Singer was required by law to report his findings to proper authorities. By law, even a suspicion of child abuse must be reported.
Dr. Singer did what the law, medical ethics, and simple humanity required of him. As a result, his entire career and life have been ruined. Within a year, his patients began to dry up because rumors were spread throughout the town he practiced in that he was abusive and incompetent. Several months after these rumors began he was brought in front of the Pennsylvania Psychology Board on several violations. Mr. Singer had been a practicing since 1973 and he never had any complaints, and suddenly within two years of reporting this incident, he had multiple complaints against him. By 1991, the Psychology board suspended his license indefinitely and has still not returned to this day. In fact, he has only recently been able to reinstate his license in West Virginia. Even though he was supposed to remain anonymous when he reported the child abuse, his name was revealed. While no one can be sure how his name was leaked, the only organization that knew was the Department of Children's Services.
Furthermore, throughout his ordeal Mr. Singer reached out to nearly every single powerful politician in the state. He asked everyone from Arlen Spector, to Tom Ridge, to Rick Santorum, to both Bob Casey Jr. and Sr. for help. ( Here is a letter from a State Senator to then Governor Bob Casey Sr. explaining their concern about the way in which Dr. Singer was being targeted)None of them could or would help. Many of the politicians acknowledged the systemic corruption that infected the medical boards of Pennsylvania. Yet, after more than ten years of trying none of them have helped him retrieve his license. According to this letter written to Senator Spector's office, there is even evidence of malfeasance within the Attorney General's office of Pennsylvania. As I mentioned earlier, most of the politicians were significantly more gung ho before this damning police report came out. Even though this police report confirmed most everything that Dr. Singer had been telling them, their help was nearly non existent afterwards.
This case raises many troubling issues about not only the state of Pennsylvania but the entire United States. If Mr. Singer was targeted specifically because he reported child abuse how many other medical professionals have had such things happen in similar situations? If the entire political apparatus of Pennsylvania couldn't or wouldn't protect Mr. Singer from this sham peer review, who else didn't they protect? The alleged abuser was nothing more than a civil servant. Did he actually have enough pull within political circles or was he being protected by someone more powerful? Most of these questions have still not been answered. That's because the media has again been nearly non existent in reporting this corruption. Besides a report in 1992 ABC World News and a few stories by one reporter in Pennsylvania, Mr. Singer's story has never been told. As such, the obscene corruption that surrounds has never been told either.
Of course, the story is too long to tell all in one blog post. In part two, I will lay out the events leading up to Mr. Singer's license being suspended. In Part three, I will detail the manner in which each and every politician in Pennsylvania did or didn't help Mr. Singer, and in part four I will give my conclusions. Of course, you will have to wait for those in the next few days.
Here is part two.
This is a police report done by then Lieutenant Ivan Hooper of the Pennsylvania State Troopers.. ( Part II here) It is a police report that should have finally brought to an end a nightmare that lasted nearly ten years for Dr. Jim Singer. That's because this report confirmed everything that Dr. Singer had been saying for nearly ten years not only about a case of child abuse but systemic corruption at all levels of Pennsylvania government that tried to cover it up. Instead, following the release of this report much of the political help that Mr. Singer received from Pennsylvania politicians dried up. This police report and the case surrounding it open a Pandora's box to corruption in which the Department of Children's Services in Pennsylvania protected child predators and helped orchestrate retaliation against medical professionals that try to report on it.
Back in 1986, Mr. Singer received a patient with a plethora of mental issues including alcoholism and a history of abuse. After having this patient meet with a physician, the two medical professionals decided that the best approach for treatment was family counseling. During family counseling, Mr. Singer found a dysfunctional family with all sorts of problems. After a couple of days, Mr. Singer had confirmed to him in front of multiple witnesses that the daughter in the family was being abused by the fath
er. As a mandated reporter, Dr. Singer was required by law to report his findings to proper authorities. By law, even a suspicion of child abuse must be reported.
Dr. Singer did what the law, medical ethics, and simple humanity required of him. As a result, his entire career and life have been ruined. Within a year, his patients began to dry up because rumors were spread throughout the town he practiced in that he was abusive and incompetent. Several months after these rumors began he was brought in front of the Pennsylvania Psychology Board on several violations. Mr. Singer had been a practicing since 1973 and he never had any complaints, and suddenly within two years of reporting this incident, he had multiple complaints against him. By 1991, the Psychology board suspended his license indefinitely and has still not returned to this day. In fact, he has only recently been able to reinstate his license in West Virginia. Even though he was supposed to remain anonymous when he reported the child abuse, his name was revealed. While no one can be sure how his name was leaked, the only organization that knew was the Department of Children's Services.
Furthermore, throughout his ordeal Mr. Singer reached out to nearly every single powerful politician in the state. He asked everyone from Arlen Spector, to Tom Ridge, to Rick Santorum, to both Bob Casey Jr. and Sr. for help. ( Here is a letter from a State Senator to then Governor Bob Casey Sr. explaining their concern about the way in which Dr. Singer was being targeted)None of them could or would help. Many of the politicians acknowledged the systemic corruption that infected the medical boards of Pennsylvania. Yet, after more than ten years of trying none of them have helped him retrieve his license. According to this letter written to Senator Spector's office, there is even evidence of malfeasance within the Attorney General's office of Pennsylvania. As I mentioned earlier, most of the politicians were significantly more gung ho before this damning police report came out. Even though this police report confirmed most everything that Dr. Singer had been telling them, their help was nearly non existent afterwards.
This case raises many troubling issues about not only the state of Pennsylvania but the entire United States. If Mr. Singer was targeted specifically because he reported child abuse how many other medical professionals have had such things happen in similar situations? If the entire political apparatus of Pennsylvania couldn't or wouldn't protect Mr. Singer from this sham peer review, who else didn't they protect? The alleged abuser was nothing more than a civil servant. Did he actually have enough pull within political circles or was he being protected by someone more powerful? Most of these questions have still not been answered. That's because the media has again been nearly non existent in reporting this corruption. Besides a report in 1992 ABC World News and a few stories by one reporter in Pennsylvania, Mr. Singer's story has never been told. As such, the obscene corruption that surrounds has never been told either.
Of course, the story is too long to tell all in one blog post. In part two, I will lay out the events leading up to Mr. Singer's license being suspended. In Part three, I will detail the manner in which each and every politician in Pennsylvania did or didn't help Mr. Singer, and in part four I will give my conclusions. Of course, you will have to wait for those in the next few days.
Here is part two.
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