Process - Death of two patients: Charité doctor rejects accusations
In the trial over the death of two patients, the accused cardiologist from Berlin's Charité hospital has broken his silence and denied the accusations. Both patients were in an "acute dying process", the doctor explained to the Berlin Regional Court on Tuesday. He had administered a sedative to reduce suffering. He was certain that he had "not shortened the lives of the patients", a defense lawyer read out on the eighth day of the trial. He denied the allegations.
According to the indictment, the 56-year-old specialist in internal medicine allegedly killed a patient and a female patient (both 73) with overdoses of medication in a cardiology intensive care unit in 2021 and 2022. A 39-year-old nurse is also charged with aiding and abetting manslaughter in one case.
A young nurse started the proceedings with a tip-off as part of a kind of whistleblower system with trusted lawyers. Employees of the clinic who notice any inconsistencies can contact them in confidence.
The senior physician now explained that he could not understand the "alleged observations and feelings" of this nurse. He can only be accused of not having documented the administration of Propofol in the cases in question. He had injected the sedative to avoid pain and stress. Therapy to prolong life was no longer possible for either patient. "As a result, death must be allowed," a lawyer continued.
The doctor has been in custody since May 2023. He had already been released by Charité in August 2022. The public prosecutor's office had assumed double murder in its indictment. However, the regional court assessed the case differently at the opening of the trial and pointed out that there was only sufficient suspicion of manslaughter in each case, meaning that murder characteristics such as base motives and malice aforethought were not recognizable. The trial will continue this Wednesday.
Read also:
- The accusations against the cardiologist, who is currently in custody, involve allegations of manslaughter in the deaths of two patients at Berlin's Charité hospital in 2021 and 2022.
- The defense lawyer argued that the doctor had administered a sedative to reduce suffering during the patients' "deadly health conditions" and did not believe that he had shortened their lives.
- The 39-year-old nurse, also charged in the case, is accused of aiding and abetting manslaughter in one of the patient's deaths.
- The trial, which has been ongoing for eight days, will continue in Berlin's Regional Court this Wednesday, with the prosecutor focusing on the alleged criminal acts in the context of medicine and justice.
Source: www.stern.de
