Saving Meghan(55)

“No, I did not,” Nash answered with authority.

Zach did not believe her for one second.

The next person to take the stand was Dr. Peter Levine. He managed to stop fidgeting with his hands long enough to place one on the Bible and swear he’d tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth. The opposing attorney reviewed Dr. Levine’s exam of Meghan in great detail, including the questions he had used to determine she was a victim of medical child abuse. It was here that the opposing attorney introduced the term “Munchausen syndrome by proxy.”

“Did Meghan talk about the brother she lost to SIDS?” the attorney asked Dr. Levine.

A heavy pall settled over the room. Zach saw Becky’s head bow slightly.

Dr. Levine looked uncomfortable on the witness stand. “No, she did not. To be honest, I didn’t know.”

“Now that you do know about the Gerard baby, who died at around four months of age, does that influence your opinion of Meghan’s case?”

Levine glared at Becky for reasons Zach could not understand. If anything, he should have been sympathetic.

“It would make me even more certain of my diagnosis. The loss of a loved one, especially a child, can trigger subconscious fears which can then manifest as pediatric symptom falsification.”

“Could you state that in less clinical terms?”

“In the case of extreme grief, a mother can believe a child is sick, or make the child sick and try to get him or her well, as a way of healing a grievous wound from the past.”

“And is that your opinion of Mrs. Gerard and her relationship with Meghan?”

“Yes. Even more so now.”

To Zach’s ears, Levine’s testimony was like the Titanic brushing up against the iceberg. The ship had not yet sunk, but he knew it was headed in that direction.

When Ms. Leers got her chance to cross-examine, she strutted forward like a lioness coming upon a wounded gazelle.

“Dr. Levine, how long have you been a licensed physician?”

“I finished my residency last May.”

“So, not long?”

“I was a doctor when I graduated medical school six years ago.”

“So again, not a very long time,” Leers said.

“Objection, immaterial,” the opposing attorney announced.

“Your Honor, I’m attempting to show that Dr. Levine’s inexperience is what led him to ask leading, not open-ended, questions of Meghan Gerard, which opens the possibility of misdiagnosis.”

“Objection, that’s an unproven fact purported to be true.”

“If I may, Your Honor, have the opportunity to continue my line of questioning, I intend to show that Dr. Levine’s inexperienced questioning resulted in what I believe to be a misdiagnosis of medical child abuse. It’s my intention to show that the tragic loss of the Gerards’ first child has no bearing whatsoever on the health issues facing Meghan.”

The judge hesitated momentarily before answering. “Overruled. You may proceed.”

Leers straightened her suit jacket, a reset of sorts. “You spoke at length with Meghan about her views of her mother.”

“Yes,” Levine said.

“In the course of that conversation, you determined that Meghan harbored negative feelings about her mother.”

“I did.”

“You asked, and I quote here: ‘Because your mom makes you do things you don’t want to do?’ Are those your exact words?”

Leers had cited Levine’s statement—documented in Meghan’s medical record—from memory.

“Yes. That’s what I said.”

Again, Zach thought Levine looked and acted extra nervous. Perhaps it was just being on the witness stand, though Zach thought it more likely he knew the attorney had him dead to rights.

“Is that a standard question you would ask?”

“Yes.”

“Do you think that question is a bit leading? I’d go so far as to say unsophisticated.”

“No. I think the question helped me paint a picture of Meghan’s home life. It’s unlikely you find a smoking gun with these sorts of cases. It’s not like if they answer in a certain way, we can say for sure it’s a case of Munchausen by proxy.”

“And you have a great deal of experience determining Munchausen by proxy?”

“No, this would be my first case.”

“But you are sure there’s no smoking gun?”

“It’s called research,” he said.

“But you didn’t know the Gerards had previously lost a child?”

Levine shifted in his seat. “No, I did not.”

Zach resisted the urge to pump his fist in triumph.

“Do you think the leading manner in which you questioned Meghan led her to give you the answer you wanted her to give as opposed to what she was trying to say?”

“No.”

Ms. Leers went over Dr. Levine’s questions to Meghan for the court, taken from the affidavit. The more Zach heard, the angrier he became. There was no doubt in his mind that Levine’s questions had been incredibly na?ve, and could have confused Meghan in her fragile state.

“If Meghan had known one possible outcome could be her being placed in DCF custody, do you believe she would have given you the same answers to your questions?” Leers asked.