BMJ  2008;336:1039 (10 May), doi:10.1136/bmj.39574.341285.DB

News

German doctor stands trial for forcibly administering emetic to police suspect who died

Ned Stafford

1 Hamburg

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

A doctor in Bremen, Germany, is on trial for negligent manslaughter in the death in 2004 of a suspected drug dealer in police custody. The suspect was forcibly given an emetic to retrieve cocaine capsules he had allegedly swallowed.

The man’s vomit entered his lungs, resulting in oxygen deficiency, while the doctor was present.

The procedure has subsequently been declared unlawful by the European Court of Human Rights, which in 2006 said it was a violation of Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which prohibits inhumane and degrading treatment.

But the doctor’s lawyer is claiming that the doctor was following guidelines that were in use at the time.

Thorsten Prange, a judge in Bremen District Court who also acts as court spokesman, said that if the 46 year old doctor is convicted he faces up to five years in prison or a fine that would be based . . . [Full text of this article]


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