DEATH BY POISON

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22391, 11 April 1936, Page 15

DEATH BY POISON

• MARRIED MAN'S FATE NO WRONGFUL INTENT CHEMISTS AND DRUGS CRITICISM BY THE CORONER The decision that although the death of Sidney John Anderson had been caused by veronal and opium poisoning these were administered to alleviate suffering and not with any intent to kill was reached by Mr. Wyvern Wilson, S.M/, coroner, at the close of tho inquest on Thursday. Anderson was a motor engineer, aged 47, and married, and he died at the Auckland Hospital on February 17. " In tho course of his verdict tho coroner complained of tho delay that had occurred in bringing tho case on, emphasised that no person has a legal right to accelerate the death of another, commented on the methods of chemists in dispensing dangerous drugs, and stated that in cases of suspected poisoning it was the duty of the doctors concerned to report to the police before taking action. Detective-Sergeant Walsh was in ,charge of the inquiry on behalf of tho police, and Mr. Singer appeared for the widow, Eve Muriel Anderson. In the course of their evidence Dr. W. Gilmour and Dr. E. B. Gunson both agreed that Anderson had probably suffered great pain and Dr. Gilmour gave physiological reasons why ho must have done so. In answer to Mr. Singer, Dr. Gilmour agreed that Anderson might have died when ho did or possibly even earlier apart altogether from the medicines that were given. Medicines Taken

Continuing her evidence from the previous day,* Mrs. Anderson said her husband had had a bad night, on the Friday before his death. She did not Eee him take any powders. He was very low on the Saturday morning. The first medicine he took was a powder which he had a peculiar way of taking from a glass. At his request she sent for some noctal tablets, because he had not slept. She gave them to him, and he took three. Her husband must have had six noctal tablets altogether. She also gave him a dose of sleeping draught. When Dr. Hastings came he said her husband had only 24 hours to live, and he ordered him morphia tablets. She asked the doctor not to let her husband suffer. As soon as he had the morphia 'tablets he went into a coma from which he never came out. She gave him some brandy and water with a spoon because he seemed thirsty. After she?/ gave him a powder she put the same spoon back into the brandy, and that' was" how the spoon came to have barbitone on it.

Post-mortem Demanded In answer to a series of questions witness said there were seven powders for which she could not account. She knew at the hospital that her husband was dying, and she demanded a postmortem from the doctors. Detective-Sergeant Walsh: Have you ever told anyone that your husband was taking veronal?—No, I have never mentioned veronal. My husband was not taking /reronal. Answering Mr. Singer witness said that from Thursday, February 13, her husband was desperately ill and progressively getting worse. She did not sleep from the 13th until after her husband's death'on the 17th. Mr. Singer: You did not know, did you,, that there was any danger of accelerating your husband's death by anything you did?— No. Mrs. R. I. llickard, living in the same block of buildings as Mrs. Anderson, said Mr. Anderson looked to her like a roan dying of cancer. Mrs. Anderson was very attentive to her husband. Another neighbour, Mrs. L. F. King, gave evidence of seeing a very small tablet given to Anderson by his wife on the Saturday evening. She" did not eee any powder given. Evidence of Friends

Frederick Goflin, aged 18, a friend of the deceased, said he found Anderson much changed for the worse on the Saturday morning. He described the medicines he got at tho request of Mrs. Anderson, and said he had seen Mrs. Anderson giving her husband a powder. He had never seen Anderson taking powders himself. A former boarder with the Andersons, J. ,G. McLean, also said he had never seen Anderson actually taking a powder. An old friend of the deceased. W. J. ■' Westray, said he had played two games of draughts with him on the Friday evening before his death. There was a big change in his condition the next day. That night Anderson had a morphia tablet and a powder in water. He had been taking pov/ders for a week or Lwo previously. Detective-Sergeant Walsh said that many other people had been seen in connection with this matter, but their statements would be merely a repetition of what had been already said.

"I understand, Mr. Walsh, that veronal has 7 been placed on the register °f dangerous drugs?" said the coroner. Detective-Sergeant Walsh: I understand so, sir, from April 1 of this year, but I have not verified that. It is referred to in the Poisons Act of 1934, but I understand the regulations were not gazetted. They probably are in the Gazette now. Coroner's Comments "The investigation of the circumstances of the death oi this man has been rendered more difficult by the lapse of time." said the coroner. "It is now nearly two months since he died, an d I find that the memory of many of tho witnesses is defective. Many of them have told me that they cannot remember. It seems to me that although there was possible reason for delay as far as the evidence of the analyst was concerned, there was no reason why, as statements were made by many of these witnesses immediately after the death of this man, this evidence should not have been taken then. 1 think tho investigation has been rendered more difficult through the delay. 'Dr. Hastings time and again said he could not remember," continued tho coroner. "Well, in some cases I came to the conclusion that it was very surprising that lie could not remember, out perhaps the appointments on his Visit did not impress themselves on his memory /very much. There is the fact that many of the witnesses have said tney could not remember. . P e teetive-Ssrgeant Walsh: If I may interrupt, this evidence was on the mes of the statement obtained from "Un in the beginning.

Memory and Period The Coroner: There was no reason 7, y evidence should not have been sken immediately afterwards, and then he Coroner would have been in a better position to judge of the likeliood or otherwise of a lapse of memory. i, PPened only a week before one not place much reliance on the statement, " 1 cannot remember," but « it is a matter of two months earlier 18 much more difficult to decide. I a 'l Bofc say any more on that point.

Mr. Singer: I may say I have endeavoured to get— The Coroner: I do not wish to say any tnore on that, and I do not wish to be interrupted. "As to the facts," continued the coroner, " there is evidence that this man was suffering from cancer in a very advanced and marked degree. I feel no doubt in mv mind that the cancer had been growing and developing for some considerable time. It was not noticed in the course of two operations. One of them some months before was of such a nature that the doctors did not examine where the cancer was. He was operated on for the removal of the appendix, and no cancer was observed. The second operation was in the immediate vicinity of the cancer, and the surgeon tells mo it was obscured by the abscess and was unobservable. No doubt, the abscess being located in the proper course of slirgery, the remedial measures were taken after tho operation as quickly as possible, and no exploratorj' investigation was made. Alleviation of Suffering

" However, the cancer was thero no doubt, and 1 think that a week before his death it had advanced to such » stage that it was beyond tho aid of operative science. The post-mortem examination showed that it was very extensive. But of this I feel quite convinced from the evidence, particularly of Dr. Gunson, that the deceased would not have died from the cancer on Monday morning. The death would have been more lingering. He would have lasted much longer. " In accordance with the principles of law no person is permitted to accelerate —that is, wilfully and knowingly to accelerate—tho death of another person who is dying. I think this man was dying, but no person had a right in law to accelerate his death. Nqw the evidence caused me to think that the cause of his death was veronal and opium poisoning, but that it was associated with toxaemia arising from cancer of the bowel. I do not think that such veronal and opium had been administered with intent to kill. I think it was administered to alleviate suffering. The whole of the evidence leads me to suppose that it was administered for tho alleviation of suffering. Duty oi Doctors

" I find," said the coroner, " that death was caused by veronal and opium poisoning associated with toxaemia, arising from cancer of the bowel, such veronal and opium having been administered to alleviate suffering, and not with any intent to kill. " A chemist has told me," the coroner continued, " that chemists assume a discretion apparently as to tho variation of doctors' prescriptions for drugs in cases of cancer. Well, that is a very wrong state of affairs. It is not contemplated at all in the Dangerous Drugs Act, and if such a practice bi» general with chemists then it should cease.

•' Another matter which to my mind would be capable of very grave danger is what took place after the admission of this man to hospital. He was admitted to the hospital in a completely unconscious state, with a history of suspected veronal poisoning; and after his death and without reference to the police, a post-mortem examination was made. Exhibits) which have now been produced in evidence were moved away from where they were and sent away elsewhere. " I want to make it quite clear that in a suspected case of poisoning it is the duty of medical practitioners in charge immediately to report the case to the police, and to leave it to them to investigate. They are trained observers and trained investigators of exhibits that may be of importance. They are trained to observe so that those exhibits are not in any way mixed or lost, and it is essential that in all suspected poisoning cases the first persons to be communicated with are tho police."