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[FAINT INDISTINCT CHATTER]
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[ZIPPER UNZIPS]
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[SOFT DRAMATIC MUSIC]
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♪ ♪
5
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Looking like a veritable movie star.
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Don't know how I got
picked, Mr. Summers.
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Oh, you were our number
one choice, Janet.
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- See you out there.
- Here, Ma.
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Excuse me, Jerry.
10
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- Where do you want this?
- Oh, exam room.
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- Thanks.
- Okay.
12
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I feel bad asking,
13
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but do you think I could
talk with Dr. Duntsch?
14
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Oh, he's real busy. Can I do something?
15
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It's more of a doctor-patient thing.
16
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Definitely don't want
me handling that stuff.
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- I'll talk to him.
- Thank you, Jerry.
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Will you make sure your mom's
memorized on what she's saying?
19
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I don't want her getting distracted
20
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- with lights, camera, action.
- Yeah.
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Two reasons why patients
normally present
22
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to their doctors for pain
related to the spine.
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The first is related to the
peripheral nervous system.
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That's called radiculopathy.
25
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Now, normally, that type
of pain is associated
26
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- with depression or with...
- Yo, Chris.
27
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- ... degenerative changes in...
- Cut.
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[SIGHS]
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Okay, um, let's take a break.
30
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Knock out the patient's
portion. Come back.
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Good idea.
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Fuck me.
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I am so sorry.
34
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You're looking good. Feeling good?
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I thought it'd be more professional.
36
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Tell me what needs fixing,
Chrissy, anything.
37
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Kim's all over it.
38
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I know you're in the zone, but
Sarah wants to talk to you.
39
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Janet's daughter. Our patient?
40
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Oh, yeah, that's fine.
41
00:02:23,460 --> 00:02:25,080
Hey. Dr. Duntsch, how can I help you?
42
00:02:25,100 --> 00:02:26,860
Hi, Dr. Duntsch.
43
00:02:26,880 --> 00:02:30,921
I noticed something in my mom's scar.
44
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Like, blue peeking out,
like a piece of sponge.
45
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So I got some tweezers and...
46
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Oh, wow. You should not have done that.
47
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Oh, my God. What did I do?
48
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No, it's just a stitch. It's fine,
but... look, you should call me
49
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before you go digging around
in there again, okay?
50
00:02:51,220 --> 00:02:53,986
- I did call a few times.
- Quiet on set.
51
00:02:54,000 --> 00:02:55,620
- [SHUSHES]
- You ready, Jenny?
52
00:02:55,640 --> 00:02:59,920
Should I tell my own story?
Because this isn't my story.
53
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Janet, you look great today.
54
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Thank you so much for doing this.
55
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[WHISPERING]
56
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[DRAMATIC MUSIC]
57
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You did good.
58
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[QUIETLY] Yeah.
59
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Roll camera. And action.
60
00:03:29,260 --> 00:03:32,608
Dr. Duntsch is one great man.
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He is the best doctor I think
that you could ever go to,
62
00:03:37,750 --> 00:03:41,450
and if you're having
the problems that I had,
63
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you know, give him a call
because he'll fix you.
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- Synced & corrected by MementMori -
-- www.addic7ed.com --
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- _
- No God damn way.
66
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- Mr. Duntsch...
- Doctor.
67
00:03:59,870 --> 00:04:01,499
I don't think you appreciate
the position you're in.
68
00:04:01,500 --> 00:04:04,120
- Doctor.
- Dr. Duntsch,
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00:04:04,140 --> 00:04:05,839
I don't think you appreciate
the position you're in.
70
00:04:05,840 --> 00:04:07,720
No, I don't.
71
00:04:07,740 --> 00:04:11,380
I do not appreciate being
locked up in a cage
72
00:04:11,400 --> 00:04:13,943
like a dog for a year and a half.
73
00:04:13,960 --> 00:04:15,779
And I certainly do not
appreciate you telling me
74
00:04:15,780 --> 00:04:17,800
that my best bet going forward
75
00:04:17,820 --> 00:04:20,420
is not just to fire your asses
and hire real lawyers,
76
00:04:20,440 --> 00:04:21,740
but to ask for a continuance.
77
00:04:21,760 --> 00:04:24,868
I need to find someone
to testify on your behalf.
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00:04:24,880 --> 00:04:26,640
Put me on the stand.
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If anybody else tries
to describe what it is
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00:04:28,560 --> 00:04:30,751
that I do or how I do it,
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00:04:30,770 --> 00:04:32,619
they're just gonna end up
looking like a bunch of jerks.
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See, that right there is why
you can't take the stand.
83
00:04:36,120 --> 00:04:37,843
You're emotionally driven.
84
00:04:37,860 --> 00:04:40,930
And when you're emotional,
you can't control what you say.
85
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[LAUGHS]
86
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[GRUNTS]
87
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[LAUGHS SOFTLY]
88
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Try me.
89
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[SOFT TENSE MUSIC]
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♪ ♪
91
00:05:00,250 --> 00:05:01,950
[SIGHS]
92
00:05:04,320 --> 00:05:07,430
You are a drug-and
alcohol-addicted surgeon
93
00:05:07,450 --> 00:05:09,750
who was too impaired
to perform surgeries.
94
00:05:09,770 --> 00:05:11,048
Allegedly. None of that was...
95
00:05:11,049 --> 00:05:13,917
Like a drunk driver, which, by the way,
96
00:05:13,920 --> 00:05:15,961
- you have on your record, Mr. Duntsch.
- Doctor.
97
00:05:15,980 --> 00:05:18,172
No, you're no longer a doctor.
98
00:05:18,190 --> 00:05:20,799
- You had your license stripped.
- Temporarily.
99
00:05:20,810 --> 00:05:22,480
Not if we have anything to do with it.
100
00:05:22,500 --> 00:05:24,050
And how about that email?
101
00:05:24,070 --> 00:05:27,061
The one in which you're prepared
to become a cold-blooded killer.
102
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I never meant for that
to be taken literally...
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You wrote it.
104
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So it was just a coincidence
105
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that you wrote that email to your lover,
106
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who also happens to be your assistant,
107
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just prior to killing or
maiming over 33 patients?
108
00:05:38,420 --> 00:05:39,630
It's not my fault!
109
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The anesthesiologists and the nurses
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and the fat fucking patients...
111
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[SIGHS]
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Fire me, but know whoever
slides into this seat
113
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is gonna tell you a version
of the same thing.
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I am trying to keep you
115
00:06:00,780 --> 00:06:03,342
from spending the rest
of your life in prison.
116
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I don't want to.
117
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You've got my deposition,
and you've got my records.
118
00:06:10,680 --> 00:06:12,080
I don't have anything more to give.
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The judge ruled you have
to testify in front...
120
00:06:14,240 --> 00:06:15,469
How could the emails not be true?
121
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He sent them to me.
122
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The defense has a right
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to cross-examine you and confirm that.
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[SOFT UNEASY MUSIC]
125
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♪ ♪
126
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You know, I thought the other
side of the world was far enough.
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They don't want me there
because of the emails.
128
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They wanna know about us,
about our relationship.
129
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[SNIFFLES]
130
00:06:52,160 --> 00:06:53,892
[SIGHS] What are they gonna ask?
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If it were me,
132
00:06:57,380 --> 00:07:00,000
I would remind them as often as I could
133
00:07:00,020 --> 00:07:02,033
that you two were sleeping together
134
00:07:02,040 --> 00:07:03,800
to establish a conflict of interest.
135
00:07:03,820 --> 00:07:05,904
You mean to call me a whore
who can't be trusted?
136
00:07:05,920 --> 00:07:09,199
I know you're trying to leave
this all behind, Ms. Morgan,
137
00:07:09,210 --> 00:07:11,560
but there's only one way to do that.
138
00:07:13,440 --> 00:07:14,660
[SIGHS DEEPLY]
139
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This is hostile. She's being hostile.
140
00:07:17,100 --> 00:07:18,500
Do you need her to testify?
141
00:07:18,520 --> 00:07:21,545
I do if I wanna introduce that email.
142
00:07:21,560 --> 00:07:23,200
Can you prove your
case without the email?
143
00:07:23,210 --> 00:07:25,120
Precedent-setting is precedent-setting,
144
00:07:25,140 --> 00:07:27,301
Dr. Henderson. No one's
ever done this before.
145
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Gotta assume every little bit helps.
146
00:07:29,540 --> 00:07:31,100
She's been through enough.
147
00:07:31,120 --> 00:07:32,649
What the hell are you
talking about, Bob?
148
00:07:32,650 --> 00:07:34,580
She was in the O.R.
She was in the consult.
149
00:07:34,600 --> 00:07:36,273
She had to know what was going on.
150
00:07:36,290 --> 00:07:38,153
You ask me, she hasn't
been through enough.
151
00:07:38,170 --> 00:07:41,113
What about questioning his
training and the investments?
152
00:07:41,130 --> 00:07:43,692
And we have the hospitals moving
him around. What? What?
153
00:07:43,710 --> 00:07:45,480
We brought charges of elder abuse.
154
00:07:45,500 --> 00:07:46,880
The only way to prove that
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is to prove that he was trained well
156
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and that he knew what he was doing,
157
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the whole time, he knew
he was going to harm her.
158
00:07:52,630 --> 00:07:53,710
Well, what about the drugs?
159
00:07:53,720 --> 00:07:55,123
That would be helpful, but...
160
00:07:55,140 --> 00:07:57,251
Fine, fantastic. Drag
Kayla Gibson in here.
161
00:07:57,270 --> 00:07:59,880
Unless Ms. Gibson knew he
was high and was with him
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00:07:59,900 --> 00:08:02,461
in surgery that day, it's inadmissible.
163
00:08:02,480 --> 00:08:04,463
- This is ridiculous.
- No, it's not.
164
00:08:04,480 --> 00:08:07,931
You came to me to help you stop Duntsch.
165
00:08:07,950 --> 00:08:09,301
We have to choose.
166
00:08:09,320 --> 00:08:10,600
If he's our goal,
167
00:08:10,620 --> 00:08:13,771
then we have to focus
on him and only him.
168
00:08:13,790 --> 00:08:15,940
[TENSE MUSIC]
169
00:08:15,960 --> 00:08:18,143
State, call your first witness.
170
00:08:18,160 --> 00:08:19,160
Drew Sweeney.
171
00:08:19,170 --> 00:08:20,562
- Joe Padua.
- Harold Brennan.
172
00:08:20,580 --> 00:08:22,653
- Earl Burke.
- Elaine Johnson.
173
00:08:22,670 --> 00:08:23,690
Henry Aldrich.
174
00:08:23,710 --> 00:08:25,609
- Cindy Tremblay.
- Stan Novak.
175
00:08:25,620 --> 00:08:27,743
Would you tell us a
little about yourself?
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00:08:27,760 --> 00:08:29,574
I'm 41.
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00:08:29,590 --> 00:08:33,158
I work for the Collin County
Medical Examiner's Office.
178
00:08:33,170 --> 00:08:34,660
I worked for a pool company.
179
00:08:34,680 --> 00:08:38,124
My wife, Shelley, was an
elementary education teacher.
180
00:08:38,140 --> 00:08:40,671
Dorothy and I were married 46 years.
181
00:08:40,690 --> 00:08:43,502
Two kids, nine grandkids.
182
00:08:43,520 --> 00:08:46,046
Commercial construction project manager.
183
00:08:46,060 --> 00:08:47,881
Started driving trucks in '98.
184
00:08:47,900 --> 00:08:50,223
Two children... both had better
be in school right now.
185
00:08:50,240 --> 00:08:52,052
I'm an air conditioner contractor.
186
00:08:52,070 --> 00:08:55,305
What were your symptoms
prior to seeing Dr. Duntsch?
187
00:08:55,320 --> 00:08:57,683
- Light back pain.
- Lower back pain.
188
00:08:57,700 --> 00:08:59,476
We were decorating the Christmas tree,
189
00:08:59,490 --> 00:09:00,811
and Shelley missed a rung.
190
00:09:00,830 --> 00:09:04,600
- Neck pain.
- Pain in the neck and numb pinky.
191
00:09:04,620 --> 00:09:05,649
Numbness.
192
00:09:05,660 --> 00:09:07,401
- Tingling in my finger.
- Back pain.
193
00:09:07,420 --> 00:09:09,528
Hard to be a mom when
you can't pick anything up.
194
00:09:09,540 --> 00:09:12,520
Broke my back. Motorcycle accident.
195
00:09:12,540 --> 00:09:14,908
How did you hear about Dr. Duntsch?
196
00:09:14,920 --> 00:09:16,451
- My doctor.
- Family doctor.
197
00:09:16,470 --> 00:09:18,164
Website called Best Docs.
198
00:09:18,180 --> 00:09:20,373
Baylor Medical website. Five stars.
199
00:09:20,390 --> 00:09:22,440
Seemed like he knew what
he was talking about.
200
00:09:22,460 --> 00:09:24,840
He told us he was gonna fix her.
201
00:09:24,860 --> 00:09:26,551
That's all we needed to know.
202
00:09:26,570 --> 00:09:28,343
Arrogant.
203
00:09:28,360 --> 00:09:30,520
Told me he was the
best in the metroplex.
204
00:09:30,540 --> 00:09:33,552
So it's the day of the surgery.
205
00:09:33,570 --> 00:09:35,679
I had second thoughts that day.
206
00:09:35,690 --> 00:09:37,220
My understanding was my surgery
207
00:09:37,240 --> 00:09:40,300
was supposed to last a couple of hours.
208
00:09:40,320 --> 00:09:41,727
It took four.
209
00:09:41,740 --> 00:09:43,920
When you woke up from surgery,
210
00:09:43,940 --> 00:09:45,314
what was that like?
211
00:09:45,330 --> 00:09:47,340
A nightmare.
212
00:09:47,360 --> 00:09:49,901
I woke up in a nightmare,
213
00:09:49,920 --> 00:09:51,920
tubes coming out of everywhere.
214
00:09:51,940 --> 00:09:54,573
Feeding tubes, drain tubes.
215
00:09:54,590 --> 00:09:57,701
I couldn't move, and the pain...
216
00:09:57,720 --> 00:09:59,954
They were pumping me full of blood,
217
00:09:59,970 --> 00:10:01,455
and I didn't know why.
218
00:10:01,470 --> 00:10:03,874
I was sore. I hurt.
219
00:10:03,880 --> 00:10:05,792
- I was worse.
- Couldn't move,
220
00:10:05,810 --> 00:10:08,378
and my wife told me he'd found a tumor
221
00:10:08,390 --> 00:10:10,593
and had to abort the surgery.
222
00:10:10,610 --> 00:10:13,000
It turns out it was a piece
of my neck muscle.
223
00:10:13,020 --> 00:10:16,678
Every bone hurt. I was crying.
224
00:10:16,690 --> 00:10:19,348
I'm sober, so I can't take the meds.
225
00:10:19,360 --> 00:10:21,016
She never woke up.
226
00:10:21,030 --> 00:10:23,441
I went home. I laid around.
227
00:10:23,460 --> 00:10:25,180
Wasn't eating or drinking anything
228
00:10:25,200 --> 00:10:27,314
'cause of the sore throat.
229
00:10:27,330 --> 00:10:28,940
I remember being like I was a baby.
230
00:10:28,960 --> 00:10:30,984
You know, like a baby who
can't hold himself up.
231
00:10:31,000 --> 00:10:33,000
First thing that went through my mind:
232
00:10:33,020 --> 00:10:34,363
what's he done to me?
233
00:10:34,380 --> 00:10:37,574
He looked at the incision
and said everything was fine.
234
00:10:37,590 --> 00:10:39,160
He kept repeating himself.
235
00:10:39,180 --> 00:10:40,499
He kept saying that what was wrong
236
00:10:40,500 --> 00:10:42,079
wasn't related to the surgery.
237
00:10:42,090 --> 00:10:43,940
I knew there was something
wrong with this guy.
238
00:10:43,960 --> 00:10:46,375
Sorry, man. You looked high as a kite.
239
00:10:46,390 --> 00:10:48,040
- Objection.
- Sustained.
240
00:10:48,070 --> 00:10:49,795
Has this changed your life?
241
00:10:49,800 --> 00:10:51,480
I walk with a limp.
242
00:10:51,500 --> 00:10:54,049
I have trouble with incontinence,
243
00:10:54,060 --> 00:10:55,634
erectile dysfunction.
244
00:10:55,640 --> 00:10:56,820
I can't sing.
245
00:10:59,880 --> 00:11:01,680
Not that I was ever a good singer,
246
00:11:01,700 --> 00:11:05,811
but that's just an everyday reminder.
247
00:11:05,830 --> 00:11:07,940
She was the love of my life.
248
00:11:10,920 --> 00:11:13,100
It's hard to get over a broken heart.
249
00:11:13,120 --> 00:11:16,574
Just living one day at a
time, just like recovery.
250
00:11:16,590 --> 00:11:19,331
I can't play with my
children like I used to.
251
00:11:19,350 --> 00:11:22,454
I learned ways to control the pain,
252
00:11:22,470 --> 00:11:24,955
mostly through prayer and meditation.
253
00:11:24,970 --> 00:11:28,423
I sit in a recliner, watch TV,
254
00:11:28,440 --> 00:11:31,837
a lot of medicine, antidepressants.
255
00:11:31,840 --> 00:11:33,560
I miss her.
256
00:11:35,760 --> 00:11:38,050
She was...
257
00:11:38,070 --> 00:11:43,306
she was a very... very good woman.
258
00:11:44,700 --> 00:11:47,140
And that's all I can say.
259
00:11:49,390 --> 00:11:51,920
Can you tell us how old you are?
260
00:11:51,940 --> 00:11:53,960
70.
261
00:11:53,980 --> 00:11:57,700
And what did you do for a living?
262
00:11:57,720 --> 00:12:00,310
I was a teacher's aide,
263
00:12:00,330 --> 00:12:04,480
and then I worked in
physical therapy for a bit.
264
00:12:04,500 --> 00:12:06,747
Ironic.
265
00:12:08,020 --> 00:12:10,680
What took you to Christopher Duntsch?
266
00:12:10,700 --> 00:12:13,600
I had back pain for years,
267
00:12:13,620 --> 00:12:18,280
and it radiated to the end of my foot.
268
00:12:18,300 --> 00:12:21,500
And I tried all the treatments.
269
00:12:21,520 --> 00:12:24,893
Steroid shots, PT.
270
00:12:24,910 --> 00:12:26,475
Nothing worked.
271
00:12:26,490 --> 00:12:28,520
Before you met the defendant,
272
00:12:28,540 --> 00:12:30,064
had you had surgery?
273
00:12:30,080 --> 00:12:32,111
Mm-hmm. 2008.
274
00:12:32,130 --> 00:12:33,482
A laminectomy.
275
00:12:33,500 --> 00:12:37,701
It helped for a number of years,
276
00:12:37,720 --> 00:12:42,623
but it didn't last and then
my pain management team
277
00:12:42,640 --> 00:12:44,700
referred me to Dr. Duntsch.
278
00:12:44,720 --> 00:12:48,455
How did you feel going into the surgery?
279
00:12:48,470 --> 00:12:53,200
Fine. Good.
280
00:12:53,220 --> 00:12:57,400
I walked into the hospital happy,
281
00:12:57,420 --> 00:13:01,920
and I was thinking,
"This is gonna fix it."
282
00:13:01,940 --> 00:13:05,972
And how did you feel when you woke up?
283
00:13:07,480 --> 00:13:09,960
I was in pain.
284
00:13:09,980 --> 00:13:12,580
[DISQUIETING MUSIC]
285
00:13:12,600 --> 00:13:15,816
I was in pain,
286
00:13:15,830 --> 00:13:18,420
and no one could tell me
what was wrong with me
287
00:13:18,440 --> 00:13:21,113
until Dr. Henderson.
288
00:13:21,130 --> 00:13:27,260
He said that he thought that the
fusion was improperly placed,
289
00:13:27,280 --> 00:13:32,461
and that something was
pressing against a nerve.
290
00:13:32,480 --> 00:13:35,780
He said he didn't want
to wait to operate on me,
291
00:13:35,800 --> 00:13:38,171
so they rushed me in.
292
00:13:38,190 --> 00:13:41,842
What happened after Dr.
Henderson operated on you?
293
00:13:41,860 --> 00:13:45,101
The pain was much better, and I could...
294
00:13:45,120 --> 00:13:48,523
I could move my right foot a bit,
295
00:13:48,540 --> 00:13:50,520
but not my left.
296
00:13:50,540 --> 00:13:54,440
So prior to surgery with
Christopher Duntsch,
297
00:13:54,470 --> 00:13:59,484
you had pain, but you
could still live life.
298
00:14:01,100 --> 00:14:02,800
And now?
299
00:14:05,520 --> 00:14:07,120
I wish I could go back to the days
300
00:14:07,140 --> 00:14:09,913
before I met Christopher Duntsch.
301
00:14:09,930 --> 00:14:13,582
[UNSETTLING MUSIC]
302
00:14:13,600 --> 00:14:16,600
[FAINT INDISTINCT CHATTER]
303
00:14:22,580 --> 00:14:25,340
Would you please introduce
yourself to the jury?
304
00:14:25,360 --> 00:14:27,260
Randall Parker Kirby.
305
00:14:27,280 --> 00:14:30,750
I went to Rice undergrad.
Baylor for medical school.
306
00:14:30,770 --> 00:14:33,935
Stayed at Baylor for my five-year
general surgery residency
307
00:14:33,950 --> 00:14:36,146
as well as my two-year
vascular surgery fellowship.
308
00:14:36,150 --> 00:14:40,000
I have privileges at every
major hospital in Dallas,
309
00:14:40,020 --> 00:14:42,380
including Baylor, Medical City Dallas,
310
00:14:42,400 --> 00:14:43,862
Medical City Children's,
311
00:14:43,880 --> 00:14:47,649
Methodist, Dallas Medical, Presbyterian,
312
00:14:47,650 --> 00:14:50,480
and approximately 40
other smaller hospitals
313
00:14:50,510 --> 00:14:53,705
and outpatient surgery centers
here in the metroplex.
314
00:14:53,720 --> 00:14:58,293
My area of expertise is
anterior spinal access.
315
00:14:58,310 --> 00:15:00,640
I work with most of the neurosurgical
316
00:15:00,660 --> 00:15:03,844
and orthopedic spine
surgeons here in DFW.
317
00:15:03,860 --> 00:15:08,000
I open up the chest and the
abdomen so they can correct
318
00:15:08,020 --> 00:15:10,974
whatever deformity they need
to correct in the front.
319
00:15:10,990 --> 00:15:16,481
I perform between two to four
of these operations per day.
320
00:15:16,500 --> 00:15:18,800
Five... call it six days a week.
321
00:15:18,820 --> 00:15:22,863
I do hernias, gallbladders,
322
00:15:22,880 --> 00:15:25,487
blockages of the legs and
the neck arteries, anyone?
323
00:15:25,500 --> 00:15:30,170
But my area of expertise and
the chapters I've published
324
00:15:30,190 --> 00:15:32,077
have all been on anterior spine access.
325
00:15:32,090 --> 00:15:34,000
And were you called in on a case
326
00:15:34,020 --> 00:15:36,211
regarding a patient named Joe Padua?
327
00:15:36,230 --> 00:15:40,360
Yeah, he works with the company
that takes care of my pool.
328
00:15:40,380 --> 00:15:42,760
I was asked to come in, lend a hand.
329
00:15:42,780 --> 00:15:44,506
It seemed nobody else was available.
330
00:15:44,520 --> 00:15:45,548
Available?
331
00:15:45,560 --> 00:15:46,931
Nobody wanted to work with him.
332
00:15:46,940 --> 00:15:48,080
Objection.
333
00:15:48,110 --> 00:15:49,479
The witness has no way of knowing that.
334
00:15:49,480 --> 00:15:50,780
[CHUCKLES] Oh, I do.
335
00:15:50,800 --> 00:15:53,049
- Sustained.
- Eh.
336
00:15:53,050 --> 00:15:56,280
Did you know Dr. Duntsch
prior to this surgery?
337
00:15:56,310 --> 00:15:58,981
I met him one time before
we had a conversation.
338
00:15:59,000 --> 00:16:03,040
I was scrubbing in on a case,
and he tried to convince me
339
00:16:03,070 --> 00:16:06,236
that he was the best
spine surgeon in town.
340
00:16:07,000 --> 00:16:09,910
I found the conversation disturbing.
341
00:16:09,930 --> 00:16:12,704
I mean, sure, most surgeons
are superior sons of guns,
342
00:16:12,720 --> 00:16:14,413
some would even say yours truly,
343
00:16:14,430 --> 00:16:17,001
but this guy was next level.
344
00:16:17,020 --> 00:16:19,501
I mean, he tried to tell me
that all the surgeries in Dallas
345
00:16:19,520 --> 00:16:21,167
were being performed incorrectly.
346
00:16:22,320 --> 00:16:25,510
And what did you observe
during your operation with him?
347
00:16:25,530 --> 00:16:28,340
An anterior lumbar fusion at L5-S1
348
00:16:28,360 --> 00:16:31,700
is about the easiest procedure
a spine surgeon can perform,
349
00:16:31,720 --> 00:16:33,683
and he just struggled.
350
00:16:33,700 --> 00:16:35,239
I mean, he was functioning at the level
351
00:16:35,240 --> 00:16:37,983
of a first-or second-year resident.
352
00:16:38,000 --> 00:16:40,814
Instead of using a scalpel
to remove the disc,
353
00:16:40,830 --> 00:16:44,315
he just started grabbing at it
with a double-action rongeur.
354
00:16:46,040 --> 00:16:49,050
All right, imagine, instead
of using a pizza slicer
355
00:16:49,060 --> 00:16:51,994
to divide and conquer your
extra-large pepperoni,
356
00:16:52,010 --> 00:16:55,453
you went after it with a
pair of lockjaw pliers.
357
00:16:55,470 --> 00:16:57,912
Not appetizing, right?
358
00:16:57,930 --> 00:17:01,180
Did it appear to you that
there was more blood loss
359
00:17:01,200 --> 00:17:04,003
- than there should be?
- When he was taking the disc out,
360
00:17:04,020 --> 00:17:05,631
he took off a bit of bone
361
00:17:05,650 --> 00:17:08,673
from the bottom of
the L5 vertebral body.
362
00:17:08,680 --> 00:17:12,260
In surgical parlance,
he violated the endplate.
363
00:17:12,280 --> 00:17:14,641
Very difficult to do in healthy bone.
364
00:17:14,660 --> 00:17:16,431
He did the same thing to the sacrum.
365
00:17:16,450 --> 00:17:18,660
When you start chewing into bone,
366
00:17:18,680 --> 00:17:19,854
you get a lot of bleeding.
367
00:17:19,870 --> 00:17:23,861
It's not easy to stop bleeding
when it's coming from bone.
368
00:17:23,880 --> 00:17:26,357
You're just really not
supposed to do that.
369
00:17:26,370 --> 00:17:28,735
What are you supposed to do?
370
00:17:28,750 --> 00:17:30,920
Curet off the cartilage.
371
00:17:30,940 --> 00:17:32,783
A curet is like a scraper.
372
00:17:32,800 --> 00:17:34,491
You scrape off all the cartilage
373
00:17:34,510 --> 00:17:35,920
so you can get a proper fusion,
374
00:17:35,940 --> 00:17:37,820
and then heal bone to bone.
375
00:17:37,840 --> 00:17:40,003
When did you leave the surgery?
376
00:17:40,020 --> 00:17:43,780
Midway, I was called into a
previously scheduled operation.
377
00:17:43,800 --> 00:17:47,253
- Grudgingly.
- Grudgingly. Why grudgingly?
378
00:17:47,270 --> 00:17:49,881
[SOFT TENSE MUSIC]
379
00:17:49,900 --> 00:17:52,973
♪ ♪
380
00:17:52,990 --> 00:17:56,393
He was the neurosurgeon.
He was in charge.
381
00:17:56,410 --> 00:17:57,974
I did my job.
382
00:17:57,990 --> 00:18:03,440
I did my best to guide
him, and then I left.
383
00:18:04,390 --> 00:18:08,140
In hindsight, I suppose I could
have dragged him out of there.
384
00:18:08,170 --> 00:18:11,736
If there's ever a next time, I will.
385
00:18:11,750 --> 00:18:14,580
[FAINT INDISTINCT CHATTER]
386
00:18:15,420 --> 00:18:18,030
- State passes.
- Defense.
387
00:18:26,680 --> 00:18:30,380
You stated that Dr. Duntsch
was operating at the level
388
00:18:30,400 --> 00:18:33,258
of a first-or second-year
surgical resident.
389
00:18:33,270 --> 00:18:36,931
How many years does a neurosurgical
resident typically study?
390
00:18:36,950 --> 00:18:38,500
Six.
391
00:18:38,520 --> 00:18:40,811
And would that include his training?
392
00:18:40,830 --> 00:18:43,240
[LAUGHS SOFTLY] Or lack thereof.
393
00:18:45,030 --> 00:18:47,560
Or lack thereof.
394
00:18:50,240 --> 00:18:51,526
Well said.
395
00:18:51,530 --> 00:18:54,279
Defense passes the witness.
396
00:18:54,290 --> 00:18:57,198
We stand in recess until tomorrow.
397
00:18:57,210 --> 00:19:00,201
[INDISTINCT CHATTER]
398
00:19:00,220 --> 00:19:02,370
[DRAMATIC MUSIC]
399
00:19:02,390 --> 00:19:10,086
♪ ♪
400
00:19:12,380 --> 00:19:15,670
We can shift the blame to your training.
401
00:19:18,660 --> 00:19:21,260
My training was some of
the best in the world.
402
00:19:21,280 --> 00:19:24,517
No, it was some of the worst.
403
00:19:25,680 --> 00:19:27,260
What are you talking about?
404
00:19:27,280 --> 00:19:29,460
We'll say you slipped
through the cracks.
405
00:19:29,480 --> 00:19:31,139
You were told you were
good enough to graduate,
406
00:19:31,140 --> 00:19:32,569
but you didn't have
enough training hours.
407
00:19:32,570 --> 00:19:35,163
Your financial ties to Skadden
408
00:19:35,180 --> 00:19:37,460
and the rest of the investors
blinded them to your...
409
00:19:37,480 --> 00:19:38,656
- to your flaws.
- Stop.
410
00:19:38,670 --> 00:19:41,451
The entire medical community of
Dallas should have recognized it.
411
00:19:41,470 --> 00:19:44,380
Instead, they simply moved
you from hospital to hospital.
412
00:19:44,400 --> 00:19:48,000
You are erasing my legacy.
413
00:19:49,680 --> 00:19:51,500
Legacy?
414
00:19:51,520 --> 00:19:55,131
Christopher, you're done.
415
00:19:55,150 --> 00:19:58,160
- Fuck you. Fuck you.
- You'll never practice medicine again.
416
00:19:58,180 --> 00:20:00,439
And why aren't you pushing
back on any of their witnesses?
417
00:20:00,440 --> 00:20:01,936
How exactly would I do that, Chris?
418
00:20:01,950 --> 00:20:03,890
I don't know. That's your job, isn't it?
419
00:20:03,910 --> 00:20:04,920
You break them down.
420
00:20:04,930 --> 00:20:06,079
- You tell them they're wrong.
- Chris...
421
00:20:06,080 --> 00:20:08,650
You get them to admit...
admit whatever it was
422
00:20:08,670 --> 00:20:10,659
that they lied to me about
that messed up their surgery.
423
00:20:10,660 --> 00:20:13,380
- Chris...
- You do something to defend me.
424
00:20:13,400 --> 00:20:14,817
The only witness,
425
00:20:14,820 --> 00:20:16,570
the only defense that I have right now
426
00:20:16,590 --> 00:20:18,571
is gonna speak to your narcissism.
427
00:20:20,080 --> 00:20:22,540
Our best bet is to prove
428
00:20:22,560 --> 00:20:24,400
that you never should
have practiced medicine.
429
00:20:24,420 --> 00:20:27,120
Give me this. Please give me this,
430
00:20:27,140 --> 00:20:29,519
and we might be able to save you.
431
00:20:29,520 --> 00:20:32,100
[SIGHS]
432
00:21:21,760 --> 00:21:24,220
Thanks for being here
today, Mr. Summers.
433
00:21:24,240 --> 00:21:28,120
Can you tell us how
you know Mr. Duntsch?
434
00:21:30,880 --> 00:21:33,000
We were classmates.
435
00:21:33,020 --> 00:21:35,320
Went to high school together.
436
00:21:35,330 --> 00:21:36,620
Lost touch.
437
00:21:36,640 --> 00:21:40,201
Reconnected when he returned
to medical school in Memphis.
438
00:21:40,220 --> 00:21:43,580
What led you to have
surgery with Mr. Duntsch?
439
00:21:43,600 --> 00:21:47,410
Sharp, stabbing-like
sticking pain in my neck.
440
00:21:47,430 --> 00:21:48,751
Numbness.
441
00:21:48,770 --> 00:21:50,455
Did he explain the risks?
442
00:21:50,470 --> 00:21:52,332
He advised it was dangerous.
443
00:21:53,350 --> 00:21:55,543
He promised to take care of me.
444
00:21:55,550 --> 00:21:59,547
What did you do the
night before the surgery?
445
00:22:08,840 --> 00:22:13,100
Watched a game. Basketball.
446
00:22:13,120 --> 00:22:16,160
Then I went to bed around 10:00.
447
00:22:16,180 --> 00:22:19,776
May... maybe more like 11:30.
448
00:22:20,720 --> 00:22:24,730
What's the first thing you
remember after the surgery?
449
00:22:26,440 --> 00:22:29,440
I could barely move.
450
00:22:29,470 --> 00:22:35,100
I just kind of started
freaking out, hollering.
451
00:22:35,120 --> 00:22:36,584
Wanting to know what was going on.
452
00:22:36,600 --> 00:22:39,921
And did Chris come and talk to you?
453
00:22:39,940 --> 00:22:44,181
Not at first, but eventually.
454
00:22:44,200 --> 00:22:47,380
And then they took me
in for a second surgery,
455
00:22:47,400 --> 00:22:50,020
and when I got out,
I couldn't move at all.
456
00:22:50,040 --> 00:22:53,030
Do you remember making
a statement in the ICU
457
00:22:53,050 --> 00:22:55,580
that you and Chris were
doing cocaine together
458
00:22:55,600 --> 00:22:57,280
the night prior to surgery?
459
00:23:04,940 --> 00:23:07,920
I wanted to see him.
460
00:23:07,940 --> 00:23:12,745
He wasn't coming around,
and I... I was mad.
461
00:23:12,760 --> 00:23:15,461
I made it up.
462
00:23:15,480 --> 00:23:18,383
He was my doctor.
463
00:23:18,400 --> 00:23:22,801
I wanted to know why I couldn't
move. He was in charge.
464
00:23:22,820 --> 00:23:25,049
He wouldn't come see me.
465
00:23:26,140 --> 00:23:28,460
And he was your friend?
466
00:23:31,570 --> 00:23:34,500
Let the record show the witness nodded.
467
00:23:34,520 --> 00:23:36,811
He was your best friend?
468
00:23:38,660 --> 00:23:41,190
Let the record show the witness nodded.
469
00:23:42,850 --> 00:23:45,445
And he abandoned you?
470
00:23:45,460 --> 00:23:48,453
[PENSIVE MUSIC]
471
00:23:48,470 --> 00:23:49,783
♪ ♪
472
00:23:49,800 --> 00:23:51,600
The State passes the witness.
473
00:23:59,020 --> 00:24:03,210
I'm terribly sorry for
what happened to you.
474
00:24:05,860 --> 00:24:10,223
You and Chris played
football together, yes?
475
00:24:10,240 --> 00:24:11,260
That's right.
476
00:24:11,280 --> 00:24:14,393
And did you have some victories
477
00:24:14,410 --> 00:24:16,601
and some not-so-great games?
478
00:24:18,590 --> 00:24:19,729
Yeah.
479
00:24:19,740 --> 00:24:22,071
And how did Chris deal with those games?
480
00:24:22,090 --> 00:24:26,235
Did he always go in and
always try to do his best?
481
00:24:27,500 --> 00:24:28,571
Yeah.
482
00:24:30,480 --> 00:24:33,540
Were you aware that he was
in a fellowship program
483
00:24:33,560 --> 00:24:35,828
studying under Dr. Geoffrey Skadden?
484
00:24:35,840 --> 00:24:37,200
Yes.
485
00:24:37,220 --> 00:24:39,930
And from your understanding,
was it very important,
486
00:24:39,950 --> 00:24:42,126
what he was doing for Dr. Skadden?
487
00:24:44,070 --> 00:24:45,129
Yeah.
488
00:24:45,140 --> 00:24:47,660
And things like doing surgeries
489
00:24:47,680 --> 00:24:51,440
while he was there under
Skadden's supervision,
490
00:24:51,460 --> 00:24:54,684
that was important to becoming
a successful surgeon?
491
00:24:54,700 --> 00:24:56,015
Yeah.
492
00:24:56,030 --> 00:24:59,233
Did you ever see Chris
get out of obligations
493
00:24:59,250 --> 00:25:00,895
that he had at school?
494
00:25:02,430 --> 00:25:04,234
I felt that way sometimes.
495
00:25:04,250 --> 00:25:06,241
Can you give us an example of that?
496
00:25:06,260 --> 00:25:09,953
Like, something that you saw
or that made you think that?
497
00:25:09,970 --> 00:25:13,520
I can just remember maybe
making a phone call to a doctor,
498
00:25:13,540 --> 00:25:15,660
maybe Dr. Skadden or another doctor,
499
00:25:15,680 --> 00:25:19,413
to say that he had stuff
to do for DiscGenics.
500
00:25:19,430 --> 00:25:25,620
And I can remember them let
him out whatever he had to do.
501
00:25:25,650 --> 00:25:27,763
When you would find out that Dr. Skadden
502
00:25:27,780 --> 00:25:29,880
and/or some other doctor
would just excuse him
503
00:25:29,900 --> 00:25:33,135
from doing things at school
in lieu of staying in the lab,
504
00:25:33,140 --> 00:25:34,379
I mean, did you think
that was a problem?
505
00:25:34,380 --> 00:25:35,900
I never knew that,
506
00:25:35,920 --> 00:25:38,891
you know, what was
happening, and so I... I...
507
00:25:38,900 --> 00:25:41,580
I don't know what he was missing
or where he was going.
508
00:25:41,600 --> 00:25:44,522
- So I... I don't know.
- Okay.
509
00:25:44,540 --> 00:25:48,440
Well, did you ever meet
any one of his classmates,
510
00:25:48,460 --> 00:25:51,380
or anyone who went to the University
of Tennessee Med School,
511
00:25:51,400 --> 00:25:52,940
and talk to them about the rigors
512
00:25:52,960 --> 00:25:56,033
of completing medical school
and completing that fellowship?
513
00:25:57,120 --> 00:25:58,450
I don't remember.
514
00:25:58,470 --> 00:26:00,570
You don't remember anyone saying
515
00:26:00,590 --> 00:26:03,630
that he only got through medical school
516
00:26:03,650 --> 00:26:04,959
because Skadden liked him?
517
00:26:04,970 --> 00:26:07,460
I heard that after... you know,
518
00:26:07,480 --> 00:26:09,422
something similar to
that since my surgery.
519
00:26:09,440 --> 00:26:12,675
Do you remember who that was
that told you that or is that...
520
00:26:12,680 --> 00:26:15,720
I heard it from a friend who
heard it from another friend,
521
00:26:15,740 --> 00:26:17,180
and he made a comment
522
00:26:17,200 --> 00:26:21,601
that Chris was able to
circumvent the program.
523
00:26:22,510 --> 00:26:25,354
Did they attribute that
circumventing to Dr. Skadden
524
00:26:25,370 --> 00:26:27,360
- or some other doctor or both?
- I don't know.
525
00:26:27,380 --> 00:26:28,858
- I don't... I don't know.
- Okay.
526
00:26:28,860 --> 00:26:30,073
I don't know.
527
00:26:30,090 --> 00:26:32,539
- Okay, you said you understood...
- I think what they attributed to
528
00:26:32,540 --> 00:26:34,249
is the fact that they had
companies with them.
529
00:26:34,250 --> 00:26:36,680
Well, that was the next thing
I was gonna ask you about.
530
00:26:36,700 --> 00:26:40,413
You said they had companies with him.
531
00:26:40,430 --> 00:26:43,501
They gave all the funds
to those companies.
532
00:26:43,520 --> 00:26:44,600
Right.
533
00:26:44,620 --> 00:26:46,250
For him to do the research, right?
534
00:26:46,880 --> 00:26:47,918
Right.
535
00:26:47,930 --> 00:26:50,593
Okay, and it was very important
536
00:26:50,610 --> 00:26:52,780
that research be successful
537
00:26:52,800 --> 00:26:54,540
to those companies. Is that correct?
538
00:26:56,860 --> 00:26:58,420
Yeah.
539
00:26:58,440 --> 00:27:00,523
Now, when Chris moved here,
540
00:27:00,540 --> 00:27:02,273
did he cut off all work
541
00:27:02,290 --> 00:27:05,403
with Dr. Skadden and DiscGenics?
542
00:27:05,420 --> 00:27:06,460
Not that I know of.
543
00:27:06,480 --> 00:27:08,080
So Chris came to Dallas,
544
00:27:08,100 --> 00:27:11,280
and he worked at the Minimally
Invasive Spine Institute.
545
00:27:11,300 --> 00:27:13,194
- Is that correct?
- Yeah.
546
00:27:13,200 --> 00:27:15,074
And while he was working there,
547
00:27:15,090 --> 00:27:17,360
he was being pursued by Amy Piel
548
00:27:17,380 --> 00:27:19,241
at Baylor-Plano. Is that correct?
549
00:27:19,260 --> 00:27:20,871
Well, she was interested in having
550
00:27:20,890 --> 00:27:22,787
a successful clinic on the property.
551
00:27:22,800 --> 00:27:26,461
Mm-hmm. All to herself.
552
00:27:26,480 --> 00:27:30,020
Because if he was with Missy,
553
00:27:30,050 --> 00:27:33,950
she wasn't getting all the
fees that he would generate.
554
00:27:36,220 --> 00:27:37,550
Yeah.
555
00:27:37,570 --> 00:27:43,860
So both the chair of his fellowship,
556
00:27:43,880 --> 00:27:45,930
the person responsible for his training,
557
00:27:45,950 --> 00:27:48,160
and one of the largest hospitals
558
00:27:48,180 --> 00:27:52,240
in the Dallas-Fort Worth
area had financial reasons
559
00:27:52,260 --> 00:27:56,840
for ensuring that Christopher
Duntsch was successful.
560
00:28:01,860 --> 00:28:03,285
I'd say so.
561
00:28:06,880 --> 00:28:09,630
Defense passes the witness.
562
00:28:09,640 --> 00:28:11,752
Redirect.
563
00:28:13,060 --> 00:28:16,840
Did Christopher ever visit
you after the surgery?
564
00:28:16,860 --> 00:28:19,480
After you returned home to Memphis?
565
00:28:21,320 --> 00:28:24,340
Once. He came to visit.
566
00:28:25,500 --> 00:28:27,727
What did you talk about?
567
00:28:29,340 --> 00:28:33,380
His baby, his practice.
568
00:28:33,400 --> 00:28:35,192
Nothing in depth.
569
00:28:35,210 --> 00:28:37,653
Did he ask about you?
570
00:28:38,440 --> 00:28:42,000
About what was happening in your life?
571
00:28:44,940 --> 00:28:47,621
No.
572
00:28:47,640 --> 00:28:51,963
Ms. McClung said that she was sorry
573
00:28:51,980 --> 00:28:53,400
for what happened to you,
574
00:28:53,420 --> 00:28:56,505
even though she has no
connection to your surgery.
575
00:28:56,520 --> 00:29:01,240
Has Christopher ever said he was sorry?
576
00:29:01,260 --> 00:29:04,643
[DRAMATIC MUSIC]
577
00:29:04,660 --> 00:29:07,731
♪ ♪
578
00:29:07,750 --> 00:29:10,060
No.
579
00:29:13,370 --> 00:29:17,193
Final question, Mr. Summers.
580
00:29:17,210 --> 00:29:19,451
He's here now.
581
00:29:19,470 --> 00:29:22,163
Is there anything you
want to say to him?
582
00:29:22,180 --> 00:29:24,742
- Objection.
- Sustained.
583
00:29:29,360 --> 00:29:30,990
I love you.
584
00:29:31,010 --> 00:29:34,251
The jury will disregard
that last statement.
585
00:29:34,920 --> 00:29:38,170
The State has no further questions.
586
00:29:49,540 --> 00:29:52,019
Would you please introduce
yourself to the jury?
587
00:29:52,030 --> 00:29:54,071
Major Kimberly Morgan.
588
00:29:54,090 --> 00:29:55,573
United States Air Force.
589
00:29:55,590 --> 00:29:57,820
And are you currently out on deployment
590
00:29:57,840 --> 00:29:59,735
in a location you cannot disclose?
591
00:29:59,750 --> 00:30:01,680
Yes, ma'am, due to security.
592
00:30:01,700 --> 00:30:05,400
Are you familiar with a person
named Christopher Duntsch?
593
00:30:05,420 --> 00:30:07,880
Yes, ma'am. I ran the
office at his clinic
594
00:30:07,900 --> 00:30:09,333
and assisted in surgery.
595
00:30:09,350 --> 00:30:11,900
Can you tell us what
the defendant was like?
596
00:30:11,920 --> 00:30:12,957
His demeanor?
597
00:30:12,960 --> 00:30:15,668
Caring, kind,
598
00:30:15,680 --> 00:30:17,840
always very nice to the patients.
599
00:30:17,860 --> 00:30:19,423
He took time to listen to them.
600
00:30:19,440 --> 00:30:24,300
And did that change over the course
of the time you were with him?
601
00:30:24,320 --> 00:30:29,853
Yes, after the event in February 2012.
602
00:30:29,870 --> 00:30:31,360
The event?
603
00:30:33,210 --> 00:30:34,770
Jerry Summers' surgery.
604
00:30:34,790 --> 00:30:37,565
[TENDER MUSIC]
605
00:30:38,520 --> 00:30:42,280
Mr. Summers wasn't
able to use his limbs,
606
00:30:42,300 --> 00:30:45,960
was having difficulty breathing,
607
00:30:45,980 --> 00:30:48,430
and then he talked about
how he and Dr. Duntsch
608
00:30:48,450 --> 00:30:51,100
were doing cocaine the
night before the surgery.
609
00:30:51,120 --> 00:30:53,800
You were ordered to take a drug test?
610
00:30:53,820 --> 00:30:57,464
Myself and Dr. Duntsch.
I took it right away that day.
611
00:30:57,480 --> 00:31:00,131
- Did the defendant?
- Eventually.
612
00:31:00,140 --> 00:31:03,507
It came back clean, and Baylor
reinstated his privileges.
613
00:31:03,520 --> 00:31:07,636
Shelley Brennan would be the
last patient you assisted on?
614
00:31:09,710 --> 00:31:10,780
Yes.
615
00:31:10,800 --> 00:31:13,517
What do you remember about her surgery?
616
00:31:14,510 --> 00:31:17,479
[OMINOUS MUSIC]
617
00:31:17,490 --> 00:31:24,323
♪ ♪
618
00:31:24,340 --> 00:31:25,900
It's a simple surgery.
619
00:31:27,920 --> 00:31:29,840
In one day, home the next.
620
00:31:32,650 --> 00:31:37,416
This is an email from
Duntsch@TNIclinic.net
621
00:31:37,430 --> 00:31:39,585
to Kimberly Morgan.
622
00:31:39,600 --> 00:31:41,801
The subject is "Occam's Razor."
623
00:31:41,820 --> 00:31:46,660
"Kim, unfortunately,
you cannot understand
624
00:31:46,680 --> 00:31:50,159
"that I really am building an empire,
625
00:31:50,160 --> 00:31:53,020
"and I am so far outside the box
626
00:31:53,040 --> 00:31:57,311
"that the Earth is small
and the Sun is bright.
627
00:31:57,330 --> 00:31:58,880
"Anyone close to me
628
00:31:58,900 --> 00:32:03,070
"thinks that I'm likely something
between God, Einstein,
629
00:32:03,090 --> 00:32:04,980
and the Antichrist...
630
00:32:05,000 --> 00:32:07,488
Because how can I do
anything that I want
631
00:32:07,500 --> 00:32:09,140
across any discipline boundary
632
00:32:09,160 --> 00:32:12,240
like it's a playground
and never ever lose?
633
00:32:12,260 --> 00:32:15,740
Unfortunately, despite the
fact that I am winning,
634
00:32:15,762 --> 00:32:18,044
it is not happening fast enough.
635
00:32:18,060 --> 00:32:20,160
What is the problem, Kim?
636
00:32:20,180 --> 00:32:23,540
It is simply that everyone
else is human,
637
00:32:23,560 --> 00:32:26,340
and there's nothing I can do about it.
638
00:32:26,360 --> 00:32:29,431
So I pick and choose my humans
639
00:32:29,450 --> 00:32:32,360
and try to help them.
640
00:32:32,380 --> 00:32:36,200
You, my child,
641
00:32:36,220 --> 00:32:41,260
are the only one standing
between me and the other side.
642
00:32:41,280 --> 00:32:46,720
I am ready to leave the love
and kindness and goodness
643
00:32:46,740 --> 00:32:50,760
and patience that I mixed
with everything else that I am
644
00:32:50,780 --> 00:32:53,450
and become a cold-blooded killer.
645
00:32:53,470 --> 00:32:57,380
The sad fact is, I could
go faster, do better,
646
00:32:57,400 --> 00:32:59,500
catch more honor and respect
647
00:32:59,520 --> 00:33:01,920
by fucking everybody in the brain,
648
00:33:01,940 --> 00:33:03,836
emotionally and mentally
controlling them
649
00:33:03,850 --> 00:33:06,171
in a manner that borders on abuse,
650
00:33:06,190 --> 00:33:10,473
taking no prisoners,
sending everyone in my way,
651
00:33:10,490 --> 00:33:13,641
especially that fucks with me, to hell
652
00:33:13,660 --> 00:33:16,680
for the simple fact that
they thought they could.
653
00:33:19,040 --> 00:33:23,150
What I am being as what I am,
654
00:33:23,170 --> 00:33:26,194
one of a kind,
655
00:33:26,210 --> 00:33:30,821
a motherfucker stone-cold killer.
656
00:33:34,880 --> 00:33:37,077
I'll pass my witness, Your Honor.
657
00:33:38,680 --> 00:33:43,320
I don't think it's morning
where you are, but good morning.
658
00:33:43,340 --> 00:33:47,580
Now, the State is making a
big deal out of this email
659
00:33:47,600 --> 00:33:49,220
they just read.
660
00:33:49,240 --> 00:33:52,176
Did you know Christopher liked poetry?
661
00:33:52,180 --> 00:33:53,974
I found out later.
662
00:33:53,990 --> 00:33:57,771
But you're not surprised by
his... his flowery language.
663
00:33:57,790 --> 00:33:59,919
I mean, he sent emails
like that one quite often,
664
00:33:59,920 --> 00:34:01,180
- didn't he?
- Yes.
665
00:34:01,200 --> 00:34:04,730
Do you think Dr. Duntsch
was a cold-blooded killer?
666
00:34:04,750 --> 00:34:06,180
No.
667
00:34:06,210 --> 00:34:09,243
Now, it's no secret that
you and Dr. Duntsch
668
00:34:09,260 --> 00:34:12,020
had an intimate relationship.
669
00:34:12,040 --> 00:34:14,000
We know that involves sex,
670
00:34:14,030 --> 00:34:16,740
but was there an emotional element?
671
00:34:16,760 --> 00:34:19,940
- Meaning?
- Well, among the people in his life,
672
00:34:19,960 --> 00:34:22,372
based on everything you saw
673
00:34:22,390 --> 00:34:25,044
working with him day in and day out,
674
00:34:25,060 --> 00:34:26,418
sleeping with him,
675
00:34:26,420 --> 00:34:28,560
you thought you were pretty close?
676
00:34:28,580 --> 00:34:29,797
I thought so.
677
00:34:29,810 --> 00:34:34,885
Close enough that perhaps you didn't
allow yourself to see the truth?
678
00:34:34,900 --> 00:34:37,179
The truth?
679
00:34:37,180 --> 00:34:39,271
About his abilities.
680
00:34:39,290 --> 00:34:40,808
I don't understand.
681
00:34:40,820 --> 00:34:43,393
Was he a good surgeon?
682
00:34:45,120 --> 00:34:47,300
That's outside my area of expertise.
683
00:34:47,320 --> 00:34:49,566
You were in his office.
You were in the O.R.
684
00:34:49,580 --> 00:34:51,153
You don't have a professional opinion?
685
00:34:51,170 --> 00:34:52,444
No.
686
00:34:53,140 --> 00:34:55,320
Okay, well, after Shelley Brennan,
687
00:34:55,340 --> 00:34:57,583
did you ever work with
Dr. Duntsch again?
688
00:34:57,600 --> 00:34:59,118
- No.
- Why not?
689
00:34:59,130 --> 00:35:03,160
I didn't wanna be in that
environment anymore.
690
00:35:03,180 --> 00:35:05,666
That environment? What environment?
691
00:35:05,680 --> 00:35:07,780
[UNEASY MUSIC]
692
00:35:07,800 --> 00:35:10,301
♪ ♪
693
00:35:10,320 --> 00:35:14,320
Unhealthy, you know?
694
00:35:14,340 --> 00:35:16,380
You mean the environment
in which patients
695
00:35:16,400 --> 00:35:17,761
were being maimed and killed?
696
00:35:17,780 --> 00:35:19,680
- Objection.
- Sustained.
697
00:35:19,700 --> 00:35:21,431
Just one more question.
698
00:35:21,450 --> 00:35:26,478
If you believed that Dr. Duntsch
wanted to hurt patients,
699
00:35:26,490 --> 00:35:28,821
you certainly would go and
tell somebody about that,
700
00:35:28,840 --> 00:35:30,107
wouldn't you?
701
00:35:35,820 --> 00:35:37,320
Yes, ma'am.
702
00:35:39,540 --> 00:35:41,750
Pass the witness.
703
00:35:41,770 --> 00:35:46,133
Stay safe, Ms. Morgan,
wherever you've gone.
704
00:35:46,150 --> 00:35:50,850
♪ ♪
705
00:36:02,510 --> 00:36:03,557
How are you feeling?
706
00:36:05,540 --> 00:36:08,691
If they ask me questions
about Duntsch's training,
707
00:36:08,710 --> 00:36:11,106
I can't promise you
what I'm going to say.
708
00:36:13,310 --> 00:36:15,152
Yeah.
709
00:36:17,500 --> 00:36:20,030
If we can't present our entire case,
710
00:36:20,050 --> 00:36:22,451
the good, bad, everything,
711
00:36:22,470 --> 00:36:25,293
if we can't lay it all
out and still win,
712
00:36:25,300 --> 00:36:27,171
then we shouldn't win.
713
00:36:27,190 --> 00:36:28,582
[CELL PHONE BUZZES]
714
00:36:28,600 --> 00:36:32,240
- You take that call.
- Hey, Ma. Hang on a sec.
715
00:36:32,260 --> 00:36:34,630
Dr. Henderson.
716
00:36:35,360 --> 00:36:39,468
If they ask, answer how you want.
717
00:36:41,380 --> 00:36:42,780
Thank you.
718
00:36:45,620 --> 00:36:47,220
Yeah, I'm here.
719
00:37:12,300 --> 00:37:14,880
We asked you here to give your opinion
720
00:37:14,900 --> 00:37:18,049
on four different cases
the defendant performed.
721
00:37:18,050 --> 00:37:21,718
What surgery did the defendant
recommend for Jerry Summers?
722
00:37:21,720 --> 00:37:26,893
An anterior cervical
fusion at C3-4 and C4-5.
723
00:37:26,910 --> 00:37:29,420
What was the outcome of
Mr. Summer's surgery?
724
00:37:29,440 --> 00:37:32,145
He was rendered a quadriplegic.
725
00:37:34,140 --> 00:37:35,690
Would you walk us through it?
726
00:37:35,710 --> 00:37:37,317
There was a lot of bleeding.
727
00:37:37,330 --> 00:37:39,060
- Suction.
- Suction.
728
00:37:40,840 --> 00:37:42,322
Sponge. Give me a sponge.
729
00:37:43,760 --> 00:37:46,994
How many CCs were lost?
730
00:37:47,820 --> 00:37:52,290
A typical loss is somewhere
between 25 and 200 CCs.
731
00:37:52,310 --> 00:37:55,627
Mr. Summers lost 1,900 CCs.
732
00:37:55,640 --> 00:37:58,922
What accounts for that
amount of blood loss?
733
00:37:58,940 --> 00:38:01,049
Injuring a major structure.
734
00:38:01,060 --> 00:38:02,120
Pituitary.
735
00:38:02,140 --> 00:38:07,400
He removed the disc from C3-4 and
C4-5, as he was supposed to do,
736
00:38:07,420 --> 00:38:11,059
and then he removed a tremendous
amount of bone on the left side.
737
00:38:12,450 --> 00:38:15,272
Over a third of the vertebral body.
738
00:38:15,290 --> 00:38:18,775
And in doing so, he lacerated
the vertebral artery.
739
00:38:23,200 --> 00:38:27,400
The defendant chose to go
back in for a second surgery.
740
00:38:27,420 --> 00:38:29,163
What procedure did he perform?
741
00:38:29,180 --> 00:38:30,700
Double action.
742
00:38:30,720 --> 00:38:34,631
A laminectomy in order to
relieve pressure on the spine.
743
00:38:34,650 --> 00:38:36,668
But by removing excessive bone
744
00:38:36,680 --> 00:38:38,760
from both the front and the back,
745
00:38:38,780 --> 00:38:41,640
you're compromising
the entire structure.
746
00:38:41,660 --> 00:38:43,216
In layman's terms?
747
00:38:44,600 --> 00:38:48,472
His head was barely
attached to his spine.
748
00:38:48,480 --> 00:38:51,850
[SOFT GASPS, EXHALES]
749
00:38:51,870 --> 00:38:53,894
Let's move on to Shelley Brennan.
750
00:38:53,910 --> 00:38:56,360
The surgery Duntsch recommended,
751
00:38:56,380 --> 00:38:58,774
was that a surgery that
would fix her issue?
752
00:38:58,790 --> 00:38:59,980
Yes.
753
00:39:00,000 --> 00:39:03,300
What was the outcome of
Mrs. Brennan's operation?
754
00:39:03,320 --> 00:39:04,360
She died.
755
00:39:04,840 --> 00:39:07,360
Is that normal for this
type of procedure?
756
00:39:07,380 --> 00:39:10,730
Mortalities are less than 1 in 10,000.
757
00:39:11,340 --> 00:39:15,400
The pituitary rongeur went through
the ligament in the front
758
00:39:15,420 --> 00:39:17,580
and lacerated the iliac vessels
759
00:39:17,600 --> 00:39:19,540
that lie directly on the side.
760
00:39:19,560 --> 00:39:22,900
- So Mrs. Brennan was bleeding?
- Heavily.
761
00:39:22,920 --> 00:39:26,851
Would there have been blood
visible in the operative site?
762
00:39:26,870 --> 00:39:28,178
Sometimes, yes.
763
00:39:28,190 --> 00:39:30,389
It doesn't appear to have
been the case here,
764
00:39:30,400 --> 00:39:32,933
but they should have noticed
a drop in her blood pressure.
765
00:39:32,950 --> 00:39:37,560
Should a neurosurgeon know
that a drop in blood pressure
766
00:39:37,580 --> 00:39:39,439
means there's a bleed somewhere?
767
00:39:39,450 --> 00:39:42,859
It's a fundamental rule,
768
00:39:42,870 --> 00:39:47,280
but the likelihood of them being
able to address the issue is small.
769
00:39:47,300 --> 00:39:50,325
They'd call in a vascular
surgeon for assistance.
770
00:39:51,300 --> 00:39:54,030
But he didn't do that.
771
00:39:55,880 --> 00:39:57,040
No.
772
00:39:58,640 --> 00:39:59,780
Dorothy Burke.
773
00:39:59,800 --> 00:40:03,134
Mrs. Burke had a previous
anterior cervical fusion
774
00:40:03,150 --> 00:40:08,141
at C5-6 and C6-7 that resolved
her symptoms for a time,
775
00:40:08,160 --> 00:40:10,690
but she began experiencing
neck and shoulder pain
776
00:40:10,710 --> 00:40:13,460
that had nothing to do
with her prior surgery.
777
00:40:13,480 --> 00:40:17,220
Dr. Duntsch diagnosed a
disc protrusion at C4-5
778
00:40:17,240 --> 00:40:20,772
and a disc extrusion at the C7 T1 level.
779
00:40:20,790 --> 00:40:25,364
He sliced through the
vertebral artery again.
780
00:40:25,380 --> 00:40:28,780
[MONITOR BEEPING]
781
00:40:31,400 --> 00:40:35,300
We've been talking a lot
about the vertebral artery.
782
00:40:35,320 --> 00:40:37,998
Is it common for it to
be hit during surgery?
783
00:40:38,010 --> 00:40:39,400
Exceptionally rare.
784
00:40:39,420 --> 00:40:41,460
- How many times have you hit it?
- Never.
785
00:40:41,480 --> 00:40:44,796
And what happened to Mrs.
Burke after her surgery?
786
00:40:44,810 --> 00:40:48,380
Her heart rate elevated.
She couldn't open her eyes.
787
00:40:48,410 --> 00:40:51,970
No verbal response to
questioning or commands.
788
00:40:51,990 --> 00:40:56,683
And what does that indicate to
anyone in the medical field?
789
00:40:56,700 --> 00:40:58,640
An impending disaster.
790
00:40:58,660 --> 00:41:01,234
What should Mr. Duntsch have done
791
00:41:01,250 --> 00:41:04,000
as soon as he was informed
of that information?
792
00:41:04,020 --> 00:41:06,400
Physically examine the patient.
793
00:41:06,420 --> 00:41:08,800
Order appropriate studies. Scans.
794
00:41:08,820 --> 00:41:11,260
They were ordered by the ICU physician,
795
00:41:11,280 --> 00:41:13,283
which showed she was brain dead.
796
00:41:18,820 --> 00:41:20,665
Where was Dr. Duntsch?
797
00:41:20,680 --> 00:41:22,751
He was operating on Madeline Beyer.
798
00:41:22,770 --> 00:41:25,880
Had the defendant focused
on Dorothy Burke
799
00:41:25,900 --> 00:41:27,422
rather than Madeline Beyer,
800
00:41:27,440 --> 00:41:29,341
would she still be alive today?
801
00:41:29,360 --> 00:41:30,804
Based on what I know
802
00:41:30,820 --> 00:41:32,580
of Dr. Duntsch's approach to surgery,
803
00:41:32,600 --> 00:41:35,351
Mrs. Burke was dead the moment
she agreed for him to operate.
804
00:41:35,360 --> 00:41:36,723
Objection.
805
00:41:36,740 --> 00:41:38,080
Sustained.
806
00:41:40,280 --> 00:41:42,480
Madeline Beyer?
807
00:41:42,500 --> 00:41:45,482
Mrs. Beyer is the reason
I'm sitting here today.
808
00:41:46,880 --> 00:41:50,320
I... I tried to fix her.
809
00:41:50,340 --> 00:41:53,380
One of the screws was
violating the spinal canal,
810
00:41:53,400 --> 00:41:56,535
damaging dura and nerve roots.
811
00:41:56,550 --> 00:41:58,660
How do you know when
you've hit the dura?
812
00:41:58,680 --> 00:42:01,164
Cerebral spinal fluid leaks out.
813
00:42:01,180 --> 00:42:05,418
I found evidence of three
attempted screw placements
814
00:42:05,430 --> 00:42:08,080
on the left side where he put no screws.
815
00:42:10,120 --> 00:42:12,470
The most disturbing part was,
816
00:42:12,490 --> 00:42:15,640
the entire reason he was operating
817
00:42:15,660 --> 00:42:19,140
was to remove the disc,
and he didn't touch it.
818
00:42:19,160 --> 00:42:20,854
What did he take out?
819
00:42:20,870 --> 00:42:24,100
A large piece of the psoas muscle.
820
00:42:24,120 --> 00:42:26,731
He made a portal through that muscle
821
00:42:26,750 --> 00:42:29,289
and stuffed an implant in there.
822
00:42:29,290 --> 00:42:30,863
Cage.
823
00:42:30,880 --> 00:42:32,589
Is a trained neurosurgeon
824
00:42:32,590 --> 00:42:36,658
going to know the difference
between bone and muscle?
825
00:42:36,660 --> 00:42:38,291
- Yes.
- Mallet.
826
00:42:38,310 --> 00:42:40,161
Would a trained neurosurgeon know
827
00:42:40,180 --> 00:42:43,173
that by malpositioning
the interbody device,
828
00:42:43,180 --> 00:42:45,750
he was reasonably certain
to cause her injury?
829
00:42:45,770 --> 00:42:48,440
- Yes.
- Would a trained neurosurgeon
830
00:42:48,460 --> 00:42:52,173
have been aware that if he
malpositioned the pedicle screws,
831
00:42:52,190 --> 00:42:55,927
he was reasonably certain to
cause her serious bodily injury?
832
00:42:55,940 --> 00:42:57,391
Yes.
833
00:42:57,410 --> 00:43:00,348
Would a trained neurosurgeon
have been aware
834
00:43:00,360 --> 00:43:02,540
that if he amputated the nerve root,
835
00:43:02,560 --> 00:43:06,146
he was reasonably certain to
cause her serious bodily injury?
836
00:43:06,160 --> 00:43:09,941
- Yes.
- The way the surgical tools were used
837
00:43:09,960 --> 00:43:11,533
in Madeline Beyer's case,
838
00:43:11,550 --> 00:43:13,680
do you think they were used in a manner
839
00:43:13,700 --> 00:43:17,690
that was capable of causing
death or serious bodily injury?
840
00:43:21,400 --> 00:43:22,704
Yes.
841
00:43:23,940 --> 00:43:25,440
We pass the witness.
842
00:43:30,700 --> 00:43:34,580
Dr. Henderson, Ms. Shughart
made quite the point
843
00:43:34,600 --> 00:43:38,183
that a trained neurosurgeon
844
00:43:38,200 --> 00:43:41,306
should have done this or done that.
845
00:43:41,320 --> 00:43:44,520
You're aware Christopher
has both an MD and a PhD
846
00:43:44,540 --> 00:43:47,395
- from the University of Tennessee.
- I am.
847
00:43:47,410 --> 00:43:51,440
UT isn't some fly-by-night
medical school.
848
00:43:51,470 --> 00:43:52,953
It's not like one of those in...
849
00:43:52,970 --> 00:43:55,362
in Guadalajara or Granada, is it?
850
00:43:55,380 --> 00:43:57,460
No, it's in Memphis.
851
00:43:57,480 --> 00:44:00,700
Do you know Dr. Geoffrey Skadden?
852
00:44:00,720 --> 00:44:04,171
- Does he have a good reputation?
- I do, and he does.
853
00:44:04,190 --> 00:44:06,080
And what was he responsible for
854
00:44:06,100 --> 00:44:07,999
in Christopher Duntsch's training?
855
00:44:08,010 --> 00:44:11,630
After Dr. Duntsch finished
his residency at UT,
856
00:44:11,650 --> 00:44:14,589
he came under the
tutelage of Dr. Skadden
857
00:44:14,600 --> 00:44:15,820
for a fellowship training
858
00:44:15,840 --> 00:44:18,343
in minimally invasive spine surgery.
859
00:44:18,360 --> 00:44:20,680
Were you familiar with
the fact that Dr. Duntsch
860
00:44:20,700 --> 00:44:23,540
was doing medical cancer
research on the side
861
00:44:23,560 --> 00:44:26,476
and that Dr. Skadden was
involved in that research?
862
00:44:26,490 --> 00:44:28,063
I wasn't at the time, no.
863
00:44:28,080 --> 00:44:31,651
Should any doctor under
any circumstances
864
00:44:31,670 --> 00:44:36,111
have their surgical training
hours disrupted by research?
865
00:44:36,130 --> 00:44:37,324
Absolutely not.
866
00:44:37,340 --> 00:44:40,480
So a neurosurgical resident or fellow
867
00:44:40,500 --> 00:44:42,784
can't just skip those hours.
868
00:44:42,800 --> 00:44:45,369
The supervisor has to sign
off, no matter the excuse.
869
00:44:45,370 --> 00:44:46,380
Correct.
870
00:44:46,400 --> 00:44:48,248
Do the doctors in charge of the program
871
00:44:48,260 --> 00:44:50,500
have to sign off that they're qualified
872
00:44:50,520 --> 00:44:52,431
- to go and operate?
- Yes.
873
00:44:52,432 --> 00:44:55,840
Did Dr. Skadden write
letters of recommendation
874
00:44:55,860 --> 00:44:56,971
for Dr. Duntsch?
875
00:44:56,980 --> 00:45:00,700
Yes, he stated Dr. Duntsch
was a satisfactory surgeon
876
00:45:00,720 --> 00:45:02,095
in his fellowship.
877
00:45:02,110 --> 00:45:05,390
Well, had Dr. Skadden heard
what was happening in Texas?
878
00:45:05,410 --> 00:45:08,880
Yes, because he had mentioned
poor outcomes at Baylor
879
00:45:08,900 --> 00:45:11,730
when filling out a credentialing
form at Forest Park.
880
00:45:11,750 --> 00:45:12,840
Do you have any idea
881
00:45:12,860 --> 00:45:15,440
why he wouldn't have explicitly
told these hospitals
882
00:45:15,460 --> 00:45:17,533
not to hire Dr. Duntsch?
883
00:45:17,550 --> 00:45:20,331
Dr. Skadden said that he had
to write recommendations
884
00:45:20,350 --> 00:45:23,074
based on what he'd
witnessed in his program.
885
00:45:23,090 --> 00:45:25,994
He couldn't speak to whatever
was happening in Texas.
886
00:45:26,010 --> 00:45:27,740
He didn't write any more recommendations
887
00:45:27,760 --> 00:45:29,497
for Mr. Duntsch after we spoke.
888
00:45:29,510 --> 00:45:32,631
Has there ever been an instance
889
00:45:32,650 --> 00:45:37,213
in which a doctor was sued for
not writing a recommendation?
890
00:45:37,230 --> 00:45:39,513
Yes.
891
00:45:39,530 --> 00:45:41,721
Well, that's frightening, is it not?
892
00:45:41,740 --> 00:45:43,460
It is to me.
893
00:45:43,480 --> 00:45:46,231
So Skadden had to sign off on him,
894
00:45:46,250 --> 00:45:48,680
or he wouldn't have been able
to get their credentials?
895
00:45:48,700 --> 00:45:49,726
Correct.
896
00:45:49,740 --> 00:45:52,573
I mean, Baylor wouldn't let somebody
just walk in off the street,
897
00:45:52,590 --> 00:45:54,940
- start doing neurosurgery.
- Well, I also assumed
898
00:45:54,960 --> 00:45:57,400
they would have reported the
outcomes of his surgeries
899
00:45:57,420 --> 00:45:58,651
to the authorities.
900
00:45:58,670 --> 00:46:00,140
As a matter of fact,
901
00:46:00,170 --> 00:46:04,600
they didn't say anything
negative to anybody.
902
00:46:04,620 --> 00:46:09,078
Neurosurgery is a big moneymaker.
903
00:46:09,090 --> 00:46:11,980
Do you think the corporate
level of the hospital
904
00:46:12,000 --> 00:46:14,760
was more interested in making money
905
00:46:14,780 --> 00:46:17,045
than in protecting their patients?
906
00:46:22,540 --> 00:46:24,552
[SOFT DRAMATIC MUSIC]
907
00:46:24,570 --> 00:46:26,773
♪ ♪
908
00:46:26,790 --> 00:46:27,926
[SIGHS]
909
00:46:27,940 --> 00:46:29,193
Yes, I do.
910
00:46:29,210 --> 00:46:32,653
I think everyone was more
interested in making money
911
00:46:32,670 --> 00:46:34,403
and protecting themselves
912
00:46:34,420 --> 00:46:36,940
rather than protecting their patients.
913
00:46:41,420 --> 00:46:44,640
Thank you for the truth, Dr. Henderson.
914
00:46:44,660 --> 00:46:47,020
No more questions.
915
00:46:47,040 --> 00:46:49,060
I'd like to add something.
916
00:46:50,240 --> 00:46:52,580
Redirect.
917
00:46:52,600 --> 00:46:54,200
Anything you'd like to add?
918
00:46:55,940 --> 00:46:59,440
Everyone knows the first tenet
919
00:46:59,460 --> 00:47:03,007
of the Hippocratic Oath,
"First, do no harm".
920
00:47:04,170 --> 00:47:07,011
But there are others.
921
00:47:07,030 --> 00:47:10,443
"I will respect the
hard-won scientific gains
922
00:47:10,460 --> 00:47:14,560
of the physicians in whose
steps I've walked."
923
00:47:14,580 --> 00:47:15,603
He did not.
924
00:47:15,620 --> 00:47:18,781
"I will apply, for the
benefit of the sick,
925
00:47:18,800 --> 00:47:20,780
"all majors which are required,
926
00:47:20,800 --> 00:47:24,580
"avoiding those twin
traps of overtreatment
927
00:47:24,600 --> 00:47:26,656
and therapeutic nihilism."
928
00:47:26,660 --> 00:47:28,454
He did not.
929
00:47:28,470 --> 00:47:31,211
"I will not be ashamed
to say I know not,
930
00:47:31,230 --> 00:47:33,746
"nor will I fail to call
them my colleagues
931
00:47:33,760 --> 00:47:36,254
"when the skills of another are needed
932
00:47:36,270 --> 00:47:38,180
for a patient's recovery."
933
00:47:39,860 --> 00:47:40,962
He did not.
934
00:47:42,760 --> 00:47:47,850
Had I performed any of the 33 surgeries
935
00:47:47,870 --> 00:47:49,637
in the manner that he performed them,
936
00:47:49,650 --> 00:47:51,854
I never would have allowed myself
937
00:47:51,870 --> 00:47:54,800
into an operating room again.
938
00:47:56,080 --> 00:47:57,645
Any one of them.
939
00:48:00,280 --> 00:48:01,800
Not ever again.
940
00:48:03,330 --> 00:48:10,380
♪ ♪
941
00:48:16,600 --> 00:48:18,400
The State flooded you
942
00:48:18,420 --> 00:48:21,360
with every possible patient they could,
943
00:48:21,380 --> 00:48:25,263
but Madeline Beyer's case
is the case the State chose
944
00:48:25,280 --> 00:48:28,259
to go to trial on, so let's focus there.
945
00:48:28,270 --> 00:48:30,060
Now, according to the state,
946
00:48:30,080 --> 00:48:34,480
Dr. Duntsch didn't head into Madeline
Beyer's surgery to fix her...
947
00:48:34,500 --> 00:48:36,517
he wanted to hurt her...
948
00:48:36,530 --> 00:48:39,020
but that's not what the evidence shows.
949
00:48:39,040 --> 00:48:45,360
The evidence shows he
was a suboptimal surgeon.
950
00:48:45,380 --> 00:48:47,920
Now, are we trying to
blame the hospitals?
951
00:48:47,940 --> 00:48:50,454
No. Are we trying to blame Dr. Skadden?
952
00:48:50,470 --> 00:48:53,034
No, but the State asked
time and time again,
953
00:48:53,050 --> 00:48:57,213
what would a well-trained surgeon do?
954
00:48:57,230 --> 00:48:59,120
I mean, what did Dr. Henderson tell you?
955
00:48:59,140 --> 00:49:01,650
He got on the phone, called Skadden,
956
00:49:01,673 --> 00:49:03,593
and said, "Hey, we got this guy here.
957
00:49:03,610 --> 00:49:06,480
"It says he graduated
from your medical school,
958
00:49:06,500 --> 00:49:07,882
"went to your fellowship,
959
00:49:07,900 --> 00:49:10,561
and I need you to stop
recommending him."
960
00:49:10,580 --> 00:49:15,340
And Skadden replied, "Yes, he
did train at my fellowship.
961
00:49:15,360 --> 00:49:18,193
But I don't know what to do."
962
00:49:18,210 --> 00:49:20,484
Because Skadden has figured out,
963
00:49:20,500 --> 00:49:23,606
"I screwed up. I let him out."
964
00:49:23,620 --> 00:49:25,260
I mean, Jerry Summers told you,
965
00:49:25,280 --> 00:49:30,321
he let him out of surgeries
in order to do research.
966
00:49:30,340 --> 00:49:33,908
Now, you don't get to
punish Dr. Skadden.
967
00:49:33,920 --> 00:49:35,980
You don't get to punish Baylor.
968
00:49:36,000 --> 00:49:38,037
You don't get to punish Dallas Medical,
969
00:49:38,050 --> 00:49:41,457
but you have the right to
know what they didn't do.
970
00:49:41,470 --> 00:49:44,674
They didn't report him.
971
00:49:44,690 --> 00:49:46,423
They didn't challenge him.
972
00:49:46,440 --> 00:49:47,970
They didn't tell him
973
00:49:47,980 --> 00:49:50,460
that he was a suboptimal surgeon
974
00:49:50,480 --> 00:49:52,969
who needs to find other work.
975
00:49:52,980 --> 00:49:56,556
If you're a teacher and
the children don't do well,
976
00:49:56,570 --> 00:50:00,435
your principal tells you
you're a suboptimal teacher.
977
00:50:00,450 --> 00:50:02,233
If you're a mechanic
978
00:50:02,250 --> 00:50:04,500
and the cars you're working
on keep breaking down,
979
00:50:04,510 --> 00:50:07,404
you're told you're a
suboptimal mechanic.
980
00:50:07,420 --> 00:50:11,701
If you're a pilot and you can't land,
981
00:50:11,720 --> 00:50:15,324
well, you're told you
can't do this anymore.
982
00:50:15,340 --> 00:50:18,124
Well, Baylor does the opposite.
983
00:50:18,140 --> 00:50:21,164
They allow him to resign.
984
00:50:21,180 --> 00:50:24,171
And then they send a clearing
letter to Dallas Medical,
985
00:50:24,190 --> 00:50:26,591
who hires him and then watches
986
00:50:26,600 --> 00:50:29,723
as three surgeries in
as many days go bad.
987
00:50:29,740 --> 00:50:34,353
And what do they do? Nothing.
988
00:50:34,370 --> 00:50:36,000
They don't report him
989
00:50:36,020 --> 00:50:38,773
to the National Practitioner's Data Bank
990
00:50:38,790 --> 00:50:40,523
or the Texas Medical Board.
991
00:50:40,540 --> 00:50:47,030
They allow this poorly-trained
suboptimal surgeon to move on.
992
00:50:49,210 --> 00:50:52,780
The system broke down
from the very beginning.
993
00:50:54,340 --> 00:50:57,116
Now, I don't envy your jobs.
994
00:50:57,130 --> 00:50:59,220
Both sides have their own perceptions
995
00:50:59,240 --> 00:51:01,220
of... of what happened,
996
00:51:01,240 --> 00:51:04,580
but you're the sole judges of the facts.
997
00:51:04,600 --> 00:51:07,860
Render your verdict
according to the law,
998
00:51:07,880 --> 00:51:09,593
not according to emotions
999
00:51:09,610 --> 00:51:12,381
or sympathies or sending a message.
1000
00:51:12,400 --> 00:51:15,143
It's about whether or not
the State has proven to you
1001
00:51:15,160 --> 00:51:18,262
that a crime was committed.
1002
00:51:18,280 --> 00:51:21,891
It was a failure.
1003
00:51:21,900 --> 00:51:25,810
It was a human failure,
1004
00:51:25,830 --> 00:51:31,660
a systemic failure,
1005
00:51:31,680 --> 00:51:33,640
but it wasn't a crime.
1006
00:51:35,660 --> 00:51:38,950
On July 25th, 2012,
1007
00:51:38,970 --> 00:51:42,500
Christopher Duntsch went into
surgery with Madeline Beyer,
1008
00:51:42,520 --> 00:51:44,288
an elderly individual.
1009
00:51:44,300 --> 00:51:46,660
He crippled her.
1010
00:51:46,680 --> 00:51:50,711
Pedicle screws, drilled and redrilled.
1011
00:51:50,730 --> 00:51:55,093
Nerves shredded. Leaking dural sacs.
1012
00:51:55,110 --> 00:51:57,593
Muscles hacked into.
1013
00:51:57,610 --> 00:52:00,020
These things happened.
1014
00:52:00,040 --> 00:52:03,500
But was it intentional?
1015
00:52:03,520 --> 00:52:05,560
How do you know what he intended?
1016
00:52:06,800 --> 00:52:12,380
You look at what he does
before, during, and after.
1017
00:52:12,400 --> 00:52:16,000
He lied, about "this is normal pain."
1018
00:52:16,020 --> 00:52:18,244
"This is something new.
1019
00:52:18,260 --> 00:52:20,533
"I didn't do this to you.
1020
00:52:20,550 --> 00:52:22,743
"It's simply swelling, Jerry.
1021
00:52:22,760 --> 00:52:25,288
"Surgery went fine, Madeline.
1022
00:52:25,300 --> 00:52:27,633
"It's the surgical team's fault.
1023
00:52:27,650 --> 00:52:32,620
Your wives are dead, Earl, Harold."
1024
00:52:34,960 --> 00:52:36,841
Look at them.
1025
00:52:36,860 --> 00:52:42,460
Look at the faces of the
lives that were ruined.
1026
00:52:42,480 --> 00:52:45,460
We didn't bring them to
you to have you convict him
1027
00:52:45,480 --> 00:52:47,600
based on sympathy.
1028
00:52:47,620 --> 00:52:50,540
We bring them to you
so that you can know
1029
00:52:50,560 --> 00:52:53,180
everything the defendant knew.
1030
00:52:53,820 --> 00:52:56,380
How many patients should it take
1031
00:52:56,410 --> 00:53:00,160
before you know that what
you're doing is hurting people?
1032
00:53:01,760 --> 00:53:09,040
One, two, three?
1033
00:53:09,060 --> 00:53:12,793
You make your best
friend a quadriplegic?
1034
00:53:12,810 --> 00:53:17,620
Four, you kill? Five, you kill?
1035
00:53:17,650 --> 00:53:19,884
Should I list all 33?
1036
00:53:19,900 --> 00:53:23,220
I want to call them tragedies,
1037
00:53:23,240 --> 00:53:27,350
but that implies no one
could have seen them coming.
1038
00:53:27,370 --> 00:53:30,943
These were assaults.
1039
00:53:30,960 --> 00:53:34,821
We're here talking about Madeline Beyer.
1040
00:53:34,840 --> 00:53:36,680
I know you don't have a doubt
1041
00:53:36,700 --> 00:53:40,440
that when Christopher Duntsch went
into Madeline Beyer's surgery,
1042
00:53:40,460 --> 00:53:44,575
he was reasonably certain
he was going to hurt her.
1043
00:53:45,220 --> 00:53:47,290
That's the standard of knowing.
1044
00:53:47,310 --> 00:53:50,589
Not that you know 100%,
1045
00:53:50,590 --> 00:53:53,749
but that you're reasonably certain.
1046
00:53:53,750 --> 00:53:58,047
The defense is implying
it was his training.
1047
00:53:58,060 --> 00:54:00,601
He was trained for 17 years
1048
00:54:00,620 --> 00:54:03,280
prior to operating on Mrs. Beyer.
1049
00:54:03,300 --> 00:54:05,596
Trained at the University of Tennessee.
1050
00:54:05,610 --> 00:54:07,740
Trained at Semmes-Murphey.
1051
00:54:07,760 --> 00:54:09,600
Institutions with doctors
1052
00:54:09,620 --> 00:54:12,821
who would not put their
reputations on the line
1053
00:54:12,840 --> 00:54:15,940
by recommending a
poorly trained surgeon.
1054
00:54:15,960 --> 00:54:19,700
[SOFT DRAMATIC MUSIC]
1055
00:54:19,720 --> 00:54:22,640
Don't blame his training.
1056
00:54:22,660 --> 00:54:24,323
Blame him.
1057
00:54:24,340 --> 00:54:26,580
Don't blame the system.
1058
00:54:26,600 --> 00:54:28,202
Blame him.
1059
00:54:28,220 --> 00:54:32,500
He went into all those operations.
1060
00:54:32,520 --> 00:54:36,669
He put the scalpels to
those patients' backs.
1061
00:54:36,680 --> 00:54:40,600
He kept going.
1062
00:54:40,620 --> 00:54:42,700
All these people.
1063
00:54:44,040 --> 00:54:47,820
If you're a human who values life,
1064
00:54:47,850 --> 00:54:51,271
who understands suffering...
1065
00:54:51,290 --> 00:54:53,660
You heard Dr. Henderson.
1066
00:54:53,680 --> 00:54:56,314
One botched surgery, just one,
1067
00:54:56,320 --> 00:55:01,694
and he never would have entered
the operating room ever again.
1068
00:55:02,520 --> 00:55:05,640
If you don't stop him,
1069
00:55:05,660 --> 00:55:10,020
Christopher Duntsch will
leave this courthouse,
1070
00:55:10,040 --> 00:55:13,593
leave this city, this state,
1071
00:55:13,610 --> 00:55:16,924
maybe even this country,
1072
00:55:16,940 --> 00:55:19,801
and he will find a corner of the world
1073
00:55:19,820 --> 00:55:24,633
that allows him to
continue hurting people.
1074
00:55:26,980 --> 00:55:32,230
Only you can tell him no more.
1075
00:55:32,250 --> 00:55:39,240
♪ ♪
1076
00:55:39,260 --> 00:55:41,100
They don't understand.
1077
00:55:42,840 --> 00:55:45,270
All I wanna do is go
back to my research.
1078
00:55:46,300 --> 00:55:47,993
You gotta tell 'em, Dad.
1079
00:55:48,010 --> 00:55:51,360
I will never practice surgery again.
1080
00:55:51,380 --> 00:55:54,440
If they let me, I can still do good.
1081
00:55:54,460 --> 00:55:58,140
- I can still help.
- Just stop, okay?
1082
00:55:58,170 --> 00:56:00,002
It's time to stop.
1083
00:56:01,620 --> 00:56:02,920
[SIGHS]
1084
00:56:07,080 --> 00:56:10,860
We had these hardwood
floors when you were little.
1085
00:56:12,460 --> 00:56:18,469
Active, always active. So energetic.
1086
00:56:18,470 --> 00:56:20,861
You were so strong.
1087
00:56:20,880 --> 00:56:24,540
You would push the furniture
around across these floors.
1088
00:56:26,060 --> 00:56:29,100
You never played with toys.
It was always the furniture.
1089
00:56:30,560 --> 00:56:32,830
And how many times did I ask you
1090
00:56:32,850 --> 00:56:34,980
to stop it with the furniture?
1091
00:56:36,650 --> 00:56:38,874
But you wouldn't stop.
1092
00:56:40,260 --> 00:56:41,940
You wouldn't stop.
1093
00:56:45,900 --> 00:56:50,980
Maybe jail's the best
thing for you, my boy.
1094
00:56:57,720 --> 00:56:59,895
You were less dull than
I thought you'd be.
1095
00:57:03,060 --> 00:57:05,270
You're too kind, Randy.
1096
00:57:05,290 --> 00:57:09,470
Probably blown the whole
case, but nice job.
1097
00:57:13,070 --> 00:57:15,100
We could have done more.
1098
00:57:15,120 --> 00:57:17,680
We should have done it more.
1099
00:57:17,700 --> 00:57:20,082
This is gonna happen again, you know.
1100
00:57:20,100 --> 00:57:23,551
Suppose we could do something.
1101
00:57:23,570 --> 00:57:25,060
I suppose we should.
1102
00:57:26,500 --> 00:57:28,640
Jury's back.
1103
00:57:28,660 --> 00:57:31,220
All right, well, we got
time for some hoops.
1104
00:57:31,240 --> 00:57:33,780
- I wish.
- [CHUCKLES]
1105
00:57:33,800 --> 00:57:35,040
We gonna win?
1106
00:57:39,240 --> 00:57:42,400
[DRAMATIC MUSIC]
1107
00:57:42,420 --> 00:57:43,680
I don't know.
1108
00:57:46,840 --> 00:57:48,780
[SIGHS]
1109
00:57:50,960 --> 00:57:52,690
I'm sorry.
1110
00:57:54,760 --> 00:57:56,180
You did great.
1111
00:57:57,970 --> 00:58:04,293
♪ ♪
1112
00:58:19,600 --> 00:58:22,780
_
1113
00:58:22,800 --> 00:58:25,820
_
1114
00:58:25,840 --> 00:58:28,275
_
1115
00:58:28,290 --> 00:58:31,440
_
1116
00:58:31,460 --> 00:58:35,300
_
1117
00:58:35,320 --> 00:58:38,200
- _
- [EXHALES]
1118
00:58:39,180 --> 00:58:43,100
_
1119
00:58:43,120 --> 00:58:46,910
_
1120
00:58:46,930 --> 00:58:49,505
♪ ♪
1121
00:58:49,520 --> 00:58:54,040
_
1122
00:58:56,220 --> 00:58:59,640
_
1123
00:58:59,660 --> 00:59:03,560
_
1124
00:59:03,580 --> 00:59:06,647
_
1125
00:59:06,660 --> 00:59:08,857
_
1126
00:59:08,870 --> 00:59:11,840
_
1127
00:59:11,860 --> 00:59:14,460
_
1128
00:59:14,480 --> 00:59:16,615
_
1129
00:59:16,630 --> 00:59:20,460
_
1130
00:59:20,490 --> 00:59:23,414
_
1131
00:59:23,430 --> 00:59:26,380
_
1132
00:59:26,410 --> 00:59:28,800
_
1133
00:59:28,830 --> 00:59:30,838
_
1134
00:59:30,850 --> 00:59:37,720
_
1135
00:59:37,740 --> 00:59:40,480
_
1136
00:59:40,500 --> 00:59:42,725
_
1137
00:59:42,740 --> 00:59:46,120
_
1138
00:59:46,140 --> 00:59:49,440
_
1139
00:59:49,460 --> 00:59:52,943
_
1140
00:59:52,960 --> 00:59:55,400
_
1141
00:59:55,420 --> 00:59:58,460
_
1142
00:59:58,480 --> 01:00:00,840
_
1143
01:00:00,860 --> 01:00:02,953
_
1144
01:00:02,970 --> 01:00:07,120
_
1145
01:00:07,140 --> 01:00:09,960
_
1146
01:00:09,980 --> 01:00:13,422
♪ ♪
1147
01:00:13,440 --> 01:00:16,020
_
1148
01:00:16,040 --> 01:00:18,960
_
1149
01:00:18,980 --> 01:00:21,620
_
1150
01:00:21,640 --> 01:00:23,839
_
1151
01:00:23,840 --> 01:00:28,270
♪ ♪
1152
01:00:28,290 --> 01:00:32,980
_
1153
01:00:33,010 --> 01:00:38,697
_
1154
01:00:38,710 --> 01:00:42,743
_
1155
01:00:42,760 --> 01:00:48,060
♪ ♪
1156
01:01:02,170 --> 01:01:11,400
_
1157
01:01:11,420 --> 01:01:18,600
♪ ♪
1158
01:01:18,620 --> 01:01:24,451
♪ ♪
1159
01:01:24,470 --> 01:01:27,600
♪ ♪
1160
01:01:27,610 --> 01:01:32,610
- Synced & corrected by MementMori -
-- www.addic7ed.com --
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