Alan Yurko
Encyclopedia
Alan Yurko, born December 11, 1969 (age 42), was sentenced to life in prison + 10 years (in 1998) without parole for the murder
of his son while on parole for burglary, due to shaken baby syndrome
. However, the conviction was overturned on appeal and was released from prison on August 27, 2004.
Alan Yurko's infant son was born prematurely, suffered RDS, was underweight and ill throughout his 10 weeks of life. Despite being sick, he was vaccinated with several vaccines, including one from a batch manufactured by Connaught labs. The batch turned out to be the 'hottest lot' of DTaP of the 1990's. The baby's breathing, already labored, worsened after the vaccines, until 9 days later, Alan Yurko was with his son when his son stopped breathing. He rushed his son to the nearest emergency room. The child was found to have elevated liver enzymes, elevated blood sugar, inability to clot blood, and low blood pH. The treatment given was 2 antibiotics (despite normal WBC's and no fever), heparin (despite inability to clot blood), sodium bicarbonate, and dextrose (despite elevated blood sugar levels).
5 hours after the heparin IV was started, a brain CT was performed, which showed no cervical damage, and a small, unilateral subdural hematoma.
The child was overdosed with sodium bicarbonate.
4 days later life support was removed and the child's body was sent for autopsy. The autopsy was performed by Dr. Sashi Gore. Gore concurred with the consulting physician, Matthew Seibel, that this was a case of shaken baby syndrome. Alan Yurko, being the last adult with the baby, was blamed, charged and convicted.
According to the complaint written by Alan Yurko and Robert Murdoch, to the Florida board of medicine and to the Florida State Medical Examiners' Commission (FSMEC), there were 26 mistakes in the autopsy, including the statement that the baby was black, when in actual fact the baby was caucasian. Gore also stated that he examined the heart and took a slide of heart tissue, when in actual fact the heart had been taken for transplant. (The liver had also been taken for transplant, despite being in failure). The FSMEC found that Gore had used this autopsy report in 3 other cases. They subsequently suspended Gore from performing autopsies until his retirement. To this date no criminal charges have been brought against Gore.
After 7 years in Florida State prison, and facilitated in great part by the ardent and relentless support of his wife and thousands of supporters, Yurko' s conviction was overturned after some of the world's foremost authorities in pediatrics, environmental medicine, ophthalmology, internal medicine, hematology, biomechanics, vaccines, and pathology contributed expert opinion and/or testimony.
The case of Alan Yurko was the prime focus of a documentary entitled Vaccine Nation about vaccines and shaken baby syndrome.
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
of his son while on parole for burglary, due to shaken baby syndrome
Shaken baby syndrome
Shaken baby syndrome is a triad of medical symptoms: subdural hematoma, retinal hemorrhage, and brain swelling from which doctors, consistent with current medical understanding, infer child abuse caused by intentional shaking...
. However, the conviction was overturned on appeal and was released from prison on August 27, 2004.
Alan Yurko's infant son was born prematurely, suffered RDS, was underweight and ill throughout his 10 weeks of life. Despite being sick, he was vaccinated with several vaccines, including one from a batch manufactured by Connaught labs. The batch turned out to be the 'hottest lot' of DTaP of the 1990's. The baby's breathing, already labored, worsened after the vaccines, until 9 days later, Alan Yurko was with his son when his son stopped breathing. He rushed his son to the nearest emergency room. The child was found to have elevated liver enzymes, elevated blood sugar, inability to clot blood, and low blood pH. The treatment given was 2 antibiotics (despite normal WBC's and no fever), heparin (despite inability to clot blood), sodium bicarbonate, and dextrose (despite elevated blood sugar levels).
5 hours after the heparin IV was started, a brain CT was performed, which showed no cervical damage, and a small, unilateral subdural hematoma.
The child was overdosed with sodium bicarbonate.
4 days later life support was removed and the child's body was sent for autopsy. The autopsy was performed by Dr. Sashi Gore. Gore concurred with the consulting physician, Matthew Seibel, that this was a case of shaken baby syndrome. Alan Yurko, being the last adult with the baby, was blamed, charged and convicted.
According to the complaint written by Alan Yurko and Robert Murdoch, to the Florida board of medicine and to the Florida State Medical Examiners' Commission (FSMEC), there were 26 mistakes in the autopsy, including the statement that the baby was black, when in actual fact the baby was caucasian. Gore also stated that he examined the heart and took a slide of heart tissue, when in actual fact the heart had been taken for transplant. (The liver had also been taken for transplant, despite being in failure). The FSMEC found that Gore had used this autopsy report in 3 other cases. They subsequently suspended Gore from performing autopsies until his retirement. To this date no criminal charges have been brought against Gore.
After 7 years in Florida State prison, and facilitated in great part by the ardent and relentless support of his wife and thousands of supporters, Yurko' s conviction was overturned after some of the world's foremost authorities in pediatrics, environmental medicine, ophthalmology, internal medicine, hematology, biomechanics, vaccines, and pathology contributed expert opinion and/or testimony.
The case of Alan Yurko was the prime focus of a documentary entitled Vaccine Nation about vaccines and shaken baby syndrome.