Judge Presiding Over Roundup Lawsuits Hears Testimony From Experts About Cancer Claims
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says glyphosate, the ingredient in Roundup at the heart of the suits, is safe for humans when used in accordance with label directions. Some experts say otherwise.
The Associated Press:
Judge Delves Into Science Behind Roundup Cancer Claim
A federal judge on Monday waded into the arcane science behind claims that the widely used weed killer Roundup can cause cancer. The expected weeklong testimony is intended to help him determine whether a jury should hear from doctors who link the product to non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria heard from an epidemiologist at the University of California, Los Angeles about how she evaluated scientific studies of glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup, to arrive at her conclusion that it can cause cancer. (Thanawala, 3/5)
In other health-related news from the courts —
Orange County Register:
San Marcos Man Charged In Connection To Overdose Death Of Camp Pendleton Marine
A 25-year-old San Marcos man will appear in U.S. District Court Tuesday, March 6, on federal charges of distribution of drugs resulting in the death of a Camp Pendleton Marine, officials from the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced Monday. Kyle Anthony Shephard, on Friday, was formally charged with one count of distribution of fentanyl resulting in death. He is accused of selling four fentanyl-laced pills for $100 to a Marine corporal whom he met in Escondido on Jan. 26, 2017, according to a federal complaint unsealed Friday. (Ritchie, 3/5)
San Gabriel Valley Tribune:
Botched Buttocks Enhancement Ends In 2-Year Sentence For California Woman
A Monterey Park woman who injected an unknown liquid into another woman’s buttocks as a cosmetic procedure was sentenced Monday to two years in federal prison for violating the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act. The victim ended up in the hospital and had a portion of her buttocks removed and underwent skin grafts, according to court documents. (Gonzales, 3/5)
Orange County Register:
Can A Mentally Challenged California Man Stay In Marriage He Might Not Understand?
In the cold and decidedly unromantic eyes of the law, “Marriage is a personal relation arising out of a civil contract between two persons, to which the consent of the parties capable of making that contract is necessary.” So can a man like Ryan Morris – whose mental abilities at age 24 run at roughly a kindergarten level, with disabilities so severe he can’t think abstractly, manage money or care for himself – give informed consent to a marriage and sexual relationship? (Sforza, 3/2)
East Bay Times:
Orinda Child Psychologist Pleads Guilty To Child Porn, Contempt Of Court
It was a plea federal prosecutors were expecting months ago — until they discovered the defendant had continued to download child pornography after bailing out of federal custody on similar charges. Kenneth Breslin, 69, pleaded guilty to two counts of possessing child porn and one count of contempt of court last week, authorities said. His sentencing date has been set for May 27. (Gartrell, 3/3)