False Memory Case Drags on for 15 Years
Peter Freyd to FMS-news
show details 10:05 AM (2 hours ago)
Charles and Karen Johnson Win Epic Wisconsin Case
Johnson v Rogers Memorial Hospital No 98-0445
A jury in Madison, Wisconsin returned its verdict at approximately 1:00 a.m. Sunday morning
January 23, 2011 in the case Charles and Karen Johnson brought against the the Rogers
Memorial Hospital chain of psychiatric hospitals in Wisconsin. The jury found doctors
negligent in two of the three counts and awarded Karen and Charles Johnson $1 million.
This case has been in the courts for 15 years because of the difficulties in mounting a 3rd
party action. It is especially significant because the Johnson daughter apparently still believes
her memories of abuse and satanic rituals. The case went to the Wisconsin Supreme Court
twice on issues dealing with access to therapy records because the Johnson daughter did not
give permission for access to those records.
Attorney for the Johnsons, William Smoler, kept a clear focus on the standards of care and
showed how the doctors failed to meet those standards in their treatment of the Johnsons'
daughter.
A more complete description of the case will be included in the Winter 2011 FMSF Newsletter.
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/12/02/woman-claims-psychologist-implanted-horrific-
memories/
Woman: Psychologist implanted horrific memories
By JIM SALTER, Associated Press – 20 hours ago
ST. LOUIS (AP) — The memories that came flooding back were so horrific that Lisa Nasseff
says she tried to kill herself: she had been raped several times, had multiple personalities and
took part in satanic rituals involving unthinkable acts. She says she only got better when she
realized they weren't real.
Nasseff, 31, is suing a suburban St. Louis treatment center where she spent 15 months being
treated for anorexia, claiming one of its psychologists implanted the false memories during
hypnosis sessions in order to keep her there long-term and run up a bill that eventually
reached $650,000. The claims seem unbelievable, but her lawyer, Kenneth Vuylsteke, says
other patients have come forward to say they, too, were brainwashed and are considering
suing.
"This is an incredible nightmare," Vuylsteke said.
Castlewood Treatment Center's director, Nancy Albus, and the psychologist, Mark Schwartz,
deny the allegations, and Albus pledged to vigorously fight the lawsuit, which was filed Nov. 21
and seeks the repayment of medical expenses and punitive damages. As in other repressed
memory cases, which typically involve allegations of child abuse, the outcome will likely hinge
on the testimony of experts with starkly different views on how memory works.
Nasseff stayed at Castlewood from July 2007 through March 2008 and returned for seven
months in 2009. She was struggling with anorexia.
Next
Peter Freyd to FMS-news
show details 10:05 AM (2 hours ago)
Charles and Karen Johnson Win Epic Wisconsin Case
Johnson v Rogers Memorial Hospital No 98-0445
A jury in Madison, Wisconsin returned its verdict at approximately 1:00 a.m. Sunday morning
January 23, 2011 in the case Charles and Karen Johnson brought against the the Rogers
Memorial Hospital chain of psychiatric hospitals in Wisconsin. The jury found doctors
negligent in two of the three counts and awarded Karen and Charles Johnson $1 million.
This case has been in the courts for 15 years because of the difficulties in mounting a 3rd
party action. It is especially significant because the Johnson daughter apparently still believes
her memories of abuse and satanic rituals. The case went to the Wisconsin Supreme Court
twice on issues dealing with access to therapy records because the Johnson daughter did not
give permission for access to those records.
Attorney for the Johnsons, William Smoler, kept a clear focus on the standards of care and
showed how the doctors failed to meet those standards in their treatment of the Johnsons'
daughter.
A more complete description of the case will be included in the Winter 2011 FMSF Newsletter.
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/12/02/woman-claims-psychologist-implanted-horrific-
memories/
Woman: Psychologist implanted horrific memories
By JIM SALTER, Associated Press – 20 hours ago
ST. LOUIS (AP) — The memories that came flooding back were so horrific that Lisa Nasseff
says she tried to kill herself: she had been raped several times, had multiple personalities and
took part in satanic rituals involving unthinkable acts. She says she only got better when she
realized they weren't real.
Nasseff, 31, is suing a suburban St. Louis treatment center where she spent 15 months being
treated for anorexia, claiming one of its psychologists implanted the false memories during
hypnosis sessions in order to keep her there long-term and run up a bill that eventually
reached $650,000. The claims seem unbelievable, but her lawyer, Kenneth Vuylsteke, says
other patients have come forward to say they, too, were brainwashed and are considering
suing.
"This is an incredible nightmare," Vuylsteke said.
Castlewood Treatment Center's director, Nancy Albus, and the psychologist, Mark Schwartz,
deny the allegations, and Albus pledged to vigorously fight the lawsuit, which was filed Nov. 21
and seeks the repayment of medical expenses and punitive damages. As in other repressed
memory cases, which typically involve allegations of child abuse, the outcome will likely hinge
on the testimony of experts with starkly different views on how memory works.
Nasseff stayed at Castlewood from July 2007 through March 2008 and returned for seven
months in 2009. She was struggling with anorexia.
Next
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