First Do No Harm (Benjamin Davis Book Series, Book 1) (21 page)

He paused a moment, letting his words sink in. “But I can’t represent you. Brad and I are already sideways in the Plainview cases. If I accept your case, I could injure the rights of my other clients. I can’t risk that. Brad would go berserk. He’s threatened to blow up the Plainview cases if I try to remove him as my co-counsel. He’d rather see everybody get nothing than be excluded from the process. He’s dead weight, but I’ve got no choice. I’ve got a contract with him. More important, his name’s on the contracts with each of my clients. I don’t trust him. I’d love to get him out of the cases, but we’re tied to each other like two guys in a three-legged race.

“I’ll give Littleton a call and try to light a fire under his ass. I’ll review their motion and casually make suggested arguments to counter the motion. He’ll piss and moan, but in the end, because he’s lazy, he’ll take my recommendations. I’m sorry, but that’s the best I can do. I wish I could do more, but I can’t.”

“I wish you could take control of my case, but I do understand. Any help you can give Littleton will be greatly appreciated,” Laura told him.

“Laura, remember that all the response must do is raise a material fact in dispute to defeat their motion. I promise that both Morty and I will examine the facts and try to identify at least one material fact in dispute.

“Doc, I have a telephone message from Sister
Carson. She called earlier today. Would you like to sit in on the callback?”

“I’d love to be included. We spoke last week about the Malone case. Anytime I get to talk to her is a treat. She’s been very supportive in helping me deal with my unemployment. She’s inspirational.”

Davis dialed Sister Carson’s number. The phone rang twice, and an unfamiliar voice answered.

“Mr. Davis, thank God you called back. Sister Carson is with Mother Superior Nash. I know they want to speak with you. I’ll transfer the call.”

The Sister put Davis on hold, and the next thing that Davis heard was the Mother. “Mr. Davis, Mother Superior Nash here. Sister Carson is with me. I have you on speakerphone.”

“Good morning, ladies. I have Dr. Patel with me. May I put you on speakerphone as well?”

When both lines were on speaker, Mother Superior Nash took control. “This morning at about eight I was in a meeting, and my secretary took a message from Dr. Charles English, requesting that I call him back. I was not familiar with the name, so I called back immediately. I was concerned that one of my Sisters was either sick or injured.”

Davis asked, “What did Dr. English have to say?”

“The conversation was about you and Dr. Patel. Dr. English was very angry, and he sounded like he was either drunk or on medication because he slurred his words. He was very loud and quite obnoxious. His tone was so unusual and aggressive that I decided to make notes of our conversation. Let me read them to you.”

Laura felt tension sweep through her body. She never expected any of the defendants to contact Sister
Carson or her order directly. Dr. English was out of control.

Mother Superior Nash began to read: “‘Did I know Sister Carson?’ I informed him that she was a beloved member of my order and the administrator and president of Saint Francis Hospital. ‘Did I know Dr. Laura Patel?’ I said I did. She had been a resident at Saint Francis several years ago, and Sister Carson had introduced us. He asked me if Sister Carson had anything to do with Dr. Patel’s adoption of two ‘Chink babies.’”

Laura couldn’t take it any longer: “He’s a very sick man. He needs psychiatric help.”

“I couldn’t agree more, my dear. I told him that I found that term offensive. I asked him why he was asking these questions. He accused Sister Carson of judging him without all the facts. He mentioned a Jew by the name of Ben Davis. He said that this Jew was trying to destroy his life and livelihood, just like the Jews killed Christ.”

Davis hadn’t spoken since the introduction. “Did he threaten you in any way?”

“He very loudly stated that he could not believe that a Catholic Sister could be a party to this. He claimed that Sister Carson was unwittingly being duped by Ben Davis and that, as her superior, I should intervene and prevent this injustice.

“Furthermore, he threatened to go to the bishop and, if necessary, the pope to prevent Sister Carson from threatening his livelihood. He said he would ‘pull out all guns,’ and he wouldn’t rest until this injustice was righted.”

Sister Carson broke in, “Mr. Davis, Mother has known about my involvement in the Plainview cases
since the beginning. I spoke to her immediately after our first conversation in 1992. I had her permission to testify as an expert witness.”

Laura could hear the two clergywomen talking on their end of the line.

“If you recall, you notarized my affidavit. My testimony is directed against the liability of the hospital, but clearly my opinion is that Dr. English and Dr. Herman were guilty of not only negligence but also recklessness. The hospital and doctors were all about the money. They cared nothing about their patients.”

Mother Superior Nash added, “He scared me, and I don’t scare easily. What do you think we should do?”

Laura felt compelled to answer, “These men are dangerous. Mr. Davis was recently beaten up in his office. He has not outright blamed the defendants in the Plainview cases, but God forgive me, I suspect Dr. English and his cohorts.”

Mother Superior Nash’s tone was even more concerned: “How badly was Mr. Davis injured?”

In a low voice, Laura answered for Davis: “God was protecting him.”

Davis supplied details: “My face was bruised and cut pretty badly. I had a couple of broken ribs and a dislocated shoulder.”

Laura knew that the seventy-four-year-old Mother Superior was a fighter and wouldn’t be scared off by English.

She proved it by her concluding remarks: “God will provide, and with the Lord’s help and a little bit of help from Mr. Davis, we’ll teach Dr. English about justice. I refuse to let this doctor intimidate us. We can risk a fight if it’s for a good cause.”

“Do you have a fax machine at the sanctuary?”

Sister Carson responded in the negative. There was a short pause before Davis continued: “Sister will drive back to the hospital and fax me the Mother’s notes so I can prepare an affidavit for her signature. Tomorrow, I’ll file a faxed copy of the affidavit with the court and ask for a protective order preventing Dr. English from contacting either of you two again. Sister, have you explained to the Mother that Dr. English is on the run and a criminal with a medical license?”

“No, I haven’t.”

Davis then gave Mother Superior the five-minute version of Dr. English’s legal problems with one ex-wife and his current status as a fugitive. Davis reported that he disappeared about seventy days ago and that the only person who possibly knew his whereabouts was his attorney, Ms. Pierce.

Sister Carson hesitated. “Ben, I’m willing to go forward and testify, but I can’t allow any of the defendants to injure the church or my order. I should also give an affidavit that Dr. English’s call was taken by me as a serious threat and that it was clear his purpose was to intimidate me and that now I am apprehensive. He clearly threatened to try to damage my reputation with the church, which is my most sacred possession. I told the Mother that if Dr. English in any way jeopardizes the order, I would withdraw my testimony.”

Davis assured them that Judge Boxer, within a day or so, would issue an order preventing Dr. English from further contacting them.

Sister Carson asked a relevant question: “Ben, if neither you nor Judge Boxer knows where Dr. English
is, how are you going to prevent him from coming here? He could travel to Saint Paul, either by plane or by car. He could be on our doorstep tomorrow. We need your help and the court’s protection.”

“You have my word, Sister, and my word is my bond.”

Sammie and Davis waited for twenty minutes in the conference room of Dunn, Moore and Thomas, Pierce’s firm. They timed their arrival perfectly, five minutes before the deposition was scheduled to begin. It was supposed to start at nine, and according to the subpoena, English was already fifteen minutes late. It was the first deposition in the Plainview cases scheduled by subpoena. All of the other ninety-nine depositions had been set by agreement of the attorneys as to time and date.

Dr. English failed to appear for his December 1st deposition in the Malone case. Earlier, Pierce warned Davis that English might not appear because he was afraid to enter the state for fear of arrest by order of Judge Lewis.

On the run for almost three months Dr. English requested a leave of absence from the hospital that, in light of the circumstances, the hospital was more than happy to grant. As far as Davis knew, Dr. English stayed out of Plains County and the rest of the state.

English owed a substantial amount of alimony and child support for his two children to his ex-wife, Susan. Judge Lewis was a mean son of a bitch. When he found English in civil contempt, Lewis knew exactly what he
was doing. Unlike criminal contempt where the judge must issue a sentence for a specific length of time, under civil contempt the sentence lasts until the offending party cures the contempt. In one case in Tennessee, a woman was held in contempt for more than six years because she refused to let her ex-husband see their son since she alleged he was a child molester. She hid the child while she served her unending sentence in prison. She was a very sympathetic figure. Even the other prisoners treated her with respect and did not bother the middle-class mother. Eventually, the United States Supreme Court ordered her released on the grounds that serving six years for contempt was cruel and inhumane punishment under the Eighth Amendment.

Davis was growing restless. Besides Sammie, only the court reporter was present. The court reporter had preserved the testimony of more than half the witnesses, so she was well aware of the particulars of the Plainview cases, including the reason for Dr. English’s unavailability.

About twenty-five minutes after the hour, Pierce and Stevenson entered the room. Both had serious expressions on their faces.

Pierce took the lead: “He’s not coming. He thinks you’re going to tip Sheriff Dudley and Judge Lewis off to his whereabouts and he’ll be arrested.”

Davis felt no sympathy for English. He felt sure English either instigated or knew who instigated his beating. Either way, Davis refused to cut him any slack. As usual, English was wrong. Davis wanted English’s deposition. Although he’d love to see the doctor arrested, betrayal wasn’t on Davis’s mind. It wouldn’t
be the right thing to do. “Your client is not a very trusting individual, is he?”

Pierce decided to hold her ace in the hole and force Davis to commit. “We can continue the deposition another day, but there’s no guarantee he’ll show up then. What about taking the deposition out of state? We have to be in Connors next month for Adams’s deposition. We can stay an extra day and get it done. Or how about Bowling Green, Kentucky? It’s over the Tennessee line. That’s only thirty minutes from Nashville.”

“Why should I accommodate Dr. English? You haven’t cut me any slack in where my depositions could be taken. I’ve had to travel to Plains County at least fifty times when it would have been more convenient for all four attorneys to take those depositions in Nashville, a four-minute walk for any of us. You’ve insisted that all of those depositions be taken in Plains County, despite any inconvenience to the witnesses. What about that quiet room? Could Stevenson have found any place more uncomfortable? Why should I be gracious now? Why shouldn’t I just file a petition for civil contempt?”

Davis had given Amy her opening. “I’ll tell you why. If you do, and English is held in contempt, his malpractice insurance company will deny him a defense in the Plainview cases. You’ll proceed against Dr. English without any insurance coverage, and he doesn’t have a pot to piss in. How do you think your clients would like that? I can tell you for certain that the other defendants would love it. Imagine an empty chair at trial. I can see it now. The hospital and Dr. Herman blaming English for killing poor Rosie Malone. Under those circumstances, the jury would award most, if not all, of the verdict against Dr. English, and with no
insurance, it would be uncollectible.”

Davis glanced over at Sammie and responded to Pierce, “I guess you’ll be out of a job then?”

Pierce assured him that she wasn’t kidding and that she had already spoken with representatives of the company, and they were willing to pull the plug.

Davis wasn’t going to be intimidated. Although the insurance company’s position was defendable, Davis couldn’t let English ignore the subpoena. “Make sure you fax the petition for contempt to PIC. Don’t waste time using the mail.”

For the record, Davis made the subpoena Exhibit 1 and stated that it was ten o’clock and the witness failed to appear. Davis further stated for the record that Ms. Pierce had represented that Dr. English had refused to appear in Plains County or anywhere else in the state for fear of Judge Lewis’s reprisal. Davis also put on the record Ms. Pierce’s threat of the withdrawal of defense and coverage if Davis filed a petition for contempt.

Davis turned to Pierce. “Anything else you want stated for the record, Ms. Pierce?”

“Look, Dr. English is unstable and crazy. The affidavit of Mother Superior Nash and the fact you’ve got a restraining order prove that. Dr. English’s insurer is not obligated to indemnify and pay out for someone who’s not cooperating and who’s capable of anything.”

Davis glared back at Pierce. He was about to test her reaction. “PIC has to pay off if it knew or should have known he was unstable. Also, Plainview Community Hospital should have known of your client’s incompetence and dishonesty. The hospital had the proof sitting in its pathology lab and did nothing. In fact, the hospital hid the proof.”

Pierce gave Davis a funny look. He couldn’t tell whether she knew about the gallbladder slides. If she didn’t, she would find out soon enough in the Malone case. If she did know, she didn’t take the bait.