Moving made sense for both of them. After his license was revoked from the Texas Medical Board, Young and Duntsch were evicted from their home. After his arrest, he still had those loving parents. At University General Hospital, Kirby had been granted emergency privileges to operate on a Duntsch patient named Jeffery Glidewell. Around this time, Drs. Coverage of the latest true crime stories and famous cases explained, as well as the best TV shows, movies and podcasts in the genre. They listened, judged and found Duntsch guilty, and sentenced him to life in prison, reports USA Today. Wendy Renee Young says she met Duntsch in 2011 at the Beauty Shopin Memphis, a bar and restaurant that borrowed its shtick from its past life as a curl-and-dye shop owned by Elvis Presleys ex-wife. AnnaSophia Robb, 27, portrays Michelle Shughart, the assistant district attorney on Dr. Death's case. He promises to take all pain and suffering away. He had a lot of animus to me personally. Enjoy unlimited access to all of our incredible journalism, in print and digital. A few days later, Glidewelldeveloped a serious infection due to the sponge left in his throat. Christopher Duntsch's medical license was suspended by the State Board after heavy lobbying from his former colleagues and wounded patients on June 26, 2013. She enlisted Duntsch to help fix it. But as Duntsch worked, Hoyle looked over and saw blood and not much else. And yet nearly all who met him said they liked him immediately. But hed make troubling, bizarre pronouncements, like Everybodys doing it wrong. Boop also said that Duntsch spent his final year operating as an attending physician, and was not allowed to operate independently. By December, Duntsch wrangled privileges at Legacy Surgery Center of Frisco, and Kirby, in his letter to the Texas Medical Board, narrated another grim outcome: Jacqueline Troys vocal cord was paralyzed, and her esophagus and trachea had become connected, an unheard of complication. A corrective surgery happened two weeks later, after she arrived at the emergency room of Texas Health Presbyterian Dallas, where Kirby practiced. There was Duntschs childhood friend, Jerry Summers, who woke up from a procedure unable to move his arms and legs. He is a graduate of Evangelical Christian School in the Cordova suburb of Memphis, where he starred in football. Martin paid with her lifebecause her doctor was too proud to say he screwed up. Again, he never revealed what went wrong to the other staff. Christopher Duntsch, Known As Dr. Death, Maimed His Patients Through Routine Back Surgery. The doctor in the strange case is now 50 years old. He was so appalled at the results of the procedures that he faxed a photo of Duntsch to the University of Tennessee to see if the surgeon was an impostor. [7] Over the course of 18-months, the nefarious ex-surgeon performed a spree of botched. Jackson stars as Christopher Duntsch, the titular nicknamed neurosurgeon, in Peacock's limited series based on the Wondery podcast of the same name (and of course the real-life former doctor's. Foley said Duntsch was satisfactory in his fellowship, that he saw no evidence of the things he was accused of in Dallas happening in Memphis. He wasn't concerned about the drugs in his system while he did his rounds. Henderson actually checked if Duntsch was a real doctor with The University of Tennessee, appalled at the damage to Efurd's spine. Plano surgeon Christopher Duntsch left a trail of bodies. He ran two labs, is listed as one of three inventors on a successful patent, raised millions of dollars in grant funding, and once gave a tour to the governor of Tennessee as he explained the stem cell research occurring at the university. Soon though, red flags began to pop up. According to court documents, Rimlawi soon grew suspicious of Duntsch. Based on Wondery's viral podcast of the same name, Stan's Dr. Death follows the sinister true story of former American neurosurgeon Dr. Christopher Duntsch, who became known as 'Dr. Death' after he left a trail of maimed patients across various hospitals in Texas. He said Youngwho by now had given birth to their son, Aidenwas just his secretary and friend. Ultimately, Duntsch'shorrific mistakes made during surgeryand alleged drug use caught up with him. A few weeks later I took my first son to visit him for Christmas and then I became pregnant, Young said. Duntsch declined a jailhouse interview, but he has called the allegations preposterous. A few months after the shoplifting arrest, Duntsch was charged with multiple counts of aggravated assault and injuring an elderly person for the damage he did on the operating table. Dallas County Jail/AP, Duntsch filed for bankruptcy and was arrested in Denver for driving under the influence on Jan. 10, 2014, according to, Ultimately, on that case, he ended up getting 12 months (of) probation and a small fine, Michelle Shughart, assistant district attorney in Dallas County, told, Duntsch is now living out his life behind bars, but Young told CNBC's, starring Joshua Jackson, Alec Baldwin and Christian Slater. Michael Rimlawi and Douglas Wonthe pair then owned the Minimally Invasive Spine Institute in North Dallasrecruited him from Memphis to join the practice. 1. The message alluded to a week where everything unraveled with their relationship. Brown had a massive stroke overnight that left her in a vegetative state, and her family chose to remove life support days later. With such goings-on, Duntsch got himself kicked out of his own company. The hospital saved face and avoided any lawsuits. Duntsch told Morgan a different story. It was clear to anyone whos not a complete idiot that they were a thing, he says. He told Morgan that Young, who was pregnant at the time with their first son, was his close friend and secretary. During the 45-minute surgery, Duntsch cut through one of Martin's arteries. According to Dallas Magazine, Dr. Christopher Duntsch talked a big game. It was something that made us all nervous, but we never had any proof, Boop said in the phone call. You dont get to walk away from two or three years of medical training, in the middle of an internship or a residency, get to take time off and be slotted directly in the position you left in with no questions asked. Duntsch began cheating on. "The Sun", "Sun", "Sun Online" are registered trademarks or trade names of News . If that weren't enough, Page once happened across a drawer at Duntsch's house. In it, he is yelling at Maria Lopez, the medical board investigator assigned to Duntsch's case in January 2013, demanding to know why he was still practicing. Joshua Jackson as Christopher Duntsch in "Dr. Death." (Peacock/Scott McDermott/Peacock) The real Duntsch, a Texas-based surgeon, maimed or killed 33 of 38 surgical patients between 2011 and . Duntsch could have turned it into something good and meaningful. Saul Elbein writes in the Texas Observer that Dr. Hendersonsent him a recording of his complaint to the Texas Medical Board. Lee Passmore cant feel his feet. His work ethic, character, and ability to get along with others were beyond reproach, Robertson wrote. Dallas, Texas 75201. The Dallas County DA, along with fighting against these very laws, was also running out of time. There was a dissection of one patients esophagus, and screws that an indictment labeled far too long that caused significant blood loss in another patient. Young said Duntschfollowed her and told her he could explain the bizarre scene. I cannot recall a physician being indicted for aggravated assault for acts committed during surgery, says Toby Shook, a Dallas defense attorney who spent 23 years working as a Dallas County prosecutor. She arrived brain-dead. Brings new meaning to the phrase Sunday Funday. But thats all. Duntsch did his surgical residency at The University of Tennessee. But hospital after hospital passed the buck. Her body was in the Collin County Medical Examiners office in March 2012. Six weeks after her death on March 12, 2012, the medical examiner ruled her fate an accident. There was Kellie Martin, who died from massive blood loss after a surgery at Baylor Plano. Most of the time, she said, their relationship was confined to his office. After Summers procedure, Morgan says Duntsch was not allowed to operate at Baylor Plano until March 2012. But Dr. William Rohr did editorialize in his conclusion: The collection of blood was most likely the result of a therapeutic misadventure. Duntsch blames the death on an allergy to fentanyl, a powerful narcotic often used in intubation. Unequivocally, testified an expert witness, a neurosurgeon should stop practicing after incurring multiple patient deaths and severe outcomes. Dr Christopher Duntsch is accused of causing agony to countless patients or worse during the three years he practiced medicine in Dallas. The full story of Duntsch's actions can be read in Matt Goodman's D Magazine feature from 2016, when the magazine first coined him "Dr. Death.". Why else would his daughter have sent Duntsch a card thanking him? You, my child, are the only one between me and the other side, he wrote. In July 2015, indictments came through. 679215 Registered office: 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF. At this point, Ive had enough and so I called the police.. The real question is:Can this TV show bring about a change in medical law, or how hospitals treat their patients and doctors? Thus, his license was revoked for good on December 6, 2013. According to Dallas Magazine, a woman named Megan Kane remembered how Duntsch partied with her onhis birthday. They numbed the pain radiating from his lower back, down each of his legs. It was a revision of a patient whom he originally operated on at Baylor Plano. Later, he filed for bankruptcy and moved in with his parents in Colorado. Jurors convicted Duntsch Tuesday of injury to an elderly person in the botched July 2012 surgery that put Mary Efurd in a wheelchair. He will not be eligible for parole until 2045, when he will be 74-years-old. Duntsch had allegedly tried to steal the pair of pants by changing into the new pair in a Wal-Mart dressing room and placing his own pants into the shopping cart. Summers declined an interview in Memphis and would not answer questions on the phone. When the Texas Medical Board revoked his license, Duntsch's reign of surgical terror had run its course. Philip is one of more than 30 people maimed by Dr. Christopher Duntsch, nicknamed Dr. Death by the media. In 2005, about a third of the way through the six-year program, department chairman Dr. Jon Robertson appointed him program director of the schools tissue bank, where hed supply samples to scientists and oversee two labs. According to him, Duntsch had a "great work ethic" and no areas of weakness. Sign up forOxygen Insiderfor all the best true crime content. She also says they snorted cocaine from a small pile that he kept on a dresser in his home office. It is during this period that Duntschs carefully built faade began showing its first cracks. At that point, the administration revoked his privileges. They'd requested an investigation into his matter, deeming him to be a threat to the general public. She passedfromblood loss in the ICU. Of that set, two died and 31 were paralyzed or seriously injured. But Hoyle says an X-ray later showed it was positioned too far to the left. Britney Spears claims she was 'scared of drunk dad Jamie' & family 'abandoned her to stay in beach house SHE bought', RHOBH's Erika Jayne breaks down in tears & admits she's 'lonely' after friends 'turned on her' when she went 'broke', Kendall Jenner stuns in an all-black gothic look for glam new photoshoot, Russell Brand defends his dog after pooch mauled wallaby to death on walk, Why odd double act Kim Kardashian and Kate Moss are in fact a perfect match, Teen Mom Leah Messer shows stretch marks on tummy after giving birth to three kids & reveals if she'll get a tummy tuck, Duntsch, 50, was convicted of a first-degree felony. Duntsch's license was finally revoked in June 2013, after he had killed two patients and maimed 31 others. I was on the third story.. The Texas DA chose six patients to make their case to the jury: Lee Passmore, Barry Morguloff, Jerry Summers, Kellie Martin, Floella Brown, and Mary Efurd. Portrayed in the Peacock miniseries, "Dr. Death," the Dallas spinal surgeon is responsible for helping stop Dr. Christopher Duntsch, who was sentenced to life in prison in 2017 after leaving . Passmore also learned about Kenneth Fennell, a 68-year-old who alleged in a lawsuit that, during a November procedure, Duntsch operated on the wrong body part. Christopher Daniel Duntsch was born in Montana on April 3, 1971, and raised alongside his three siblings in an affluent suburb of Memphis, Tennessee. Meanwhile, Brown went brain dead and passed away. But they were also, presumably, two consenting adults, and both were, presumably, qualified to fix the pain that was wrecking his lower body. Where Is Dr. Christopher Duntsch aka . He broke into her home a second time in the incident where he was covered in blood and also allegedly began harassing personal injury attorney Kay Van Wey, who represented many of his former patients, in a series of rambling emails. I thought he was either really, really good, or hes just really, really arrogant and thought he was good, Hoyle says now. In April 2012, just over four months removed from that initial surgery, Passmore returned to work. Boop told Henderson that Duntsch had been sent to an impaired physician program when he refused to take a drug test after an anonymous woman called to say she had seen him use cocaine, but he had been allowed to return to finish his residency. The original patent still holds, and hopefully, Discgenics would be able to break out of the Dr. Death shadow todo some real anti-cancer work instead. Something was wrong, one lawsuit alleges, whether it be impairment from drugs, alcohol, mental illness, or a combination of all three. His first and only surgery with Minimally Invasive Spine Institute was on a Thursday at Baylor Plano. "You don't know this yet, but you will never walk again. This is notably weird, considering Christopher Duntsch trained underDr. Boop, so you'd assume that theyoperated together as part of the whole learning surgery process. He didnt contact a lawyer, although he wrestled with the decision. And professional marketing videos got him ready and willing patients. A longtime field agent for the Collin County Medical Examiner, Passmore needed knowledge from his training at scenes. He argues that the patients were just telling stories and that Passmore was fine after his operation. The statute of limitations made them base their case on only six victims. Duntsch ended up slicing her vertebral artery, stopping blood and oxygen flow to her brain. The civil attorneys in these cases were able to land a rather damning e-mail sent from Duntsch to his girlfriend/physical assistant.The girlfriend was Kimberly Morgan, and in the e-mail to her, the ramblings of a mind gone wrong are clear. Hell tell you as much. The 78-year-old Denton County man was then Dr. Christopher Duntsch's first patient when the surgeon started performing spinal fusions in 2011. Jamie Dornan was originally attached to play Christopher in the beginning. His mom was a teacher. But for his victims, the judgment was a big relief. (Neither responded to requests for comment for this story.) With Ignatova and Kukekov in tow, he filed patents under a company he founded. She says he was prone to hyperbole, and, yeah, he had a questionable sense of humor. But he was apprehended trying to leave the store. Oxygen Insider is your all-access pass to never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more. He had a room upstairs in the Plano house. She told D Magazine they named the boys Aiden and Preston. Duntschs legal woes were only just beginning. St. Jude says there was no such program at the hospital at that time. Like Summers, Floella Browns vertebral artery was damaged, causing massive bleeding. The damage is irreversible. Christopher Duntsch, aka Dr Death / Joshua Jackson 6 Facebook Dr. Christopher Duntsch on his first day as a neurosurgeon. He lost everything, so having to face the reality was very hard for him.. Next week marks the five-year anniversary of Texas neurosurgeon Christopher Duntsch being sentenced to life in prison. According to Irving-based physician recruitment firm Merritt Hawkins, a single neurosurgeon produced his or her hospital an average revenue of $2.45 million in 2015. In 2017, he was sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty. GQ calls it the scariest podcast of 2019. And yet, the names of the latter are incorrect and misspelled. While staying with his parents outside Denver, he was stopped for driving under the influence. Duntsch allegedly arrivedat the hospital three hours after the surgery wasplanned to start and began the procedure. But that isn't the scariest part. In the two years he practiced as a spine surgeon across four Dallas institutions, Duntsch operated on 37 people. In September, according to police reports . NovoStem Therapeutics, which attempted to monetize the cancer stem cell discovery, failed after taking a funding hit during the 2008 recession. He gained experience writing grants, and earned more than $3 million in local, state, and federal funding for research projects where he served as principal or co-principal investigator. Creating cells from a culture would eliminate the need for human extraction; there was huge potential upside. So, I went back to Dallas. He said, Its not your case, its another case, and were looking into it. I trust that man wholly. But, he says, It all started coming together in my head that this isnt a one-time mistake.. Duntsch then joined Dallas Medical Center. Many shake and tremble, some have unimaginable pain. DR Death, Peacocks new limited series starring Joshua Jackson, is based on a true story, and we have your look at photos comparing the cast with their real-life counterparts. Dr. Death might not have cared about being a surgeon, just the prestige that came with it. Passmore was allowed to resign and still access his long-term disability insurance, which he says hed paid into for more than 10 years. Her bright blond hair is pulled back into a ponytail, and shes wearing a tank top with yoga pants. A neurosurgeon reviewing the case for the court found an errant screw had not only opened Brown's arterybut blocked it, and that Duntsch hadmisdiagnosed Brown, operating on the wrong area entirely. She describes investigators with binoculars camped out on their street in a white van, trying to see into their home. Joshua Jackson as Dr. Christopher Duntsch Asked if he had a chance to meet with Duntsch, who's now serving a life sentence for maiming Mary Efurd during what should have been routine surgery,. He kept a handle of Stoli under his desk and said it was because he used to work with Russians. I thought it was pretty amazing that he was even able to go to work the next day, she said in the deposition. The new true crime show, which comes out Thursday, tells the story of promising-turned-disgraced surgeon, Dr. Christopher Duntsch (played by Jackson), who was accused of maiming and killing his more than two dozed patients. They lived in a future colleagues condo at the W Hotel while they looked for a home in Plano, close to where Duntsch would be practicing. One such recommendation came from the surgeon under whom Duntsch completed his residency, Dr. Frederick Boop. Armed with Baylors declaration that it never amended his privileges, Duntsch found work in four months. He stayed local for medical school, enrolling the next year at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. He says Fennells surgery went so well that he agreed to be in a commercial for Baylor Plano. . They met as Duntsch was looking for opportunities in an operating room somewhere. If he could do 50Shades of Grey and some scandalous modeling, playing a menacing Dr. Death should be a piece of cake, right? On average, a neurosurgeon generates more revenue for a hospital than all other specialties but invasive cardiology and orthopedic surgery. It was a downward spiral pretty rapidly after he lost his license, Young said in the docuseries. Dawsons Creek heartthrob Jackson stars as the titular character of Dr Death, which ended up becoming Duntschs nickname after the accusations came out. Shes 33 now and doesnt live in Dallas anymore. Im the only clean minimally invasive guy in the whole state. Thats according to Dr. Mark Hoyle, who was the general surgeon during Passmores surgery. Dr. Duntsch is at number one. For the last three days, jurors listened to testimony in the . Neurosurgeon Duntsch Found Guilty, Faces Life in Prison, In Duntschs Assault Trial, Questions About His Role After Patient Deaths, In Second Day of Testimony, Doctor Calls Neurosurgeon Duntschs Outcomes Catastrophic. It was hearsay, he contended. He kind of let himself into my apartment by climbing up my balcony, she said. He always had a plan, always had a pitch, always had a way to fix you. He was shocked at the CT scan: the spinal fusion hardware sat in her soft tissue. But Morguloffs suit describes him being in excruciating pain and telling nurses that his pain was a 10 on a scale of 1 to 10. Duntsch maintains that the practice didnt meet the promises it agreed to, and that it still owes him money. Strangely enough, Dr. Boop also mentioned, "I have not operated with Chris." The company, Discgenics, is still going, and still holds the patents, listingDuntsch, Ignatova, and Kukekov as the inventors. Duntsch calls thisand most other claimsnonsense. He says he showed the postoperative imaging to 16 radiologists over six months, all of whom said Morguloff was normal. Duntsch had another surgery scheduled the day that Brown suffered her stroke. All Duntsch got was a slap on the wrist while his blood-soaked foray into the OR continued. Young puts Morgan there, too, although Morgan denied it in her deposition. He has taken Baylor Plano to court to change the Texas law requiring patients to prove that a hospital intended to harm them when it granted privileges to someone who was unsafe. There were two names on the top page: Kellie Martin and Christopher Duntsch. Kukekov and Ignatova say Duntsch took more credit than he deserved for the discoveries. In real life, after helping the ADA Michelle Shughart send Duntsch to jail, Dr Henderson continues to practice medicine in Texas. And, seeing as how the hospital was asking specifically about that training, Foley said he didnt feel comfortable expressing concern about what hed heard was happening in Dallas. Finally, in July 2015, the Dallas County District Attorneys Office followed through. Anton Floquet/NBCUniversal, I knocked on my door. And there were plenty of other signs as well. In a video recording of her deposition, she fidgets often, angling her head to look at a jug of Stoli, shaking her head yes or no, furrowing her brow at some of the questions. I have lost both companies. He would file for bankruptcy years later, and the filings show that Duntsch has had no managerial role with Discgenics since 2012, when he was removed as a board member and as chief science officer. Finally, it was the Texas Medical Board (TMB) that acted too late, too little. He called Baylor Plano President Jerri Garison, who was clearly familiar with Duntsch and was just as clear about how little she could say on the matter: He no longer has privileges here, and I have to be very careful about what I say to you. Baylor said it was unable to provide its executives for interviews because of Passmores pending lawsuit. He projected that I was the source of a lot of his problems and difficulties.. As one lawyer told me off the record, they faced an almost impossible dilemma: settle and give their families a financial cushion for the future medical costs but sacrifice their right to tell their stories. (She says this was a misunderstanding, that she had asked him to retrieve Aiden and bring him to the hospital.) She assumed Morgan was only helping with research. As these cases became public record, rumors circulated of late-night partying leading into early-morning rounds, and whispers of drug and alcohol abuse became shouts. Dr. Duntsch eventually began a long-term romantic relationship with Wendy Renee Young while in Memphis. Those are the words that Dr. Christopher Duntsch, a Dallas neurosurgeon, wrote to his girlfriend in 2011 in the midst of a two-year period that left 33 of his 38 patients maimed, wounded or. An "In Memoriam" tribute for him is shown at the end of the final episode of the Peacock series. Take the case of Dr. Death, aka Dr. Christopher Duntsch. The shocking story of a madman with a scalpel. The encounter was just one of a series of troubling incidents after Duntschwho once referred to himself as a mixture of God, Einstein and the Antichristlost his medical license in December of 2013 for leaving numerouspatients either maimed, in agonizing chronic pain, or, in two cases, dead. That's when he moved to Colorado to live with his parents. According to Texas Medical Board records, Summers vertebral artery was damaged, and he lost more than two liters of blood while intubated. To become a neurosurgeon, one typically has to complete over 1000 surgeries in residency, but somehow, reporter Laura Beil discovered that Duntsch only completed 100. I agree completely with Dr. Hoyles complaint to the board when he stated that Dr. Duntsch is the most careless, clueless, and dangerous spine surgeon either of us has ever seen, Kirby wrote. It was pouring out of the epidural blood vessels and pooling in the disc space. No such thing. 33 of his surgeries went horribly wrong. Unlike Summers, Brown, 63, suffered from hypertension and was a stroke risk. Seven more doctors voiced complaints before TMB finally canceled Dr. Death's license. They turned around, away from the yelling. So the hospitals he worked for knew of his carelessness and sociopathic behavior in the OR. Multiple lawsuits allege that Baylor did not report Duntsch to the National Practitioner Data Bank, which was created by Congress to be a private clearinghouse of physicians who have been suspended or had their privileges revoked.
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