Child Psychiatry Comes Under Scrutiny SP TIMES

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It's an Associated Press story but it was published today - full page -

in the St. sburg Times.

A child is quieted, forever, by pills

Prosecutors charge Riley's parents with murder and child

psychiatry comes under scrutiny after the 4-year-old dies of an overdose

of prescribed drugs.

By ASSOCIATED PRESS

Published March 25, 2007

_____

HULL, Mass. - In the final months of Riley's life, a school

nurse said the little girl was so weak she was like a " floppy doll. "

The preschool principal had to help off the bus because the

4-year-old was shaking so badly.

And a pharmacist complained that 's mother kept coming up with

excuses for why her daughter needed more and more medication.

None of their concerns was enough to save .

- who had been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity

and bipolar disorder, or what used to be called manic depression - died

Dec. 13 of an overdose of prescribed drugs, and her parents have been

arrested on murder charges, accused of intentionally overmedicating

their daughter to keep her quiet and out of their hair.

Interviews and a review of court documents make it clear that many of

those who were supposed to protect - teachers, social workers,

other professionals - suspected something was wrong, but never went

quite far enough.

The tragic case is more than a story about one child. It raises

troubling, larger questions about the state of child psychiatry, namely:

- Can children as young as be accurately diagnosed with mental

illnesses?

- Are rambunctious youngsters being medicated for their parents'

convenience?

- Should children so young be prescribed powerful psychotropic drugs

meant for adults?

Dispensing drugs to children diagnosed with mood or behavior problems is

" the easiest thing to do, but it's not always the best thing to do, "

said Dr. Jon McClellan, medical director of the Child Study and

Treatment Center in Lakewood, Wash. " At some level, I would hope that

you'd also be teaching kids ways to control their behavior. "

According to the medical examiner, died of a combination of

Clonidine, a blood pressure medication she had been prescribed for ADHD;

Depakote, an antiseizure and mood-stabilizing drug prescribed for the

little girl's bipolar disorder; a cough suppressant; and an

antihistamine.

The amount of Clonidine alone in 's system was enough to be

fatal, the medical examiner said.

The two brand-name prescription drugs are approved by the Food and Drug

Administration for use in adults only, though doctors can legally

prescribe them to youngsters and do so frequently.

's parents, and Carolyn Riley, say they were only

following doctor's orders. , they told police, had been diagnosed

when she was just 2 1/2, and 's psychiatrist prescribed the same

potent drugs that had been prescribed for her older brother and sister

when she diagnosed them with the same illnesses several years earlier.

's teachers, the school nurse and her therapist all told police

that they never saw behavior in that fit her diagnoses, such as

aggression, sharp mood swings or hyperactivity.

Prosecutors say the Rileys intentionally tried to quiet with

high doses of Clonidine. Relatives told police the Rileys called

Clonidine the " sleep medicine. "

Through their attorneys, Riley, 34, and Carolyn Riley, 32, have

accused 's psychiatrist, Dr. Kayoko Kifuji, of overprescribing

medication.

Kifuji did not return calls for comment, but she has vehemently denied

any role in 's death. She has agreed to a suspension of her

license while the state's medical board investigates.

Kifuji told police had been her patient since August 2004, when

she was 2. She said she based her diagnoses of ADHD and bipolar disorder

on the family's mental health history, as described by Carolyn Riley,

and 's behavior, as described by Carolyn and briefly observed by

her during office visits.

Kifuji told police she became alarmed in October 2005 when Carolyn Riley

told her she had increased 's nighttime dose of Clonidine from 2

to 2 1/2 tablets, and warned Carolyn that the increase could kill

.

But Carolyn told investigators Kifuji told her she could give

and her sister extra Clonidine at night to help them sleep.

Tufts-New England Medical Center, where Kifuji works, issued a statement

supporting Kifuji, saying her care of " was appropriate and

within responsible professional standards. "

In the months leading up to 's death, others noticed there was

something wrong.

Teachers and staff members at the Early Childhood Center in

Weymouth, about 20 miles south of Boston, say they called 's

mother repeatedly to tell her that was " out of it, " but her

mother said the girl was tired because she wasn't sleeping well.

A neighbor who lived next door to the family in the last month of

's life said and her siblings seemed listless.

'Like little robots'

" They looked like little robots. They looked very lethargic, " Phyllis

Lipton said. " I said, 'Wow, they don't look right,' but who knew? "

Pharmacists at Walgreens in Weymouth called Kifuji twice to complain

that Carolyn Riley was asking for more Clonidine, even though her

prescription was not due to be refilled, according to state police.

Once, Riley said she had lost a bottle of pills, and another time, she

said water had gotten into her prescription bottle and ruined the pills,

according to police.

Kifuji authorized refills, but after the second incident, she began

prescribing Clonidine in 10-day refills instead of 30-day supplies,

investigators said.

On Aug. 16, a prescription for 35 Clonidine tablets - a 10-day supply -

was filled at Walgreens, even though the Rileys had obtained a 10-day

refill only the day before, investigators said.

Walgreens spokeswoman Tiffani Bruce said: " The scrip was filled as

written, as it was prescribed by the doctor, and all the appropriate

information on the medications was given to the family. "

After 's death, police found only seven Clonidine tablets in the

family's medicine tray. Altogether, prosecutors say, Carolyn Riley got

200 more pills in one year than she should have.

The Rileys' lawyers call them unsophisticated people who did not

question their children's doctors.

Both are unemployed; they collect welfare and disability benefits.

Riley, who is also awaiting trial on charges of molesting a

stepdaughter in 2005, claimed to suffer from bipolar disorder and a rage

disorder; his wife told police she suffered from depression and anxiety.

" They are not the sort of people who go on the Internet and look on

WebMD. These are the sort of people who, when they go to a doctor, the

doctor is God and they do what the doctor says, " said Darrell,

's lawyer.

In July, after a therapist filed a complaint with the state Department

of Social Services, social workers met with the family's doctors and

other medical professionals and were assured that the medications

was taking were within medical guidelines.

" There were lots of medical eyes on this case and none of them seemed to

say there was an issue of overmedication in this case, " said Social

Services Commissioner Harry Spence, who has come under fire for the

agency's handling of the case.

's uncle, McGonnell, and his girlfriend, ,

who lived with the Rileys, told police that the Rileys would put their

kids to bed as early as 5 p.m. , they said, often slept through

the day and got up only to eat.

According to McGonnell and , spent the last days of her

life wandering around the house, sick and disoriented. But the Rileys

told police they were not alarmed. " It was just a cold, " Carolyn said

during police interviews.

_____

Stop TeenScreen Petition:

<http://www.petitiononline.com/TScreen/petition.html>

http://www.petitiononline.com/TScreen/petition.html

TeenScreen - National Fraud Video:

TeenScreen Documents:

<http://libertycoalition.net/cognitive-liberty/psychiatry-gone-wild-teen

screen-documents-exposed>

http://libertycoalition.net/cognitive-liberty/psychiatry-gone-wild-teens

creen-documents-exposed (download them and post them all over the net)

How to Make a Blog: <http://www.blogger.com/start>

http://www.blogger.com/start (so you can help get the word out on the

net)

[Guest guest]

Let your comments rip here:

http://www.sptimes.com/2007/03/25/Worldandnation/A_child_is_quieted__f.s

html (Comments may be published online and/or in print.) Your

comments will be reviewed - they are not instantly posted.

Suggestion: Thank them, stick to the facts and let them know that

parents need to be informed.

It's an Associated Press story but it was published today - full page -

in the St. sburg Times.

A child is quieted, forever, by pills

Prosecutors charge Riley's parents with murder and child

psychiatry comes under scrutiny after the 4-year-old dies of an overdose

of prescribed drugs.

By ASSOCIATED PRESS

Published March 25, 2007

_____

HULL, Mass. - In the final months of Riley's life, a school

nurse said the little girl was so weak she was like a " floppy doll. "

The preschool principal had to help off the bus because the

4-year-old was shaking so badly.

And a pharmacist complained that 's mother kept coming up with

excuses for why her daughter needed more and more medication.

None of their concerns was enough to save .

- who had been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity

and bipolar disorder, or what used to be called manic depression - died

Dec. 13 of an overdose of prescribed drugs, and her parents have been

arrested on murder charges, accused of intentionally overmedicating

their daughter to keep her quiet and out of their hair.

Interviews and a review of court documents make it clear that many of

those who were supposed to protect - teachers, social workers,

other professionals - suspected something was wrong, but never went

quite far enough.

The tragic case is more than a story about one child. It raises

troubling, larger questions about the state of child psychiatry, namely:

- Can children as young as be accurately diagnosed with mental

illnesses?

- Are rambunctious youngsters being medicated for their parents'

convenience?

- Should children so young be prescribed powerful psychotropic drugs

meant for adults?

Dispensing drugs to children diagnosed with mood or behavior problems is

" the easiest thing to do, but it's not always the best thing to do, "

said Dr. Jon McClellan, medical director of the Child Study and

Treatment Center in Lakewood, Wash. " At some level, I would hope that

you'd also be teaching kids ways to control their behavior. "

According to the medical examiner, died of a combination of

Clonidine, a blood pressure medication she had been prescribed for ADHD;

Depakote, an antiseizure and mood-stabilizing drug prescribed for the

little girl's bipolar disorder; a cough suppressant; and an

antihistamine.

The amount of Clonidine alone in 's system was enough to be

fatal, the medical examiner said.

The two brand-name prescription drugs are approved by the Food and Drug

Administration for use in adults only, though doctors can legally

prescribe them to youngsters and do so frequently.

's parents, and Carolyn Riley, say they were only

following doctor's orders. , they told police, had been diagnosed

when she was just 2 1/2, and 's psychiatrist prescribed the same

potent drugs that had been prescribed for her older brother and sister

when she diagnosed them with the same illnesses several years earlier.

's teachers, the school nurse and her therapist all told police

that they never saw behavior in that fit her diagnoses, such as

aggression, sharp mood swings or hyperactivity.

Prosecutors say the Rileys intentionally tried to quiet with

high doses of Clonidine. Relatives told police the Rileys called

Clonidine the " sleep medicine. "

Through their attorneys, Riley, 34, and Carolyn Riley, 32, have

accused 's psychiatrist, Dr. Kayoko Kifuji, of overprescribing

medication.

Kifuji did not return calls for comment, but she has vehemently denied

any role in 's death. She has agreed to a suspension of her

license while the state's medical board investigates.

Kifuji told police had been her patient since August 2004, when

she was 2. She said she based her diagnoses of ADHD and bipolar disorder

on the family's mental health history, as described by Carolyn Riley,

and 's behavior, as described by Carolyn and briefly observed by

her during office visits.

Kifuji told police she became alarmed in October 2005 when Carolyn Riley

told her she had increased 's nighttime dose of Clonidine from 2

to 2 1/2 tablets, and warned Carolyn that the increase could kill

.

But Carolyn told investigators Kifuji told her she could give

and her sister extra Clonidine at night to help them sleep.

Tufts-New England Medical Center, where Kifuji works, issued a statement

supporting Kifuji, saying her care of " was appropriate and

within responsible professional standards. "

In the months leading up to 's death, others noticed there was

something wrong.

Teachers and staff members at the Early Childhood Center in

Weymouth, about 20 miles south of Boston, say they called 's

mother repeatedly to tell her that was " out of it, " but her

mother said the girl was tired because she wasn't sleeping well.

A neighbor who lived next door to the family in the last month of

's life said and her siblings seemed listless.

'Like little robots'

" They looked like little robots. They looked very lethargic, " Phyllis

Lipton said. " I said, 'Wow, they don't look right,' but who knew? "

Pharmacists at Walgreens in Weymouth called Kifuji twice to complain

that Carolyn Riley was asking for more Clonidine, even though her

prescription was not due to be refilled, according to state police.

Once, Riley said she had lost a bottle of pills, and another time, she

said water had gotten into her prescription bottle and ruined the pills,

according to police.

Kifuji authorized refills, but after the second incident, she began

prescribing Clonidine in 10-day refills instead of 30-day supplies,

investigators said.

On Aug. 16, a prescription for 35 Clonidine tablets - a 10-day supply -

was filled at Walgreens, even though the Rileys had obtained a 10-day

refill only the day before, investigators said.

Walgreens spokeswoman Tiffani Bruce said: " The scrip was filled as

written, as it was prescribed by the doctor, and all the appropriate

information on the medications was given to the family. "

After 's death, police found only seven Clonidine tablets in the

family's medicine tray. Altogether, prosecutors say, Carolyn Riley got

200 more pills in one year than she should have.

The Rileys' lawyers call them unsophisticated people who did not

question their children's doctors.

Both are unemployed; they collect welfare and disability benefits.

Riley, who is also awaiting trial on charges of molesting a

stepdaughter in 2005, claimed to suffer from bipolar disorder and a rage

disorder; his wife told police she suffered from depression and anxiety.

" They are not the sort of people who go on the Internet and look on

WebMD. These are the sort of people who, when they go to a doctor, the

doctor is God and they do what the doctor says, " said Darrell,

's lawyer.

In July, after a therapist filed a complaint with the state Department

of Social Services, social workers met with the family's doctors and

other medical professionals and were assured that the medications

was taking were within medical guidelines.

" There were lots of medical eyes on this case and none of them seemed to

say there was an issue of overmedication in this case, " said Social

Services Commissioner Harry Spence, who has come under fire for the

agency's handling of the case.

's uncle, McGonnell, and his girlfriend, ,

who lived with the Rileys, told police that the Rileys would put their

kids to bed as early as 5 p.m. , they said, often slept through

the day and got up only to eat.

According to McGonnell and , spent the last days of her

life wandering around the house, sick and disoriented. But the Rileys

told police they were not alarmed. " It was just a cold, " Carolyn said

during police interviews.

_____

Stop TeenScreen Petition:

<http://www.petitiononline.com/TScreen/petition.html>

http://www.petitiononline.com/TScreen/petition.html

TeenScreen - National Fraud Video:

TeenScreen Documents:

<http://libertycoalition.net/cognitive-liberty/psychiatry-gone-wild-teen

screen-documents-exposed>

http://libertycoalition.net/cognitive-liberty/psychiatry-gone-wild-teens

creen-documents-exposed (download them and post them all over the net)

How to Make a Blog: <http://www.blogger.com/start>

http://www.blogger.com/start (so you can help get the word out on the

net)

[Guest guest]

Let your comments rip here:

http://www.sptimes.com/2007/03/25/Worldandnation/A_child_is_quieted__f.s

html (Comments may be published online and/or in print.) Your

comments will be reviewed - they are not instantly posted.

Suggestion: Thank them, stick to the facts and let them know that

parents need to be informed.

It's an Associated Press story but it was published today - full page -

in the St. sburg Times.

A child is quieted, forever, by pills

Prosecutors charge Riley's parents with murder and child

psychiatry comes under scrutiny after the 4-year-old dies of an overdose

of prescribed drugs.

By ASSOCIATED PRESS

Published March 25, 2007

_____

HULL, Mass. - In the final months of Riley's life, a school

nurse said the little girl was so weak she was like a " floppy doll. "

The preschool principal had to help off the bus because the

4-year-old was shaking so badly.

And a pharmacist complained that 's mother kept coming up with

excuses for why her daughter needed more and more medication.

None of their concerns was enough to save .

- who had been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity

and bipolar disorder, or what used to be called manic depression - died

Dec. 13 of an overdose of prescribed drugs, and her parents have been

arrested on murder charges, accused of intentionally overmedicating

their daughter to keep her quiet and out of their hair.

Interviews and a review of court documents make it clear that many of

those who were supposed to protect - teachers, social workers,

other professionals - suspected something was wrong, but never went

quite far enough.

The tragic case is more than a story about one child. It raises

troubling, larger questions about the state of child psychiatry, namely:

- Can children as young as be accurately diagnosed with mental

illnesses?

- Are rambunctious youngsters being medicated for their parents'

convenience?

- Should children so young be prescribed powerful psychotropic drugs

meant for adults?

Dispensing drugs to children diagnosed with mood or behavior problems is

" the easiest thing to do, but it's not always the best thing to do, "

said Dr. Jon McClellan, medical director of the Child Study and

Treatment Center in Lakewood, Wash. " At some level, I would hope that

you'd also be teaching kids ways to control their behavior. "

According to the medical examiner, died of a combination of

Clonidine, a blood pressure medication she had been prescribed for ADHD;

Depakote, an antiseizure and mood-stabilizing drug prescribed for the

little girl's bipolar disorder; a cough suppressant; and an

antihistamine.

The amount of Clonidine alone in 's system was enough to be

fatal, the medical examiner said.

The two brand-name prescription drugs are approved by the Food and Drug

Administration for use in adults only, though doctors can legally

prescribe them to youngsters and do so frequently.

's parents, and Carolyn Riley, say they were only

following doctor's orders. , they told police, had been diagnosed

when she was just 2 1/2, and 's psychiatrist prescribed the same

potent drugs that had been prescribed for her older brother and sister

when she diagnosed them with the same illnesses several years earlier.

's teachers, the school nurse and her therapist all told police

that they never saw behavior in that fit her diagnoses, such as

aggression, sharp mood swings or hyperactivity.

Prosecutors say the Rileys intentionally tried to quiet with

high doses of Clonidine. Relatives told police the Rileys called

Clonidine the " sleep medicine. "

Through their attorneys, Riley, 34, and Carolyn Riley, 32, have

accused 's psychiatrist, Dr. Kayoko Kifuji, of overprescribing

medication.

Kifuji did not return calls for comment, but she has vehemently denied

any role in 's death. She has agreed to a suspension of her

license while the state's medical board investigates.

Kifuji told police had been her patient since August 2004, when

she was 2. She said she based her diagnoses of ADHD and bipolar disorder

on the family's mental health history, as described by Carolyn Riley,

and 's behavior, as described by Carolyn and briefly observed by

her during office visits.

Kifuji told police she became alarmed in October 2005 when Carolyn Riley

told her she had increased 's nighttime dose of Clonidine from 2

to 2 1/2 tablets, and warned Carolyn that the increase could kill

.

But Carolyn told investigators Kifuji told her she could give

and her sister extra Clonidine at night to help them sleep.

Tufts-New England Medical Center, where Kifuji works, issued a statement

supporting Kifuji, saying her care of " was appropriate and

within responsible professional standards. "

In the months leading up to 's death, others noticed there was

something wrong.

Teachers and staff members at the Early Childhood Center in

Weymouth, about 20 miles south of Boston, say they called 's

mother repeatedly to tell her that was " out of it, " but her

mother said the girl was tired because she wasn't sleeping well.

A neighbor who lived next door to the family in the last month of

's life said and her siblings seemed listless.

'Like little robots'

" They looked like little robots. They looked very lethargic, " Phyllis

Lipton said. " I said, 'Wow, they don't look right,' but who knew? "

Pharmacists at Walgreens in Weymouth called Kifuji twice to complain

that Carolyn Riley was asking for more Clonidine, even though her

prescription was not due to be refilled, according to state police.

Once, Riley said she had lost a bottle of pills, and another time, she

said water had gotten into her prescription bottle and ruined the pills,

according to police.

Kifuji authorized refills, but after the second incident, she began

prescribing Clonidine in 10-day refills instead of 30-day supplies,

investigators said.

On Aug. 16, a prescription for 35 Clonidine tablets - a 10-day supply -

was filled at Walgreens, even though the Rileys had obtained a 10-day

refill only the day before, investigators said.

Walgreens spokeswoman Tiffani Bruce said: " The scrip was filled as

written, as it was prescribed by the doctor, and all the appropriate

information on the medications was given to the family. "

After 's death, police found only seven Clonidine tablets in the

family's medicine tray. Altogether, prosecutors say, Carolyn Riley got

200 more pills in one year than she should have.

The Rileys' lawyers call them unsophisticated people who did not

question their children's doctors.

Both are unemployed; they collect welfare and disability benefits.

Riley, who is also awaiting trial on charges of molesting a

stepdaughter in 2005, claimed to suffer from bipolar disorder and a rage

disorder; his wife told police she suffered from depression and anxiety.

" They are not the sort of people who go on the Internet and look on

WebMD. These are the sort of people who, when they go to a doctor, the

doctor is God and they do what the doctor says, " said Darrell,

's lawyer.

In July, after a therapist filed a complaint with the state Department

of Social Services, social workers met with the family's doctors and

other medical professionals and were assured that the medications

was taking were within medical guidelines.

" There were lots of medical eyes on this case and none of them seemed to

say there was an issue of overmedication in this case, " said Social

Services Commissioner Harry Spence, who has come under fire for the

agency's handling of the case.

's uncle, McGonnell, and his girlfriend, ,

who lived with the Rileys, told police that the Rileys would put their

kids to bed as early as 5 p.m. , they said, often slept through

the day and got up only to eat.

According to McGonnell and , spent the last days of her

life wandering around the house, sick and disoriented. But the Rileys

told police they were not alarmed. " It was just a cold, " Carolyn said

during police interviews.

_____

Stop TeenScreen Petition:

<http://www.petitiononline.com/TScreen/petition.html>

http://www.petitiononline.com/TScreen/petition.html

TeenScreen - National Fraud Video:

TeenScreen Documents:

<http://libertycoalition.net/cognitive-liberty/psychiatry-gone-wild-teen

screen-documents-exposed>

http://libertycoalition.net/cognitive-liberty/psychiatry-gone-wild-teens

creen-documents-exposed (download them and post them all over the net)

How to Make a Blog: <http://www.blogger.com/start>

http://www.blogger.com/start (so you can help get the word out on the

net)

[Guest guest]

Let your comments rip here:

http://www.sptimes.com/2007/03/25/Worldandnation/A_child_is_quieted__f.s

html (Comments may be published online and/or in print.) Your

comments will be reviewed - they are not instantly posted.

Suggestion: Thank them, stick to the facts and let them know that

parents need to be informed.

It's an Associated Press story but it was published today - full page -

in the St. sburg Times.

A child is quieted, forever, by pills

Prosecutors charge Riley's parents with murder and child

psychiatry comes under scrutiny after the 4-year-old dies of an overdose

of prescribed drugs.

By ASSOCIATED PRESS

Published March 25, 2007

_____

HULL, Mass. - In the final months of Riley's life, a school

nurse said the little girl was so weak she was like a " floppy doll. "

The preschool principal had to help off the bus because the

4-year-old was shaking so badly.

And a pharmacist complained that 's mother kept coming up with

excuses for why her daughter needed more and more medication.

None of their concerns was enough to save .

- who had been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity

and bipolar disorder, or what used to be called manic depression - died

Dec. 13 of an overdose of prescribed drugs, and her parents have been

arrested on murder charges, accused of intentionally overmedicating

their daughter to keep her quiet and out of their hair.

Interviews and a review of court documents make it clear that many of

those who were supposed to protect - teachers, social workers,

other professionals - suspected something was wrong, but never went

quite far enough.

The tragic case is more than a story about one child. It raises

troubling, larger questions about the state of child psychiatry, namely:

- Can children as young as be accurately diagnosed with mental

illnesses?

- Are rambunctious youngsters being medicated for their parents'

convenience?

- Should children so young be prescribed powerful psychotropic drugs

meant for adults?

Dispensing drugs to children diagnosed with mood or behavior problems is

" the easiest thing to do, but it's not always the best thing to do, "

said Dr. Jon McClellan, medical director of the Child Study and

Treatment Center in Lakewood, Wash. " At some level, I would hope that

you'd also be teaching kids ways to control their behavior. "

According to the medical examiner, died of a combination of

Clonidine, a blood pressure medication she had been prescribed for ADHD;

Depakote, an antiseizure and mood-stabilizing drug prescribed for the

little girl's bipolar disorder; a cough suppressant; and an

antihistamine.

The amount of Clonidine alone in 's system was enough to be

fatal, the medical examiner said.

The two brand-name prescription drugs are approved by the Food and Drug

Administration for use in adults only, though doctors can legally

prescribe them to youngsters and do so frequently.

's parents, and Carolyn Riley, say they were only

following doctor's orders. , they told police, had been diagnosed

when she was just 2 1/2, and 's psychiatrist prescribed the same

potent drugs that had been prescribed for her older brother and sister

when she diagnosed them with the same illnesses several years earlier.

's teachers, the school nurse and her therapist all told police

that they never saw behavior in that fit her diagnoses, such as

aggression, sharp mood swings or hyperactivity.

Prosecutors say the Rileys intentionally tried to quiet with

high doses of Clonidine. Relatives told police the Rileys called

Clonidine the " sleep medicine. "

Through their attorneys, Riley, 34, and Carolyn Riley, 32, have

accused 's psychiatrist, Dr. Kayoko Kifuji, of overprescribing

medication.

Kifuji did not return calls for comment, but she has vehemently denied

any role in 's death. She has agreed to a suspension of her

license while the state's medical board investigates.

Kifuji told police had been her patient since August 2004, when

she was 2. She said she based her diagnoses of ADHD and bipolar disorder

on the family's mental health history, as described by Carolyn Riley,

and 's behavior, as described by Carolyn and briefly observed by

her during office visits.

Kifuji told police she became alarmed in October 2005 when Carolyn Riley

told her she had increased 's nighttime dose of Clonidine from 2

to 2 1/2 tablets, and warned Carolyn that the increase could kill

.

But Carolyn told investigators Kifuji told her she could give

and her sister extra Clonidine at night to help them sleep.

Tufts-New England Medical Center, where Kifuji works, issued a statement

supporting Kifuji, saying her care of " was appropriate and

within responsible professional standards. "

In the months leading up to 's death, others noticed there was

something wrong.

Teachers and staff members at the Early Childhood Center in

Weymouth, about 20 miles south of Boston, say they called 's

mother repeatedly to tell her that was " out of it, " but her

mother said the girl was tired because she wasn't sleeping well.

A neighbor who lived next door to the family in the last month of

's life said and her siblings seemed listless.

'Like little robots'

" They looked like little robots. They looked very lethargic, " Phyllis

Lipton said. " I said, 'Wow, they don't look right,' but who knew? "

Pharmacists at Walgreens in Weymouth called Kifuji twice to complain

that Carolyn Riley was asking for more Clonidine, even though her

prescription was not due to be refilled, according to state police.

Once, Riley said she had lost a bottle of pills, and another time, she

said water had gotten into her prescription bottle and ruined the pills,

according to police.

Kifuji authorized refills, but after the second incident, she began

prescribing Clonidine in 10-day refills instead of 30-day supplies,

investigators said.

On Aug. 16, a prescription for 35 Clonidine tablets - a 10-day supply -

was filled at Walgreens, even though the Rileys had obtained a 10-day

refill only the day before, investigators said.

Walgreens spokeswoman Tiffani Bruce said: " The scrip was filled as

written, as it was prescribed by the doctor, and all the appropriate

information on the medications was given to the family. "

After 's death, police found only seven Clonidine tablets in the

family's medicine tray. Altogether, prosecutors say, Carolyn Riley got

200 more pills in one year than she should have.

The Rileys' lawyers call them unsophisticated people who did not

question their children's doctors.

Both are unemployed; they collect welfare and disability benefits.

Riley, who is also awaiting trial on charges of molesting a

stepdaughter in 2005, claimed to suffer from bipolar disorder and a rage

disorder; his wife told police she suffered from depression and anxiety.

" They are not the sort of people who go on the Internet and look on

WebMD. These are the sort of people who, when they go to a doctor, the

doctor is God and they do what the doctor says, " said Darrell,

's lawyer.

In July, after a therapist filed a complaint with the state Department

of Social Services, social workers met with the family's doctors and

other medical professionals and were assured that the medications

was taking were within medical guidelines.

" There were lots of medical eyes on this case and none of them seemed to

say there was an issue of overmedication in this case, " said Social

Services Commissioner Harry Spence, who has come under fire for the

agency's handling of the case.

's uncle, McGonnell, and his girlfriend, ,

who lived with the Rileys, told police that the Rileys would put their

kids to bed as early as 5 p.m. , they said, often slept through

the day and got up only to eat.

According to McGonnell and , spent the last days of her

life wandering around the house, sick and disoriented. But the Rileys

told police they were not alarmed. " It was just a cold, " Carolyn said

during police interviews.

_____

Stop TeenScreen Petition:

<http://www.petitiononline.com/TScreen/petition.html>

http://www.petitiononline.com/TScreen/petition.html

TeenScreen - National Fraud Video:

TeenScreen Documents:

<http://libertycoalition.net/cognitive-liberty/psychiatry-gone-wild-teen

screen-documents-exposed>

http://libertycoalition.net/cognitive-liberty/psychiatry-gone-wild-teens

creen-documents-exposed (download them and post them all over the net)

How to Make a Blog: <http://www.blogger.com/start>

http://www.blogger.com/start (so you can help get the word out on the

net)

[Guest guest]

Ken,

Your link is incorrect because it leaves off part of the address. It's

important to type the last part in manually if you can- mine didn't work at

first because it didn't include the word html at the end.

Anyway, here is the story:

http://www.sptimes.com/2007/03/25/Worldandnation/A_child_is_quieted__f.shtml

Please do comment here, people, and thank you, Ken for bringing this to our

attention. You're a force for good in America!

Jasmine

On 3/25/07, Ken Kramer <datasearch@...> wrote:

>

> Let your comments rip here:

> http://www.sptimes.com/2007/03/25/Worldandnation/A_child_is_quieted__f.s

> html (Comments may be published online and/or in print.) Your

> comments will be reviewed - they are not instantly posted.

>

> Suggestion: Thank them, stick to the facts and let them know that

> parents need to be informed.

>

> It's an Associated Press story but it was published today - full page -

> in the St. sburg Times.

>

>

> A child is quieted, forever, by pills

>

> Prosecutors charge Riley's parents with murder and child

> psychiatry comes under scrutiny after the 4-year-old dies of an overdose

> of prescribed drugs.

>

> By ASSOCIATED PRESS

> Published March 25, 2007

>

> _____

>

> HULL, Mass. - In the final months of Riley's life, a school

> nurse said the little girl was so weak she was like a " floppy doll. "

>

> The preschool principal had to help off the bus because the

> 4-year-old was shaking so badly.

>

> And a pharmacist complained that 's mother kept coming up with

> excuses for why her daughter needed more and more medication.

>

> None of their concerns was enough to save .

>

> - who had been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity

> and bipolar disorder, or what used to be called manic depression - died

> Dec. 13 of an overdose of prescribed drugs, and her parents have been

> arrested on murder charges, accused of intentionally overmedicating

> their daughter to keep her quiet and out of their hair.

>

> Interviews and a review of court documents make it clear that many of

> those who were supposed to protect - teachers, social workers,

> other professionals - suspected something was wrong, but never went

> quite far enough.

>

> The tragic case is more than a story about one child. It raises

> troubling, larger questions about the state of child psychiatry, namely:

>

> - Can children as young as be accurately diagnosed with mental

> illnesses?

>

> - Are rambunctious youngsters being medicated for their parents'

> convenience?

>

> - Should children so young be prescribed powerful psychotropic drugs

> meant for adults?

>

> Dispensing drugs to children diagnosed with mood or behavior problems is

> " the easiest thing to do, but it's not always the best thing to do, "

> said Dr. Jon McClellan, medical director of the Child Study and

> Treatment Center in Lakewood, Wash. " At some level, I would hope that

> you'd also be teaching kids ways to control their behavior. "

>

> According to the medical examiner, died of a combination of

> Clonidine, a blood pressure medication she had been prescribed for ADHD;

> Depakote, an antiseizure and mood-stabilizing drug prescribed for the

> little girl's bipolar disorder; a cough suppressant; and an

> antihistamine.

>

> The amount of Clonidine alone in 's system was enough to be

> fatal, the medical examiner said.

>

> The two brand-name prescription drugs are approved by the Food and Drug

> Administration for use in adults only, though doctors can legally

> prescribe them to youngsters and do so frequently.

>

> 's parents, and Carolyn Riley, say they were only

> following doctor's orders. , they told police, had been diagnosed

> when she was just 2 1/2, and 's psychiatrist prescribed the same

> potent drugs that had been prescribed for her older brother and sister

> when she diagnosed them with the same illnesses several years earlier.

>

> 's teachers, the school nurse and her therapist all told police

> that they never saw behavior in that fit her diagnoses, such as

> aggression, sharp mood swings or hyperactivity.

>

> Prosecutors say the Rileys intentionally tried to quiet with

> high doses of Clonidine. Relatives told police the Rileys called

> Clonidine the " sleep medicine. "

>

> Through their attorneys, Riley, 34, and Carolyn Riley, 32, have

> accused 's psychiatrist, Dr. Kayoko Kifuji, of overprescribing

> medication.

>

> Kifuji did not return calls for comment, but she has vehemently denied

> any role in 's death. She has agreed to a suspension of her

> license while the state's medical board investigates.

>

> Kifuji told police had been her patient since August 2004, when

> she was 2. She said she based her diagnoses of ADHD and bipolar disorder

> on the family's mental health history, as described by Carolyn Riley,

> and 's behavior, as described by Carolyn and briefly observed by

> her during office visits.

>

> Kifuji told police she became alarmed in October 2005 when Carolyn Riley

> told her she had increased 's nighttime dose of Clonidine from 2

> to 2 1/2 tablets, and warned Carolyn that the increase could kill

> .

>

> But Carolyn told investigators Kifuji told her she could give

> and her sister extra Clonidine at night to help them sleep.

>

> Tufts-New England Medical Center, where Kifuji works, issued a statement

> supporting Kifuji, saying her care of " was appropriate and

> within responsible professional standards. "

>

> In the months leading up to 's death, others noticed there was

> something wrong.

>

> Teachers and staff members at the Early Childhood Center in

> Weymouth, about 20 miles south of Boston, say they called 's

> mother repeatedly to tell her that was " out of it, " but her

> mother said the girl was tired because she wasn't sleeping well.

>

> A neighbor who lived next door to the family in the last month of

> 's life said and her siblings seemed listless.

>

> 'Like little robots'

>

> " They looked like little robots. They looked very lethargic, " Phyllis

> Lipton said. " I said, 'Wow, they don't look right,' but who knew? "

>

> Pharmacists at Walgreens in Weymouth called Kifuji twice to complain

> that Carolyn Riley was asking for more Clonidine, even though her

> prescription was not due to be refilled, according to state police.

>

> Once, Riley said she had lost a bottle of pills, and another time, she

> said water had gotten into her prescription bottle and ruined the pills,

> according to police.

>

> Kifuji authorized refills, but after the second incident, she began

> prescribing Clonidine in 10-day refills instead of 30-day supplies,

> investigators said.

>

> On Aug. 16, a prescription for 35 Clonidine tablets - a 10-day supply -

> was filled at Walgreens, even though the Rileys had obtained a 10-day

> refill only the day before, investigators said.

>

> Walgreens spokeswoman Tiffani Bruce said: " The scrip was filled as

> written, as it was prescribed by the doctor, and all the appropriate

> information on the medications was given to the family. "

>

> After 's death, police found only seven Clonidine tablets in the

> family's medicine tray. Altogether, prosecutors say, Carolyn Riley got

> 200 more pills in one year than she should have.

>

> The Rileys' lawyers call them unsophisticated people who did not

> question their children's doctors.

>

> Both are unemployed; they collect welfare and disability benefits.

> Riley, who is also awaiting trial on charges of molesting a

> stepdaughter in 2005, claimed to suffer from bipolar disorder and a rage

> disorder; his wife told police she suffered from depression and anxiety.

>

> " They are not the sort of people who go on the Internet and look on

> WebMD. These are the sort of people who, when they go to a doctor, the

> doctor is God and they do what the doctor says, " said Darrell,

> 's lawyer.

>

> In July, after a therapist filed a complaint with the state Department

> of Social Services, social workers met with the family's doctors and

> other medical professionals and were assured that the medications

> was taking were within medical guidelines.

>

> " There were lots of medical eyes on this case and none of them seemed to

> say there was an issue of overmedication in this case, " said Social

> Services Commissioner Harry Spence, who has come under fire for the

> agency's handling of the case.

>

> 's uncle, McGonnell, and his girlfriend, ,

> who lived with the Rileys, told police that the Rileys would put their

> kids to bed as early as 5 p.m. , they said, often slept through

> the day and got up only to eat.

>

> According to McGonnell and , spent the last days of her

> life wandering around the house, sick and disoriented. But the Rileys

> told police they were not alarmed. " It was just a cold, " Carolyn said

> during police interviews.

>

> _____

>

> Stop TeenScreen Petition:

> <http://www.petitiononline.com/TScreen/petition.html>

> http://www.petitiononline.com/TScreen/petition.html

> TeenScreen - National Fraud Video:

>

> TeenScreen Documents:

> <http://libertycoalition.net/cognitive-liberty/psychiatry-gone-wild-teen

> screen-documents-exposed>

> http://libertycoalition.net/cognitive-liberty/psychiatry-gone-wild-teens

> creen-documents-exposed (download them and post them all over the net)

> How to Make a Blog: <http://www.blogger.com/start>

> http://www.blogger.com/start (so you can help get the word out on the

> net)

>

>

[Guest guest]

Ken,

Your link is incorrect because it leaves off part of the address. It's

important to type the last part in manually if you can- mine didn't work at

first because it didn't include the word html at the end.

Anyway, here is the story:

http://www.sptimes.com/2007/03/25/Worldandnation/A_child_is_quieted__f.shtml

Please do comment here, people, and thank you, Ken for bringing this to our

attention. You're a force for good in America!

Jasmine

On 3/25/07, Ken Kramer <datasearch@...> wrote:

>

> Let your comments rip here:

> http://www.sptimes.com/2007/03/25/Worldandnation/A_child_is_quieted__f.s

> html (Comments may be published online and/or in print.) Your

> comments will be reviewed - they are not instantly posted.

>

> Suggestion: Thank them, stick to the facts and let them know that

> parents need to be informed.

>

> It's an Associated Press story but it was published today - full page -

> in the St. sburg Times.

>

>

> A child is quieted, forever, by pills

>

> Prosecutors charge Riley's parents with murder and child

> psychiatry comes under scrutiny after the 4-year-old dies of an overdose

> of prescribed drugs.

>

> By ASSOCIATED PRESS

> Published March 25, 2007

>

> _____

>

> HULL, Mass. - In the final months of Riley's life, a school

> nurse said the little girl was so weak she was like a " floppy doll. "

>

> The preschool principal had to help off the bus because the

> 4-year-old was shaking so badly.

>

> And a pharmacist complained that 's mother kept coming up with

> excuses for why her daughter needed more and more medication.

>

> None of their concerns was enough to save .

>

> - who had been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity

> and bipolar disorder, or what used to be called manic depression - died

> Dec. 13 of an overdose of prescribed drugs, and her parents have been

> arrested on murder charges, accused of intentionally overmedicating

> their daughter to keep her quiet and out of their hair.

>

> Interviews and a review of court documents make it clear that many of

> those who were supposed to protect - teachers, social workers,

> other professionals - suspected something was wrong, but never went

> quite far enough.

>

> The tragic case is more than a story about one child. It raises

> troubling, larger questions about the state of child psychiatry, namely:

>

> - Can children as young as be accurately diagnosed with mental

> illnesses?

>

> - Are rambunctious youngsters being medicated for their parents'

> convenience?

>

> - Should children so young be prescribed powerful psychotropic drugs

> meant for adults?

>

> Dispensing drugs to children diagnosed with mood or behavior problems is

> " the easiest thing to do, but it's not always the best thing to do, "

> said Dr. Jon McClellan, medical director of the Child Study and

> Treatment Center in Lakewood, Wash. " At some level, I would hope that

> you'd also be teaching kids ways to control their behavior. "

>

> According to the medical examiner, died of a combination of

> Clonidine, a blood pressure medication she had been prescribed for ADHD;

> Depakote, an antiseizure and mood-stabilizing drug prescribed for the

> little girl's bipolar disorder; a cough suppressant; and an

> antihistamine.

>

> The amount of Clonidine alone in 's system was enough to be

> fatal, the medical examiner said.

>

> The two brand-name prescription drugs are approved by the Food and Drug

> Administration for use in adults only, though doctors can legally

> prescribe them to youngsters and do so frequently.

>

> 's parents, and Carolyn Riley, say they were only

> following doctor's orders. , they told police, had been diagnosed

> when she was just 2 1/2, and 's psychiatrist prescribed the same

> potent drugs that had been prescribed for her older brother and sister

> when she diagnosed them with the same illnesses several years earlier.

>

> 's teachers, the school nurse and her therapist all told police

> that they never saw behavior in that fit her diagnoses, such as

> aggression, sharp mood swings or hyperactivity.

>

> Prosecutors say the Rileys intentionally tried to quiet with

> high doses of Clonidine. Relatives told police the Rileys called

> Clonidine the " sleep medicine. "

>

> Through their attorneys, Riley, 34, and Carolyn Riley, 32, have

> accused 's psychiatrist, Dr. Kayoko Kifuji, of overprescribing

> medication.

>

> Kifuji did not return calls for comment, but she has vehemently denied

> any role in 's death. She has agreed to a suspension of her

> license while the state's medical board investigates.

>

> Kifuji told police had been her patient since August 2004, when

> she was 2. She said she based her diagnoses of ADHD and bipolar disorder

> on the family's mental health history, as described by Carolyn Riley,

> and 's behavior, as described by Carolyn and briefly observed by

> her during office visits.

>

> Kifuji told police she became alarmed in October 2005 when Carolyn Riley

> told her she had increased 's nighttime dose of Clonidine from 2

> to 2 1/2 tablets, and warned Carolyn that the increase could kill

> .

>

> But Carolyn told investigators Kifuji told her she could give

> and her sister extra Clonidine at night to help them sleep.

>

> Tufts-New England Medical Center, where Kifuji works, issued a statement

> supporting Kifuji, saying her care of " was appropriate and

> within responsible professional standards. "

>

> In the months leading up to 's death, others noticed there was

> something wrong.

>

> Teachers and staff members at the Early Childhood Center in

> Weymouth, about 20 miles south of Boston, say they called 's

> mother repeatedly to tell her that was " out of it, " but her

> mother said the girl was tired because she wasn't sleeping well.

>

> A neighbor who lived next door to the family in the last month of

> 's life said and her siblings seemed listless.

>

> 'Like little robots'

>

> " They looked like little robots. They looked very lethargic, " Phyllis

> Lipton said. " I said, 'Wow, they don't look right,' but who knew? "

>

> Pharmacists at Walgreens in Weymouth called Kifuji twice to complain

> that Carolyn Riley was asking for more Clonidine, even though her

> prescription was not due to be refilled, according to state police.

>

> Once, Riley said she had lost a bottle of pills, and another time, she

> said water had gotten into her prescription bottle and ruined the pills,

> according to police.

>

> Kifuji authorized refills, but after the second incident, she began

> prescribing Clonidine in 10-day refills instead of 30-day supplies,

> investigators said.

>

> On Aug. 16, a prescription for 35 Clonidine tablets - a 10-day supply -

> was filled at Walgreens, even though the Rileys had obtained a 10-day

> refill only the day before, investigators said.

>

> Walgreens spokeswoman Tiffani Bruce said: " The scrip was filled as

> written, as it was prescribed by the doctor, and all the appropriate

> information on the medications was given to the family. "

>

> After 's death, police found only seven Clonidine tablets in the

> family's medicine tray. Altogether, prosecutors say, Carolyn Riley got

> 200 more pills in one year than she should have.

>

> The Rileys' lawyers call them unsophisticated people who did not

> question their children's doctors.

>

> Both are unemployed; they collect welfare and disability benefits.

> Riley, who is also awaiting trial on charges of molesting a

> stepdaughter in 2005, claimed to suffer from bipolar disorder and a rage

> disorder; his wife told police she suffered from depression and anxiety.

>

> " They are not the sort of people who go on the Internet and look on

> WebMD. These are the sort of people who, when they go to a doctor, the

> doctor is God and they do what the doctor says, " said Darrell,

> 's lawyer.

>

> In July, after a therapist filed a complaint with the state Department

> of Social Services, social workers met with the family's doctors and

> other medical professionals and were assured that the medications

> was taking were within medical guidelines.

>

> " There were lots of medical eyes on this case and none of them seemed to

> say there was an issue of overmedication in this case, " said Social

> Services Commissioner Harry Spence, who has come under fire for the

> agency's handling of the case.

>

> 's uncle, McGonnell, and his girlfriend, ,

> who lived with the Rileys, told police that the Rileys would put their

> kids to bed as early as 5 p.m. , they said, often slept through

> the day and got up only to eat.

>

> According to McGonnell and , spent the last days of her

> life wandering around the house, sick and disoriented. But the Rileys

> told police they were not alarmed. " It was just a cold, " Carolyn said

> during police interviews.

>

> _____

>

> Stop TeenScreen Petition:

> <http://www.petitiononline.com/TScreen/petition.html>

> http://www.petitiononline.com/TScreen/petition.html

> TeenScreen - National Fraud Video:

>

> TeenScreen Documents:

> <http://libertycoalition.net/cognitive-liberty/psychiatry-gone-wild-teen

> screen-documents-exposed>

> http://libertycoalition.net/cognitive-liberty/psychiatry-gone-wild-teens

> creen-documents-exposed (download them and post them all over the net)

> How to Make a Blog: <http://www.blogger.com/start>

> http://www.blogger.com/start (so you can help get the word out on the

> net)

>

>

[Guest guest]

Ken,

Your link is incorrect because it leaves off part of the address. It's

important to type the last part in manually if you can- mine didn't work at

first because it didn't include the word html at the end.

Anyway, here is the story:

http://www.sptimes.com/2007/03/25/Worldandnation/A_child_is_quieted__f.shtml

Please do comment here, people, and thank you, Ken for bringing this to our

attention. You're a force for good in America!

Jasmine

On 3/25/07, Ken Kramer <datasearch@...> wrote:

>

> Let your comments rip here:

> http://www.sptimes.com/2007/03/25/Worldandnation/A_child_is_quieted__f.s

> html (Comments may be published online and/or in print.) Your

> comments will be reviewed - they are not instantly posted.

>

> Suggestion: Thank them, stick to the facts and let them know that

> parents need to be informed.

>

> It's an Associated Press story but it was published today - full page -

> in the St. sburg Times.

>

>

> A child is quieted, forever, by pills

>

> Prosecutors charge Riley's parents with murder and child

> psychiatry comes under scrutiny after the 4-year-old dies of an overdose

> of prescribed drugs.

>

> By ASSOCIATED PRESS

> Published March 25, 2007

>

> _____

>

> HULL, Mass. - In the final months of Riley's life, a school

> nurse said the little girl was so weak she was like a " floppy doll. "

>

> The preschool principal had to help off the bus because the

> 4-year-old was shaking so badly.

>

> And a pharmacist complained that 's mother kept coming up with

> excuses for why her daughter needed more and more medication.

>

> None of their concerns was enough to save .

>

> - who had been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity

> and bipolar disorder, or what used to be called manic depression - died

> Dec. 13 of an overdose of prescribed drugs, and her parents have been

> arrested on murder charges, accused of intentionally overmedicating

> their daughter to keep her quiet and out of their hair.

>

> Interviews and a review of court documents make it clear that many of

> those who were supposed to protect - teachers, social workers,

> other professionals - suspected something was wrong, but never went

> quite far enough.

>

> The tragic case is more than a story about one child. It raises

> troubling, larger questions about the state of child psychiatry, namely:

>

> - Can children as young as be accurately diagnosed with mental

> illnesses?

>

> - Are rambunctious youngsters being medicated for their parents'

> convenience?

>

> - Should children so young be prescribed powerful psychotropic drugs

> meant for adults?

>

> Dispensing drugs to children diagnosed with mood or behavior problems is

> " the easiest thing to do, but it's not always the best thing to do, "

> said Dr. Jon McClellan, medical director of the Child Study and

> Treatment Center in Lakewood, Wash. " At some level, I would hope that

> you'd also be teaching kids ways to control their behavior. "

>

> According to the medical examiner, died of a combination of

> Clonidine, a blood pressure medication she had been prescribed for ADHD;

> Depakote, an antiseizure and mood-stabilizing drug prescribed for the

> little girl's bipolar disorder; a cough suppressant; and an

> antihistamine.

>

> The amount of Clonidine alone in 's system was enough to be

> fatal, the medical examiner said.

>

> The two brand-name prescription drugs are approved by the Food and Drug

> Administration for use in adults only, though doctors can legally

> prescribe them to youngsters and do so frequently.

>

> 's parents, and Carolyn Riley, say they were only

> following doctor's orders. , they told police, had been diagnosed

> when she was just 2 1/2, and 's psychiatrist prescribed the same

> potent drugs that had been prescribed for her older brother and sister

> when she diagnosed them with the same illnesses several years earlier.

>

> 's teachers, the school nurse and her therapist all told police

> that they never saw behavior in that fit her diagnoses, such as

> aggression, sharp mood swings or hyperactivity.

>

> Prosecutors say the Rileys intentionally tried to quiet with

> high doses of Clonidine. Relatives told police the Rileys called

> Clonidine the " sleep medicine. "

>

> Through their attorneys, Riley, 34, and Carolyn Riley, 32, have

> accused 's psychiatrist, Dr. Kayoko Kifuji, of overprescribing

> medication.

>

> Kifuji did not return calls for comment, but she has vehemently denied

> any role in 's death. She has agreed to a suspension of her

> license while the state's medical board investigates.

>

> Kifuji told police had been her patient since August 2004, when

> she was 2. She said she based her diagnoses of ADHD and bipolar disorder

> on the family's mental health history, as described by Carolyn Riley,

> and 's behavior, as described by Carolyn and briefly observed by

> her during office visits.

>

> Kifuji told police she became alarmed in October 2005 when Carolyn Riley

> told her she had increased 's nighttime dose of Clonidine from 2

> to 2 1/2 tablets, and warned Carolyn that the increase could kill

> .

>

> But Carolyn told investigators Kifuji told her she could give

> and her sister extra Clonidine at night to help them sleep.

>

> Tufts-New England Medical Center, where Kifuji works, issued a statement

> supporting Kifuji, saying her care of " was appropriate and

> within responsible professional standards. "

>

> In the months leading up to 's death, others noticed there was

> something wrong.

>

> Teachers and staff members at the Early Childhood Center in

> Weymouth, about 20 miles south of Boston, say they called 's

> mother repeatedly to tell her that was " out of it, " but her

> mother said the girl was tired because she wasn't sleeping well.

>

> A neighbor who lived next door to the family in the last month of

> 's life said and her siblings seemed listless.

>

> 'Like little robots'

>

> " They looked like little robots. They looked very lethargic, " Phyllis

> Lipton said. " I said, 'Wow, they don't look right,' but who knew? "

>

> Pharmacists at Walgreens in Weymouth called Kifuji twice to complain

> that Carolyn Riley was asking for more Clonidine, even though her

> prescription was not due to be refilled, according to state police.

>

> Once, Riley said she had lost a bottle of pills, and another time, she

> said water had gotten into her prescription bottle and ruined the pills,

> according to police.

>

> Kifuji authorized refills, but after the second incident, she began

> prescribing Clonidine in 10-day refills instead of 30-day supplies,

> investigators said.

>

> On Aug. 16, a prescription for 35 Clonidine tablets - a 10-day supply -

> was filled at Walgreens, even though the Rileys had obtained a 10-day

> refill only the day before, investigators said.

>

> Walgreens spokeswoman Tiffani Bruce said: " The scrip was filled as

> written, as it was prescribed by the doctor, and all the appropriate

> information on the medications was given to the family. "

>

> After 's death, police found only seven Clonidine tablets in the

> family's medicine tray. Altogether, prosecutors say, Carolyn Riley got

> 200 more pills in one year than she should have.

>

> The Rileys' lawyers call them unsophisticated people who did not

> question their children's doctors.

>

> Both are unemployed; they collect welfare and disability benefits.

> Riley, who is also awaiting trial on charges of molesting a

> stepdaughter in 2005, claimed to suffer from bipolar disorder and a rage

> disorder; his wife told police she suffered from depression and anxiety.

>

> " They are not the sort of people who go on the Internet and look on

> WebMD. These are the sort of people who, when they go to a doctor, the

> doctor is God and they do what the doctor says, " said Darrell,

> 's lawyer.

>

> In July, after a therapist filed a complaint with the state Department

> of Social Services, social workers met with the family's doctors and

> other medical professionals and were assured that the medications

> was taking were within medical guidelines.

>

> " There were lots of medical eyes on this case and none of them seemed to

> say there was an issue of overmedication in this case, " said Social

> Services Commissioner Harry Spence, who has come under fire for the

> agency's handling of the case.

>

> 's uncle, McGonnell, and his girlfriend, ,

> who lived with the Rileys, told police that the Rileys would put their

> kids to bed as early as 5 p.m. , they said, often slept through

> the day and got up only to eat.

>

> According to McGonnell and , spent the last days of her

> life wandering around the house, sick and disoriented. But the Rileys

> told police they were not alarmed. " It was just a cold, " Carolyn said

> during police interviews.

>

> _____

>

> Stop TeenScreen Petition:

> <http://www.petitiononline.com/TScreen/petition.html>

> http://www.petitiononline.com/TScreen/petition.html

> TeenScreen - National Fraud Video:

>

> TeenScreen Documents:

> <http://libertycoalition.net/cognitive-liberty/psychiatry-gone-wild-teen

> screen-documents-exposed>

> http://libertycoalition.net/cognitive-liberty/psychiatry-gone-wild-teens

> creen-documents-exposed (download them and post them all over the net)

> How to Make a Blog: <http://www.blogger.com/start>

> http://www.blogger.com/start (so you can help get the word out on the

> net)

>

>

[Guest guest]

Ken,

Your link is incorrect because it leaves off part of the address. It's

important to type the last part in manually if you can- mine didn't work at

first because it didn't include the word html at the end.

Anyway, here is the story:

http://www.sptimes.com/2007/03/25/Worldandnation/A_child_is_quieted__f.shtml

Please do comment here, people, and thank you, Ken for bringing this to our

attention. You're a force for good in America!

Jasmine

On 3/25/07, Ken Kramer <datasearch@...> wrote:

>

> Let your comments rip here:

> http://www.sptimes.com/2007/03/25/Worldandnation/A_child_is_quieted__f.s

> html (Comments may be published online and/or in print.) Your

> comments will be reviewed - they are not instantly posted.

>

> Suggestion: Thank them, stick to the facts and let them know that

> parents need to be informed.

>

> It's an Associated Press story but it was published today - full page -

> in the St. sburg Times.

>

>

> A child is quieted, forever, by pills

>

> Prosecutors charge Riley's parents with murder and child

> psychiatry comes under scrutiny after the 4-year-old dies of an overdose

> of prescribed drugs.

>

> By ASSOCIATED PRESS

> Published March 25, 2007

>

> _____

>

> HULL, Mass. - In the final months of Riley's life, a school

> nurse said the little girl was so weak she was like a " floppy doll. "

>

> The preschool principal had to help off the bus because the

> 4-year-old was shaking so badly.

>

> And a pharmacist complained that 's mother kept coming up with

> excuses for why her daughter needed more and more medication.

>

> None of their concerns was enough to save .

>

> - who had been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity

> and bipolar disorder, or what used to be called manic depression - died

> Dec. 13 of an overdose of prescribed drugs, and her parents have been

> arrested on murder charges, accused of intentionally overmedicating

> their daughter to keep her quiet and out of their hair.

>

> Interviews and a review of court documents make it clear that many of

> those who were supposed to protect - teachers, social workers,

> other professionals - suspected something was wrong, but never went

> quite far enough.

>

> The tragic case is more than a story about one child. It raises

> troubling, larger questions about the state of child psychiatry, namely:

>

> - Can children as young as be accurately diagnosed with mental

> illnesses?

>

> - Are rambunctious youngsters being medicated for their parents'

> convenience?

>

> - Should children so young be prescribed powerful psychotropic drugs

> meant for adults?

>

> Dispensing drugs to children diagnosed with mood or behavior problems is

> " the easiest thing to do, but it's not always the best thing to do, "

> said Dr. Jon McClellan, medical director of the Child Study and

> Treatment Center in Lakewood, Wash. " At some level, I would hope that

> you'd also be teaching kids ways to control their behavior. "

>

> According to the medical examiner, died of a combination of

> Clonidine, a blood pressure medication she had been prescribed for ADHD;

> Depakote, an antiseizure and mood-stabilizing drug prescribed for the

> little girl's bipolar disorder; a cough suppressant; and an

> antihistamine.

>

> The amount of Clonidine alone in 's system was enough to be

> fatal, the medical examiner said.

>

> The two brand-name prescription drugs are approved by the Food and Drug

> Administration for use in adults only, though doctors can legally

> prescribe them to youngsters and do so frequently.

>

> 's parents, and Carolyn Riley, say they were only

> following doctor's orders. , they told police, had been diagnosed

> when she was just 2 1/2, and 's psychiatrist prescribed the same

> potent drugs that had been prescribed for her older brother and sister

> when she diagnosed them with the same illnesses several years earlier.

>

> 's teachers, the school nurse and her therapist all told police

> that they never saw behavior in that fit her diagnoses, such as

> aggression, sharp mood swings or hyperactivity.

>

> Prosecutors say the Rileys intentionally tried to quiet with

> high doses of Clonidine. Relatives told police the Rileys called

> Clonidine the " sleep medicine. "

>

> Through their attorneys, Riley, 34, and Carolyn Riley, 32, have

> accused 's psychiatrist, Dr. Kayoko Kifuji, of overprescribing

> medication.

>

> Kifuji did not return calls for comment, but she has vehemently denied

> any role in 's death. She has agreed to a suspension of her

> license while the state's medical board investigates.

>

> Kifuji told police had been her patient since August 2004, when

> she was 2. She said she based her diagnoses of ADHD and bipolar disorder

> on the family's mental health history, as described by Carolyn Riley,

> and 's behavior, as described by Carolyn and briefly observed by

> her during office visits.

>

> Kifuji told police she became alarmed in October 2005 when Carolyn Riley

> told her she had increased 's nighttime dose of Clonidine from 2

> to 2 1/2 tablets, and warned Carolyn that the increase could kill

> .

>

> But Carolyn told investigators Kifuji told her she could give

> and her sister extra Clonidine at night to help them sleep.

>

> Tufts-New England Medical Center, where Kifuji works, issued a statement

> supporting Kifuji, saying her care of " was appropriate and

> within responsible professional standards. "

>

> In the months leading up to 's death, others noticed there was

> something wrong.

>

> Teachers and staff members at the Early Childhood Center in

> Weymouth, about 20 miles south of Boston, say they called 's

> mother repeatedly to tell her that was " out of it, " but her

> mother said the girl was tired because she wasn't sleeping well.

>

> A neighbor who lived next door to the family in the last month of

> 's life said and her siblings seemed listless.

>

> 'Like little robots'

>

> " They looked like little robots. They looked very lethargic, " Phyllis

> Lipton said. " I said, 'Wow, they don't look right,' but who knew? "

>

> Pharmacists at Walgreens in Weymouth called Kifuji twice to complain

> that Carolyn Riley was asking for more Clonidine, even though her

> prescription was not due to be refilled, according to state police.

>

> Once, Riley said she had lost a bottle of pills, and another time, she

> said water had gotten into her prescription bottle and ruined the pills,

> according to police.

>

> Kifuji authorized refills, but after the second incident, she began

> prescribing Clonidine in 10-day refills instead of 30-day supplies,

> investigators said.

>

> On Aug. 16, a prescription for 35 Clonidine tablets - a 10-day supply -

> was filled at Walgreens, even though the Rileys had obtained a 10-day

> refill only the day before, investigators said.

>

> Walgreens spokeswoman Tiffani Bruce said: " The scrip was filled as

> written, as it was prescribed by the doctor, and all the appropriate

> information on the medications was given to the family. "

>

> After 's death, police found only seven Clonidine tablets in the

> family's medicine tray. Altogether, prosecutors say, Carolyn Riley got

> 200 more pills in one year than she should have.

>

> The Rileys' lawyers call them unsophisticated people who did not

> question their children's doctors.

>

> Both are unemployed; they collect welfare and disability benefits.

> Riley, who is also awaiting trial on charges of molesting a

> stepdaughter in 2005, claimed to suffer from bipolar disorder and a rage

> disorder; his wife told police she suffered from depression and anxiety.

>

> " They are not the sort of people who go on the Internet and look on

> WebMD. These are the sort of people who, when they go to a doctor, the

> doctor is God and they do what the doctor says, " said Darrell,

> 's lawyer.

>

> In July, after a therapist filed a complaint with the state Department

> of Social Services, social workers met with the family's doctors and

> other medical professionals and were assured that the medications

> was taking were within medical guidelines.

>

> " There were lots of medical eyes on this case and none of them seemed to

> say there was an issue of overmedication in this case, " said Social

> Services Commissioner Harry Spence, who has come under fire for the

> agency's handling of the case.

>

> 's uncle, McGonnell, and his girlfriend, ,

> who lived with the Rileys, told police that the Rileys would put their

> kids to bed as early as 5 p.m. , they said, often slept through

> the day and got up only to eat.

>

> According to McGonnell and , spent the last days of her

> life wandering around the house, sick and disoriented. But the Rileys

> told police they were not alarmed. " It was just a cold, " Carolyn said

> during police interviews.

>

> _____

>

> Stop TeenScreen Petition:

> <http://www.petitiononline.com/TScreen/petition.html>

> http://www.petitiononline.com/TScreen/petition.html

> TeenScreen - National Fraud Video:

>

> TeenScreen Documents:

> <http://libertycoalition.net/cognitive-liberty/psychiatry-gone-wild-teen

> screen-documents-exposed>

> http://libertycoalition.net/cognitive-liberty/psychiatry-gone-wild-teens

> creen-documents-exposed (download them and post them all over the net)

> How to Make a Blog: <http://www.blogger.com/start>

> http://www.blogger.com/start (so you can help get the word out on the

> net)

>

>