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Friday, December 05, 2003
Kishi baby suffered serious brain injuries: doc
By Giovannie A. Nilles
A PEDIATRIC neurosurgeon, who claims to be the only one recognized by American standards in the country, yesterday testified that the X-ray results of the late Diether Lorence Kishi showed bilateral injuries to the brain.
But the depth and the length of this injury, Dr. Benedicto Baronia said, could not be measured because of limitations caused by the way the X-ray film was angled.
Baronia, a fellow of the Academy of Filipino Neurosurgeons, is the fourth to the last rebuttal witness of the panel prosecution in the parricide case against spouses Daisuke and Loreta Kishi.
Injuries
It was alleged that the couple had something to do with the injuries 51-day-old Diether Lorence sustained in the middle of this year. The injuries included a broken bone in the left leg and fractures to the skull.
Baronia told Regional Trial Court Branch 14 Judge Raphael Yrastorza Sr. that the presence of the bilateral fractures in Kishi’s skull signaled a serious injury.
This testimony seemed to reject the contention of the defense that the injuries in the skull area were not fatal and could not have caused the death of Diether Lorence last May 7.
Baronia, during the cross-examination, also refused to “respect” the report of PNP 7 medico-legal officer Nestor Satur and Camp Crame pathologist Mamerto Bernabe regarding Kishi’s death, as he described these reports as unreliable and incomplete.
Glaring error
“By the number of pages alone, it (Satur’s report) is incomplete. There was no description of what happened to the brain…(this is) a glaring error or omission,” he said.
Although he did not dismiss the two reports as being entirely wrong, he said that some more descriptions could have been more helpful to the experts that are now looking into the boy’s death.
Lead defense counsel Adelino Sitoy tried to destroy his testimonies, though, by striking at his use of the words “seems,” “seemingly” and “probably” when referring to some of Diether Lorence’s injuries and the results of these injuries.
Not sure
For Sitoy, the use of these terms meant that Baronia was not sure either regarding Diether Lorence’s death.
He also tried to impeach the credibility of the witness by asking Baronia for his diploma or a certification that would show that he is the only recognized pediatric neurosurgeon by American standards in the country.
The case will be heard again in late January.
(December 5, 2003 issue)
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