Paul Offit's Lies: I got me a lawyer.
By J.B. Handley
There's probably not a lawyer on the planet who wouldn't agree that blogging publicly about a legal proceeding is a bad idea. And, they’d probably be right.
But, Paul Offit is a lying jerk and offends our entire community, so I wanted to bring you along for the ride. Consider this my "public legal journal."
Moreover, I have nothing to hide. Offit lied blatantly in his book, and I'd like a little justice. He did it to try and make me look bad. I think he succeeded, and he had to lie to make it happen. That makes me unhappy. And, it's a pattern from him that we have seen for a long time on many issues related to vaccines and autism.
Someone needs to stand up to this jerk, and I'm happy to do it. As you may have figured out, it's not often I back down from a fight.
Anyway, I found me a great attorney who eats nails for breakfast and believes in truth. He'll remain nameless for now because he didn't sign up to be part of this public journal, but here's a copy of the letter we sent, certified mail, to Dr. Proffit himself and Columbia University Press:
Paul A. Offit, M.D.
c/o Columbia University Press
61 West 62nd Street
New York, NY 10023
Re: Autism's False Prophets: Bad Science, Risky Medicine, and the Search for a Cure by Paul A. Offit, M.D.
Gentlemen:
I represent J.B. Handley, who is referred in the book Autism's False Prophets: Bad Science, Risky Medicine, and the Search for a Cure. The conversation reported at page 143 of the book never occurred. The writing that the author refers to was in a different time and place.
The creation of that conversation and the juxtaposition of that conversation with Mr. Handley's writing are false, libelous and damaging.
Within ten days you must advise me that the author will write a written apology to Mr. Handley and that you will take out all reference to that conversation in any future printings, or we will explore our legal alternative.
Very truly yours,
(JB's lawyer)
* * *
So, there you go. First shot fired. As we all know, the right thing to do is to apologize and make the change to the book. Offit lied. He screwed up in trying a little too hard to make me look bad. He completely fictionalized an exchange that never happened. And, I can prove it. If he does me that simple justice, I'll move on, even though I think damaging my reputation should include compensation.
Oh, and did I mention I found the Rescue Angel mom? The one who was getting mudslinged and prompted my post at EOH that Offit fictionalized into an exchange with Kathleen Seidel? Well, I did. She read my last post, and she found me. The power of AoA!
Did I also mention I already got the response from Offit's lawyer to the above letter? I did. And, it's a doozy. It wasn't very polite nor was it an offer to do the right thing.
I will be printing the whole letter from Offit's attorney on AoA next week.
Stay tuned. (Hey, we're trying to create readership here, after all!)
J.B. Handley is co-founder of Generation Rescue and contributor to Age of Autism.
JB:
Senator Grassley might like to know about this person and his potential conflicts of interest in promoting vaccines.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/22/health/22radio.html
Posted by: sdtech | November 23, 2008 at 07:36 PM
I have an Austic greatgrandaughter who has Aspergers.Her dad works for a doctor as an Physicans Assitant.Therefore 1. there's nothing wrong with her or 2. if there is, the vacines didn't do it! (She didn't talk until she was 3.) I wonder how many of these idiots have austic children?
pjc Castle Rock,CO.
Posted by: Patricia Conley | November 20, 2008 at 01:04 PM
Villains hate exposure to the truth if you bring this one out in the open he will be screeching in pain before very long.
Posted by: Richard | November 19, 2008 at 09:43 PM
Thank you for continuing to fight this fight. I support you 1000%!!!!!
Posted by: Dana Read | November 19, 2008 at 12:16 PM
Indeed a great sip of caffeine to read your decision to call Offit on his web of lies.
It would be great to depose DR Offit and his Ped's DR wife Bonnie as well.
Dr Bonnie Offit states she stays up late reading the autism web sites. (I cannot believe there could be two ticks that would
be under the same roof.)
Since the book is based on many parts a lie; it really should be pulled from circulation. Its a matter of public safety!
Here's the article from Newsweek folks - on DR Profit feel free to add your comments too
http://www.newsweek.com/id/165644
Comments link:
http://www.newsweek.com/id/165644/output/comments
Posted by: Allie90 | November 19, 2008 at 11:02 AM
Coming soon on the Today Show:
Dr. S. talks with Dr. O about the "baseless" lawsuit he is facing from those "money grubbing" parents that "terrorize" the "poor doctor".
Posted by: L Land | November 19, 2008 at 10:29 AM
Quintessential JB.
Soo perfect.
Do keep us posted.
Love to the family..
xo
Julia
Posted by: julia | November 19, 2008 at 09:07 AM
I cannot wait to read more! GO GET EM!
Posted by: Tracy Ruggiero | November 19, 2008 at 08:49 AM
JB,
You've got some cheerleaders in the Naughton home!!!
Thank you for making this creep put his money where his mouth is. He needs to be held accountable for his ridiculous behavior atleast on some level.
Go get 'em JB!!
Posted by: Meg N | November 19, 2008 at 07:46 AM
thanks J.B.
can't wait to see the response!
Posted by: jill r | November 19, 2008 at 03:32 AM
Thank you Thank you Thank you, JB!!!!!
Just tonight, I was doing some light reading from Google Scholar, and came across this-
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18762240
After I read the summary, I sat and cried. How much longer can the truth be ignored? I immediately thought of Offit and his offensive book, and wanted to scream.
According to this study, and the package insert to Rotateq, his vaccine should not even be used in autistic children!
I came here just to not feel so alone in this craziness and this has definitely put a smile back on my face.
Good luck JB, can't wait to read the response!
Posted by: Monica | November 19, 2008 at 01:07 AM
Can I just say, J.B., that you kick ass. Woot!!
Posted by: Julie Swenson | November 18, 2008 at 10:45 PM
"Paul Offit is a lying jerk and offends our entire community,"
Ok , I am TOTALLY putting this on a t-shirt. It will be a great conversation starter ;) And then I can launch into what a jerk he really is.
Posted by: Julie Swenson | November 18, 2008 at 10:42 PM
Why my grandson? Why are there so many children suffering. Simple answer is corporate greed. JB is like David against Goliath. He will be throwing stones against this mammoth pharmaceutical industry. We need a grassroot effort involving a door to door effort to get out the word. The stories of all the suffering needs to be spread by the Roots. We have got to stop this epedemic. That means no more internet campaigning only. We need to be foot soldiers and JB you need to lead us. Don't waste your time with this SOB, he is just a mouth piece. Lets go for the powers that be and stop the suffering of the children. No more walking on Washington. Lets organize like a religion and walk on our towns and communities. We have to UNITE across this country and abroad.
Posted by: Nora | November 18, 2008 at 10:01 PM
You go JB! Fiction should not be allowed to be passed off as fact in an effort to deceive the American people (and the world). Offit should be held accountable and it is great that you are taking him on. Keep fighting the good fight!
Posted by: Kim Mack Rosenberg | November 18, 2008 at 09:37 PM
J.B. far be it from me to tell you what to do with the judgement when you win but just think what it would do to Offit if you gave some portion of that judgement, oh to say.....Generation Rescue or Austism Research Institute or any of the other worthy Autism Advocacy Groups.
Wouldn't that just be sweet irony.
Posted by: Pamela | November 18, 2008 at 08:22 PM
Thankyou thankyou thankyou. I appreciate so much that you are doing this. Sometimes we all must feel like we are the only ones writing letters, sending emails, calling people or attending meetings to have our voice heard and demand some accountability for our children. (whether it's about safety of vaccines, fair pay for day care workers, rent controls so our doctors can practice medicine reasonably etc.). You really are making a difference!!! Good luck!!
Posted by: jen | November 18, 2008 at 02:49 PM
"That rota patent has paid for more lawyers than the anyone Offit slanders could ever dream of being able to afford- until now."
According to Louise Kuo Habakus (commenting on the AoA "Drama Queen" posting here http://www.ageofautism.com/2008/11/autisms-biggest.html) for Dr Offit it was like "winning the lottery".
I'm no lawyer, but what if the actual rota patent royalties were brought into evidence - the relevance being that any threat to these rather significant financial interests could be a possible motive for the ensuing actions (i.e. slander). Pure speculation here, but I wonder how much of a dent that would put into claims of "random luck", objectivity, transparency, etc. (given the reported $182 million paid for the (future) royalties on that vaccine, I'm guessing this is a staggering amount).
Posted by: Randy | November 18, 2008 at 02:03 PM
I always thought that the ND's queen of cut and paste was his ghost writer.
Maybe now we find out?
Posted by: John | November 18, 2008 at 01:56 PM
Maybe Offit will have to get bodyguards to protect himself from his own slander.
Anyone got odds on him passing the buck to Siedel?
Posted by: Keith | November 18, 2008 at 01:35 PM
If I were really a Prophet, then I'd not like to be PrOffit right now! Get get em JB.
Posted by: AutismFather | November 18, 2008 at 01:29 PM
JB - take it to OPRAH! If she can "out" James Frey over his made-up book, I'll bet that with her support of Jenny, no-fear attitude and CONSIDERABLE media clout, she'd have a whopper of a show over Dr. Proffit's piece of fictionalized crap. You have my best wishes for a successful outcome to your case.
Posted by: Windy | November 18, 2008 at 01:25 PM
Hmm, Craig's comment makes me think that the actual title of the book could be part of the libel. The whole point of this book is that we are all false prophets, i.e., that what we say is somehow dishonest. Which is clearly what he was actually doing. :)
Posted by: ObjectiveAutismDad | November 18, 2008 at 01:20 PM
Maybe we can get him to change the name of his book.
"Autism's False prOffit" has a nice ring to it, don'tcha think?
He's going to deny it, he's going to try to play himself off as the poor innocent wittle victim. But, his lies are on paper. They are in print. The definition of libel is "An untruthful statement about a person, published in writing or through broadcast media, that injures the person's reputation or standing in the community. Because libel is a tort (a civil wrong), the injured person can bring a lawsuit against the person who made the false statement."
Well, it is quite obvious that Pauly prOffit's intentions were quite malicious and he was deliberately trying to defame JB's character. And JB has proof of the false content. Pauly prOffit deserves what's coming for him. I wonder if the prison he's going to eventually end up in will let him pick the color of his uniform.
Incidentally, the Vaccinites are going to be quite angry that you are attacking their most holy High Priest. I'm sure the blogs will be abuzz soon.
Posted by: Craig Willoughby | November 18, 2008 at 01:04 PM
Excellent! I can't wait to read the response letter. Great work!
Posted by: Melanie | November 18, 2008 at 12:37 PM
All hail the "King of Ruckus".
Nobody, and I mean *NOBODY* does ruckus better than JB Handley.
(Okay, Jenny's pretty good at ruckus too but remember it was JB's ruckus that Jenny noticed!)
I LOVE 'EM BOTH!
Posted by: Kelli Ann Davis | November 18, 2008 at 12:26 PM
JB:
My hero. You go get the BAS$*%$Y#$.
I hope your attorney can prove that it somehow adversely affected you. Maybe you should start making up fictional death threats too!
Posted by: Cindy | November 18, 2008 at 12:19 PM
Thank you JB!!! We can agree to disagree with our opponents but publishing fiction as truth is not an option.
Offit's book is riddled with slanderous accusations while Offit protrays himself as a brave truth teller, selflessly battling forces of evil! Offit's egomania, like his bank account, is tremendous. That rota patent has paid for more lawyers than the anyone Offit slanders could ever dream of being able to afford- until now. Thank you JB for holding Offit accountable.
Posted by: katie wright | November 18, 2008 at 11:57 AM
Hello JB,
I hear you are going to war with this guy. I don't like what he stands for either. This guy has a lot of spineless creeps that are also Doctors and scientists that will lie for him. He has a huge fan base on the science blogs that kiss the ground he walks on. If there is anything I can do please let me know. There should be more fathers like you that are willing to stand up for what is right.
People, we can't let JB be the only one to fight for us. JB, even though we may not have a lot of money because of enormous medical bills, please let us know how we can help. Take care and God Bless.
Posted by: Mary | November 18, 2008 at 11:51 AM
For Theodore Dalrymple:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthony_Daniels_(psychiatrist)
Posted by: John Stone | November 18, 2008 at 11:35 AM
“Future printings”? A bit optimistic I would say. Best of luck and I really hope you are successful. It would be fun to see Matt Lauer ask Dr. Snyderman about the controversy surrounding the material in Offit's book!
Posted by: samaxtics | November 18, 2008 at 11:19 AM
Get him in a deposition
His "consultants" have very deep pockets and the legal dept is the biggest part of it. Find out if his lawyer works for his "consultant"
Posted by: nonymous | November 18, 2008 at 11:06 AM
Next, take on the book reviewers who've uncritically promoted Offit's creative fiction. Folks like Theodore Dalrymple of New York's City Journal, who in 2006 also gushed over "The Cutter Incident." People smart enough to know better, but are pushing lopsided agendas.
Posted by: nhokkanen | November 18, 2008 at 10:43 AM
There will be much more legal action against Dr. Offit and his publisher coming to light soon. Stay tuned. He wrote a lot of lies about a lot of people with good lawyers. Not too bright, IMO.
Posted by: WilsonL | November 18, 2008 at 10:17 AM
Yeah, JB! This is one of the reasons I have so much respect for you. There is no backing down. There never will be. Go get him, and force the truth out of his lie spewing mouth. You have so many parents behind you. We are defending the truth, and their glass houses will fall. My favorite quote : "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed people can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."
Margaret Meade
Posted by: Julie | November 18, 2008 at 09:51 AM
You brave soul! All the best with this, JB Isn't it ironic how strong parents have become because of our children? You deserve so much better--we are rooting for you and your legal team!
See if you can add,"...and remove any currently published books from store shelves now...." that include the lies. Wouldn't that be a feat in itself? Remember we were told that the thimerosal in vaccines was to have been removed in 2002? That process may have looked all nice and neat on paper, but here it is 2008 and you can still find mercury in vaccines! Not many bothered to remove the supply of thimerosal-tainted vaccines they had on the doctor's shelves after that request six yeats ago. It's still used in *trace* amounts and more!
You could save thousands of lives by getting the currently published book off the bookshelves before countless other parents fall into the trap many of us are trying to get out of.
Cathy Jameson
Posted by: Cathy Jameson | November 18, 2008 at 09:50 AM
IF a significant monetary conclusion is obtained (and I know that's not the reason for doing so) how's about buying an ad spot for the Superbowl simply showing real parents with kids saying "our child was injured by their vaccines" followed by a voice over of "it's your choice. choose wisely"
Posted by: Peter | November 18, 2008 at 09:30 AM
It's very generous of you to put yourself on the line in this case. Al Capone was brought down by tax evasion, after all. I know that's the kind of hyperbole that would make Offit smirk, except I meant it in the reverse: Capone's victims were mostly other bootleggers. What Offit represents is far worse.
Posted by: Gatogorra | November 18, 2008 at 09:25 AM
Thank you for taking the fight to them!
Every time I see this guy on TV, it makes me want to vomit. I'm tired of affected families being portrayed as desparate and out-of-touch.
I'm sure your nail-eating attorney has already told you this, but this is the best way to really get their (the dark side's) attention. Don't let them bully you into backing down.
Thanks for giving us a voice.
Posted by: Roger | November 18, 2008 at 09:04 AM
Take him to the mat, JB. Great letter by your lawyer...and no surprise at all that the response was not that of honesty and apology. Paul Offit believes himself untouchable by the law but he can only run so long before he will have to pay for the lives that he has taken away and harmed.
Paul Offit is indeed Voldemort!
Posted by: Kecia | November 18, 2008 at 09:03 AM
Go get 'em tiger!
Posted by: karenatlanta | November 18, 2008 at 09:00 AM
Schweet! Go get em JB!
Good luck Tanner's Dad. We'll be pulling for you as well.
Posted by: ObjectiveAutismDad | November 18, 2008 at 07:37 AM
Better than coffee. Thanks for the wake up jolt. You take the fight to them. The least parents can expect from these holier than thou "Mainstream" Mudslingers is at least a vail of honesty. If I had any money it would be going towards your legal fund today (I hope he does not keep this when I am a multi-millionare)... Instead I will be out job hunting.
Posted by: Tanners Dad | November 18, 2008 at 06:50 AM