• Testimony by Debbie Grater
• FREE ALEJANDRO MENDEZ-VARGAS: Anecdotal account of events by his wife, mother of the deceased
• Erie Times News - Mother: Parents being falsely accused
• Tico Times - U.S. Citizen Visits Costa Rica To Plead for Husband's Life

Testimony by Debbie Grater

Ken and Debbie Grater with their children Jarad and Brook

My name is Debra Grater and I live in Pennsylvania with my husband and two children. I was a child care provider with a great love for children when I was accused and criminally prosecuted for alleged Shaken Baby Syndrome. I am innocent and have always maintained my innocence. That is the day my life and the lives of those I loved changed forever and this is my story.

It was December 15, 2000 a normal babysitting day for me until approximately 3:30 p.m. when I was catapulted into the world of false allegations. I had been caring for a 4-month old boy for nine days and on the tenth day he was taken to his pediatrician for a Well-Baby-Check where he was vaccinated with the DTaP, HiB Titer, Hepatitis, Polio and Prevnar. His mother dropped him off at my home at approximately 10:00 a.m. I checked on him regularly and he seemed fine until around 3:30 p.m. when I found him unresponsive and barely breathing.

I called 911 and even did mouth to mouth on him at one point because he stopped breathing altogether. The hospitals he was taken to conclude that his injuries were consistent with Child Abuse/ Shaken Baby Syndrome. I was in shock. I was viciously interrogated for three and a half hours by police and was arrested on charges of Shaken Baby Syndrome. I was out on bail after being placed in an "involuntary" medical hospital for a "psychiatric evaluation".

Upon my release I began to research this so-called "Shaken Baby Syndrome" and found out that many times over these adverse reactions to the vaccines were being misdiagnosed as Shaken Baby Syndrome and that SBS is only a theory and never proven to be a truly understood entity. By researching the medical journals it was clear that the experts in the field could not even agree on what SBS actually is! Even more shocking was that I discovered many adverse reactions to routine vaccinations were able to mimic what is thought to be SBS.

Upon further researching ‘vaccines’ I was shocked to see that tens of thousands of children are damaged and even killed by vaccines. I had always thought vaccines were safe. I found that the ingredients in vaccines were nothing more than a witches brew of animal blood, toxic metals, neurotoxins, viruses, bacteria, and even pesticides! Yes: pesticides.

Thimerosal, a common ingredient in many vaccines is a registered pesticide with the Environmental Protection Agency. (EPA) Thimerosal is nearly 50% mercury as well and, that a routine "Well-Baby-Visit" can see a child get injected with up to 62.5 mcgs. of mercury! The EPA guidelines for an ‘acceptable’ mercury exposure are 0.1 mcgs. of mercury per kilogram of body weight per day. The child in my case was given over 40 times the "safe" amount in matter of minutes -directly into his bloodstream and shortly before he was dropped off at my home.

As well this child had had an indication of possible neurological conditions, as his head size was abnormally large. The Physicians Desk Reference clearly states that " any child with an underlying neurological condition SHOULD NOT BE VACCINATED."

Even healthy children can have adverse reactions to vaccines and my son and daughter are perfect examples of that. In March of 1997 at age 6 months my son started with episodes of vomiting and diarrhea and had poor weight gain. At 9 months he was in the 5th percentile of the weight chart. Then in November of 1997 at almost 17 months it was noted that since 9 months he had lost 1-2 pounds and had more episodes of vomiting and diarrhea.

At 6 months he was vaccinated then again at 9 months. He received the HepB and Varicella at 12 months and the MMR and Hib Titer at 15 months. The doctors say it was lactose intolerance and Failure to Thrive, but I feel now it was the vaccines that did it - just look at the pattern.

If only I knew then what I know now. In January of 2001 my daughter was given the polio, Prevnar and Varicella shots and then in April of 2001 she was given the MMR, HiB Titer and Prevnar. Both times she developed a high fever of 104.6 F and went into hypo-tonic/ hypo-responsive episodes. She would not walk, talk, eat, drink or play. She lay around like a rag doll. I voiced my concerns to the pediatrician and they said, "We do not usually see that happen" and brushed it off. When I refused more shots for my children I was dismissed from their practice and told to secure medical care elsewhere.

Oddly my children are healthier now than they were when they were getting the shots. Vaccines carry serious and sometimes fatal consequences and people need to know this so they can truly make an informed choice. They also need to know what to do to avoid legal pitfalls in choosing what gets put into their bodies or their children’s bodies. No one can force you to do anything you do not want to do.

Being left with no choice I accepted a plea agreement of no contest, as I could have faced up to 15 years in prison in the aforementioned case. I chose not to risk what a jury would decide, as most people (like myself at one time) believe that vaccines are safe. I chose to secure that my children will grow up with their mother. I chose - so that I would not go to prison innocently - to accept a "NO CONTEST" plea. I am slowly picking up the pieces and moving on.

I maintain my innocence and plan to make a difference by raising awareness. The system needs help and parents /caretakers need to be informed. In my case I believe vaccines damaged this child, and so do some doctors. If you would like to know more about my case you can contact me at:

Sincerely,
Debbie Grater

FREE ALEJANDRO MENDEZ-VARGAS:
Anecdotal account of events by his wife, mother of the deceased

Photograph of Baby Lucas with piglet

On May 16th, 2002, my husband Alejandro and I were blessed with a tiny miracle. We named him Lucas, which translated means "light", and he truly was. He brought us more joy and happiness than we had ever known. We knew his every breath.

Everyone who saw Lucas, including his pediatricians, always commented on what a "big healthy baby" he was. His weight, length and head circumference all fell within the 95th percentile. At his well baby check-ups, we were constantly assured that he was a healthy baby; unfortunately that was not so. During the latter part of his life, Lucas had been somewhat lethargic, had diarrhea, and vomited. As first time parents we didn’t realize something was seriously wrong. Tragically, on August 27th, approximately 40 minutes after I had left our home for a meeting at the school where I taught, Lucas stopped breathing while in Alejandro’s care.

Alejandro immediately took Lucas to the home of a neighbor who called 911. The ambulance doors were slammed in my husband’s face as Emergency Medical Technicians proceeded to whisk our baby Lucas to a hospital. Alejandro had no alternative other than to stay behind as the police interrogated him with regard to what had just transpired. Wretched with concern and dealing with a language barrier in rural Pennsylvania, Alejandro (whose primary language is Spanish) fully cooperated with the police. A neighbor came to the school to inform me what was happening. Minutes later I arrived at our home with the intention of driving Alejandro to the hospital with me. However, I was informed by a police officer that he was not permitted to go anywhere and had to stay behind for questioning.

When I arrived at the hospital, there were numerous police officers staring at me. I was in shock and had to wait to speak with the physician who then proceeded to inform me that he believed our son had been abused! I pled with him to find out what the true causes of my son’s injuries were, however all of my pleas were dismissed and Children’s Youth Services were contacted. Lucas was life-flighted to a second hospital. After having driven a few hours in order to arrive to the second hospital, my husband and I were forbidden to see our son. There was absolutely no medical necessity requiring us to be sequestered from him, and we didn’t understand what was transpiring. We were soon to find out.

The doctors there concurred with the first physician’s diagnosis and had suspected that we had shaken our son. The cardiologist even inquired as to whether we had remembered dropping him from a second story window! We knew we were innocent of wrongdoing and did not understand why we were being treated with contempt and suspicion. We were impatient with these unnecessary delays. Our precious Baby Lucas lay in a coma; what mattered most was to be with him.

My parents, family members, and colleagues witnessed the medical staff’s treatment of us in the hospital. These family members and friends were just as bewildered with our treatment as we were. They revoked our custody of Lucas in less than two hours after his admission to the first hospital on the basis that he had retinal hemorrhages, subdural hemorrhaging, and a supposed rib "fracture". Due to these findings the physicians claimed that Lucas had been "shaken". They made the ominous diagnosis of "Shaken Baby Syndrome".

Amidst our grief, rather than facilitating our bereavement and shock, we were immediately blamed for his condition yet not criminally charged with anything. The physicians would not look at my husband nor speak with him; many refused to answer my questions. Alejandro and I were only permitted to be with Lucas when we were under supervision. All differential diagnosis was abandoned, and we had no hope for finding the truth in that hospital.

Lucas was dearly loved and protected; he was never abused. We loved him more than anyone else in the world, and anyone who ever saw us with him can attest to that simple fact. I repeat, the medical professionals at Geisinger Medical Hospital in Danville, PA did absolutely nothing to search for the true causes of our son’s medical condition. As opposed to our being treated with dignity and respect these professionals did not facilitate or even acknowledge our grief.

Since these events occurred in our lives, we have learned that there has been an epidemic of Shaken Baby Syndrome accusations sweeping the country in recent years. We are by no means an isolated incident. These accusations are based upon a theory formulated in the early 1970’s by John Caffey, MD. Child abuse specialists throughout the country have been trained to make a diagnosis of Shaken Baby Syndrome (SBS) when an infant presents with any or all of the following symptoms: 1) subdural hemorrhaging (bleeding in the brain), 2) retinal hemorrhaging (bleeding behind the eyes), and 3) a discrepancy between the history provided and the severity of the injuries. In other words, the physicians claim a discrepancy exists when the clinical picture is one of a traumatic injury, but the caretaker‘s history doesn’t include a serious car accident or fall from a considerable height.

In recent years experts from various fields such as: ophthalmology, neuropathology, neurology, forensic pathology and biomechanics have begun to dispute this SBS theory. An increasing number of scientific and medical experts have concluded that the Shaken Baby Syndrome theory has not been borne out by current scientific evidence as it is based upon assumptions. As a result of this 'junk-science,' numerous innocent caretakers and parents have been wrongly convicted and incarcerated for a crime that simply never occurred. While I have no doubt that child abuse sadly does occur, it is imperative that it be substantiated by sound evidence, not alleged on the basis of a theory that lacks scientific or medical evidence to support its claims.

Many pediatricians and child abuse experts continue to accept this Shaken Baby Syndrome hypothesis. Police, EMT’s, physicians, and medical examiners are taught to look for SBS. In the majority of these cases, there is a failure on behalf of the treating physicians to perform differential diagnosis. Simply stated, once the diagnosis of Non-Accidental Injury (NAI) is made, SBS becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. All further diagnostic testing ceases! The medical establishment is aware there are myriad other causes for these ‘injuries.’

The more the professionals are taught to presume the likelihood of SBS, and the more that other possibilities are cursorily dismissed, the more it is diagnosed. The true nature or cause of the injuries that these children exhibit is not being uncovered. Are these same professionals prejudiced to allege abuse so that their child abuse programs receive more funding? Child abuse prevention and protection has become an extremely profitable industry.

So, I ask, why are innocent people around the world being wrongly accused and persecuted when there is an ongoing debate with regard to the SBS diagnosis in the first place?

In our own situation, immediately following the doctors’ diagnosis of SBS, Alejandro and I were both listed as perpetrators on the Childline Abuse Registry. The police conducted their investigation for almost a year with the hope that my husband and I would turn on each other. That did not happen and it never will. In August of 2003, 11 ½ months following the death of our precious angel, approximately 15 armed police, SWAT, and detectives surrounded my parents’ house and arrested my husband. Before Alejandro’s indictment, our attorney had requested that we be permitted to turn ourselves in to the authorities in the event that an arrest would be made; however the State refused to comply with this petition.

My husband is currently incarcerated as a result of summary diagnosis by the medical establishment, more specifically due to presumptions made by the treating physicians and the medical examiner. Alejandro is 100% innocent and he never harmed his precious son in any way! He was charged with first and third degree murder for the death of his beloved baby boy. The District Attorney of Centre County, PA, Ray Gricar, is seeking the death penalty. He is seeking the death penalty! My husband is an innocent man who has no prior criminal record!

As if the loss of our only beloved son wasn’t enough, as a result of these false allegations Alejandro and I have lost our home, our savings, our careers, and our reputations! Even I still am being treated with suspicion. This exact situation could happen to anyone. We never imagined it happening to us.

I urge you to please educate yourself with regard to the hypothesis behind Shaken Baby Syndrome. There is an abundance of evidence pointing to vaccines and other iatrogenics, (injuries directly incurred from physicians and medical treatments) as the true culprits of many of these injuries. If physicians were held both civilly and criminally accountable for their hasty misdiagnosis of Shaken Baby Syndrome, they would not be so quick to make the diagnosis in the first place. However, by pre-judging people, having biased conclusions, and failing to perform differential diagnoses, the same medical professionals are not only negligent in their duties, but they are committing malpractice on a grand scale.

Please help us expose this erroneous theory so that more innocent families are not victimized. It is the RESPONSIBILITY of the treating doctors, as professionals, to perform differential diagnoses! Where does the Hippocratic Oath come in to play: "First Do NO Harm"?!? Where is the accountability to the patient or parents?

We desperately need fiscal donations, the name or names of individuals or organizations who may be able to offer advice or assistance, and your heartfelt prayers. Please consider assisting us in any way that you are able. In our lonely battle I am deeply sympathetic to the unknown numbers of parents and caretakers who are innocent, but who have been wrongly accused and incarcerated for major crimes. This atrocious lack of consciousness must be exposed before other innocent families are destroyed and divided as a result of these erroneous conclusions. Not just for our family, but for all of those wrongly accused and incarcerated for crimes committed by the medical and pharmaceutical establishment in order to line their pockets, as they have the funds necessary to fight the innocent victims of their actions. An investigation needs to be directed into these cases of alleged SBS.

Thousands of other innocent people are being victimized by these false allegations. Since we were first accused, I have learned of approximately twenty-five other cases of SBS prosecutions within the state of Pennsylvania. Countless children throughout the country are being maimed, murdered, or permanently damaged by iatrogenics compounded by the dogmatic training of the medical and legal professionals. We must act now NOW to expose this tragedy for the sake of our families.

May God bless you.

Mother: Parents being falsely accused

MEADVILLE — Lisa Mullenax lives under a shadow of suspicion cast by the death of her infant son in September 2002 and the murder charges filed against her husband in a Centre County case. Mullenax, who proclaims her husband's innocence and her own, said parents nationwide are falsely being accused in alleged shaken baby syndrome cases.

Mullenax, living at her parent's East Fallowfield Township in Crawford County, would be happy for no more public scrutiny, but she believes her message is too important. "I am 100 percent convinced of my husband's innocence. Our baby slept in my husband's arms every night," she said. "Physicians are considering only one thing (shaken baby syndrome) and parents are being blamed."

She stepped into the news in Crawford County when she appeared in court Aug. 22 to support John Raymond McGee, who along with Heather McNamara is accused of seriously injuring their 2-month-old daughter in March. Mullenax said she wrote the couple to tell them of her research and that there could be many medical reasons for the injuries their child sustained that have nothing to do with child abuse.

"I would never want to advocate for a parent that abused their child," she said. "But before they are deemed guilty, the possible other causes need to be discounted. The tragedy is once a physician sees brain hemorrhages and retinal hemorrhages they jump to a conclusion of shaken baby syndrome." Police and Children and Youth Services then build a case to support that conclusion, she said.

There is growing evidence that brain and retinal hemorrhages and associated injuries in infants have many causes, Mullenax said, holding a thick sheaf of papers of reports downloaded from the Internet or obtained directly from researchers.

Mohammed Ali Al-Bayati, a California pathologist and toxicologist retained by Mullenax and her husband, Alejandro Mendez Vargas, to examine their child's medical records, concluded that shaken baby syndrome was not the cause of death. Rather, he concluded the child's death likely resulted from a vitamin K deficiency coupled with several other factors that caused bleeding in the brain, Al-Bayati wrote in his report.

However, Centre County District Attorney Ray Gricar stands by the conclusions reached by the doctors who treated the child, the determination of the county coroner and findings of criminal investigators. Gricar said in September at Vargas' preliminary hearing that he would pursue the death penalty.

It was early in the afternoon of Aug. 27, 2002, when Vargas ran to a neighbor's home, carrying the limp body of his and Mullenax's 3-month-old son, Lucas. At the time, Mullenax was at a faculty meeting at the Centre County school where she taught Spanish. The child was taken to Centre Community Hospital and then flown to Geisinger Medical Center, where he died Sept. 2, 2002. Mullenax said from the moment they arrived at the hospitals, the physicians and staff assumed it was a case of shaken baby syndrome.

"We were requesting books to look at the terms they were telling us. We had no idea, we couldn't understand," she said. Mullenax said in her heart she knew her husband could not be responsible, nor was she. It was not until researching the causes for bleeding in the brain and associated injuries in infants that she learned there were causes other than abuse.

The investigation lasted nearly a year. Meanwhile, Mullenax and her husband moved back to Crawford County and in with her parents shortly after their child's death. They were in frequent contact with investigators, and their lawyer asked that if charges were filed, the couple be allowed to turn themselves in.

Instead, on Aug. 11 at about 5:30 p.m., state police, including a SWAT team, surrounded her parents' Hartstown-area home and took Vargas into custody.

"I still don't know if I'll be charged," she said. With the help of a friend, Mullenax said she has researched numerous cases in addition to her own and has contacted 17 other people in Pennsylvania that she believes have been falsely accused. "We are not an isolated case," she said. Mullenax said she knows many people probably assume she's simply unable to see or accept the truth of what happened to her child.

"I'm not asking for anyone's sympathy," she said. "I just want the other side presented. I want physicians and others to rule out other possible causes before they accuse parents."

Tico Times — U.S. Citizen Visits Costa Rica To Plead for Husband's Life

by Tim Sparkman
Tico Times Staff

Pennsylvania-native Lisa Mullanax left Costa Rica yesterday after a week of tearful pleas to government officials to intervene in the case of her Tico husband, Alejandro Méndez, who has been accused in the United States of killing their three-and-a-half-month-old son.

Méndez, originally from the Cartago area east of San José, was taken into custody Aug. 11 in Hartstown, Pa., after nearly a year of police investigations into the death of their son, Lucas Alejandro Mullanax-Méndez. Mullanax said her husband is being held in the Clinton County Correctional Facility in Pennsylvania.

Baby Lucas died on Sept. 2, 2002, after suffering severe hemorrhaging in his brain. According to Mullanax, a doctor at Geisinger Medical Center in Danville, Pa., where the baby was taken, told police the injuries were caused by "shaken baby syndrome." The father was home alone with the child when Lucas stopped breathing and was rushed to the hospital in an ambulance. The police, she said, looked directly to her husband as the culprit.

Mullanax insists her husband is innocent. "He would've died for our son," she exclaimed in an interview yesterday with The Tico Times. "The only thing he wanted was a son."

The bereaved mother believes the true cause of death is overmedication, both from vaccinations given to the infant shortly before his death and a host of antibiotics prescribed to her. She also claimed there were no bruises on Lucas's body, which she said is an obvious sign the baby had not been shaken.

Mullanax said the District Attorney who will prosecute her husband has declared his intention to seek the death penalty. However, no date has been set for his trial.

While in Costa Rica, Mullanax told The Tico Times she spoke to Ombudsman José Manuel Echandí, Vice-Minister of Government Belisario Solano, and National Liberation Party legislator Luis Villanueva. She said she tried several times to contact President Abel Pacheco, but he did not return her calls.

She said she told these officials she believed her husband is innocent of the charges, and hoped they could offer some form of intervention or assistance, as well as help her mother-in-law obtain a visa to travel to the United States to visit her incarcerated son. "They helped with his mother's visa," she said, "but can't do much with the judicial process."