University of Michigan officials didn't report child porn to police for 6 months
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It was a photograph of a “nude adult lying” on a young child whose arms "were bound" and appeared to be tied to a bed frame, university police records show.
The resident viewed several files on the drive that was left in the hospital computer she was using as she attempted to identify its owner. She suspected it might belong to another resident physician after opening a document with his name on it, records show.
She panicked, left the drive in the computer and went home because her shift was over. When she returned the next morning to file a report, the drive was no longer in the computer. She spoke with her supervisors and met with hospital security officials, sharing what she had seen and showing them the computer. She also met with the Office of the General Counsel and told them about it.
“I was told a few days after making the report that the matter was closed.” she recalled, according to court records recently unsealed in the case.
University officials waited another six months before reporting the child porn to university police.
Details of the incident can be found in two university police search warrant affidavits that were recently unsealed in the case against 36-year-old Stephen Jenson, who worked until late December as a resident physician at the hospital. He is charged with four counts of possessing child sexually abusive material and is scheduled to return to court next month for a preliminary hearing.
Jenson
University spokesman Rick Fitzgerald acknowledged Friday that there were issues with the way the university handled the case. He said Jenson saw children in his position, but there's no evidence he engaged in improper conduct with patients or had contact with children in the images.
“One of the things we know in this situation is that the allegations that were made in May were not handled properly," Fitzgerald said. "As soon as we learned about this delay, President Coleman asked for an internal review to determine how this happened. At this point, that internal review is still being finalized.”
No one has been disciplined in the matter, he said. He said he didn't have specifics on why hospital security officials finally came forward six months later and reported the incident to police, but believes they were revisiting the case.
“It’s safe to say that there were gaps in procedures,” Fitzgerald said. “The procedures are at fault here, not the people.”
University auditors are reviewing the case and Fitzgerald said their final report will be made public.
Records show police acted swiftly when the child porn was first reported Nov. 21. Charges were filed against Jenson within weeks.
The resident physician who found the child porn estimated the child in the photograph was between 5 and 10 years of age, an affidavit says. She reported that she also found a photo of a naked adult female on the thumb drive.
When police executed a search warrant at Jenson's home in Pittsfield Township on Dec. 2, they seized items including several thumb drives. Upon examining one of the drives, they found two images of child porn, an affidavit says, that showed girls about 10 years of age. Photographs of Jenson were on the same thumb drive, records say.
When the warrant was executed, Jenson told police "he has viewed child pornographic images on University of Michigan computers and his personal computer and that these viewings were unintentional."
"Jenson said the viewing of child pornography has occurred more than three times but less than ten times," an affidavit says. "Jenson told me he copied, viewed and deleted one picture of a 15-16 year old female."
Jenson's attorney, Joe Simon, did not return a phone call seeking comment on the affidavits.
U-M's explanation for the delay
Fitzgerald listed a number of factors he said caused the case to be stalled:
- There was not a clear line of responsibility for investigating the case. The Office of the General Counsel for the Health System ultimately took ownership of the case and determined that there was not enough evidence to continue the investigation.
- Hospital Security did not log the case in the system shared with the Department of Public Safety. If that had been done, DPS would have seen that there was a possible crime to investigate.
- MCIT (Medical Center Information Technology) reviewed the computer internal logs where the thumb drive had been seen and was able to determine who had accessed the computer. However, MCIT does not have the technology or training to do forensic investigation of electronic devices and, therefore, was not able to retrieve other relevant information such as thumb drive access
- There was confusion about the roles of Hospital Security and DPS. Hospital employees that reported the incident thought they were talking to police when they were talking with Hospital Security.
Preliminary recommendations by auditors
Fitzgerald said DPS and Hospital Security have strong policies and procedures for their individual departments, but weak communication protocols between the two departments. To correct that, the university is exploring:
“The delay in reporting revealed gaps in our procedures and misunderstandings among employees that we are determined to correct,” Fitzgerald said. “Managers are cooperating across several different offices in the university to better define reporting responsibilities for suspected criminal activity and to improve training and communication related to crime reporting and investigation.”
Lee Higgins covers crime and courts for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached by phone at (734) 623-2527 and email at leehiggins@annarbor.com.
Comments
Cendra Lynn
Tue, Jan 31, 2012 : 6:14 p.m.
She PANICKED and left it there????????? And she's becoming a health care provider????????????????
Justavoice
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 8:31 p.m.
"MCIT (Medical Center Information Technology) reviewed the computer internal logs where the thumb drive had been seen and was able to determine who had accessed the computer. However, MCIT does not have the technology or training to do forensic investigation of electronic devices and, therefore, was not able to retrieve other relevant information such as thumb drive access." Why not? One might also point out are other forensics resources within the University community and locally that could have been called in. I'm more than sure local FBI would have loaned assets for discovery as would have been required under federal law for suspected reporting. Federal law is fairly stringent in any suspected child pornography case, particularly with reporting to law enforcement for good reason. This just makes me sick to my stomach that UM dropped the ball on a suspected case that there should be no question in investigating.
Wolf's Bane
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 6:15 p.m.
I'm gonna be sick! This is too much to bare.
julieswhimsies
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 8:35 p.m.
Not a place for humor.
liekkio
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 6:33 p.m.
Pun intended?
sHa
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 6:08 p.m.
Apparently the female resident did, in fact, follow through (not sure on the length of time that took), by deciding to ignore the decision of the U of M's attorneys that "there was not enough evidence to continue the investigation". One of the previous commenters indicated that the female resident went over and above the office of the General Counsel, straight to the Dean of the Medical School. That seems to be what it took for the police to be informed.
justcurious
Tue, Jan 31, 2012 : 12:49 p.m.
I saw that statement by the commenter , but I don't recall that they said she did that.
RuralMom
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 5:39 p.m.
One more comment from me, If I reported ANY of this, I would also be watching for follow through. If it didn't happen in short order, the roof would be raised by the hollering! I don't buy in any instance "I reported it, but don't know what happened after that" malarkey. You see a kid being molested or pornographic images on a computer and you still would want that person in your presence? Not me, not mine, not anyone I know!
RuralMom
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 7:09 p.m.
I would put myself at great personal risk before letting something like this go. I know that not everyone would, but they should. We know that children who are molested grow up most of the time to become offenders themselves, addicts and a host of issues that make their lives difficult. Those children are the peers of our children, grandchildren, etc. If you don't stand up when you see something very very wrong happening, then do not be surprised when it comes full circle and effects someone you love!
justcurious
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 6:10 p.m.
Amen. I agree. Many people dropped the ball on this one and I can't believe that he was allowed to continue working after his colleagues saw this. Was it because he was a 4th year resident and they didn't want to jeopardize his career? It has to be the University culture that allowed the female resident's discovery to be ignored. She must have wondered why no one cared about the images.
RuralMom
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 5:33 p.m.
I take a lot of heat on here for my stance of protect the kids first, Adults or Innocent people will understand WHY, and look here is ONE reason you just have to err on the side of keeping kids protected. You cannot count on the chain of command taking care of business in a timely fashion. Sick sick world we live in, as I said before they walk among us, look as ordinary as you and I, but are very warped people. If they weren't good at hiding and evading, they would be busted the first time they attempted some of these actions.
SW40
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 5:16 p.m.
We need other media outlets to pick up this story. This is just as disturbing as any other college cover-up in that it shows how the University of Michigan is more concerned with their reputation than the safety of children. As far as I'm concerned every time these images were viewed these children are victimized again. What if these children are being held captive and an investigation that would have started six months ago could have identified them and saved their life. We have computer forensic experts working for the State Police as well as here in Washtenaw County who could have been brought in to assist with the investigation. UofM PD should have been notified immediately, many times an investigation into child pornography can turn up all kinds of other disgusting issues and crimes. Just imagine if UofM PD would have found out immediately, viewed the files, applied for the search warrant and then served it at this doctor's house. How much evidence of this crime or other crimes was destroyed by this suspect in the time that UofM sat on this evidence. This is why there is a case of obstruction of justice that can be made as well as a duty to report all crimes of child abuse, the failure to report this crime could have or probably did result in the destruction of evidence as well as the possiblity that harm continued to be perpetrated against children.
Mick52
Tue, Jan 31, 2012 : 6:42 a.m.
When the police searched his home, they found child pornography, thus he did not destroy the evidence. He should have. The story states that after the witness found the thumb drive she left it but when she returned it was gone. So, either someone else took it or the suspect returned and picked it up. Since he had evidence at his home, he apparently assumed that no one discovered what was on his drive and thus did not make an effort to replace all his storage devices. Maybe he did and after several weeks figured it was safe to start collecting again. I can't see any obstruction here. Not reporting a crime, except under certain circumstances is not obstructing justice.
Nicole P
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 5:16 p.m.
Donna Briggs - THANK YOU for your comment of support towards Joe Paterno. I've been a huge fan of his and of Penn State for most of my life. Your words were exactly what I wanted to say. Let him rest in peace. If people want to attack someone, why not go towards JERRY SANDUSKY - the actual child molester?!
trespass
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 3:26 p.m.
Do you guys remember this UM biology faculty member who continued to work for UM for several months until he voluntarily resigned and fled to Israel to avoid trial. <a href="http://annarbor.com/news/crime/former-university-of-michigan-professor-facing-child-porn-charges-leaves-job-as-professor-in-israel/">http://annarbor.com/news/crime/former-university-of-michigan-professor-facing-child-porn-charges-leaves-job-as-professor-in-israel/</a> Why did UM let him continue to work for several months?
godhelpus15
Tue, Jan 31, 2012 : 4:27 p.m.
i remember. kind of like the many faculty who have "conflict of interest" and the questionable expense reports. all reported to the tip line set forth by administration. nothing was ever said or done about it. they continued to spend, spend, spend university money while traveling for their personal consulting businesses. i'm off point and a2 will probably remove my comment but my point is the administration has created a culture here that faculty are above the law.
Angelle
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 2:40 p.m.
I am in NO WAY condoning child pornnography - but the chain of events as given here are a little bit disturbing to me. When the complaint was made, the thumb drive with the kiddy porn was no longer there. It seems that it would be very easy to make an accusation against an innocent person, if you do not need to provide any proof to do so. Does this mean I should be able to get a co-worker fired and a criminal investigation started (one that would ruin a person's reputation for life!) if I went to my manager and said that "last week" I had seen child porn images on the co-worker's computer, but there was no evidence that those images had been there? What a dangerous precedent. You could accuse anyone of anything, with no proof whatsoever, just to try to settle a score. Someone's life and career could be ruined, all on your word that you saw something that is now not there. (I realize that in this particular case, child porn images were found in the person's home. I am merely speculating about the kind of precendent this type of 'assume guilt without proof' mindset sets...)
Mick52
Tue, Jan 31, 2012 : 6:46 a.m.
Well maybe that is a hole in the case his attorney can try to get through. I am assuming you are referring to the Weinblatt case on this and not the case at present. I am not that familiar with the specifics on that case.
trespass
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 6:42 p.m.
@Mick52- It may be evidence that there is pornography on his computer but it is not evidence that it is child pornography.
Mick52
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 4:32 p.m.
Trespass, A S/W affidavit will contain information from an experienced investigator that training and experience shows that illegal materials like this are commonly stored on electronic media and thus the need to search there for evidence. When you compose the S/W you include every type of storage device you can think of. The fact that some neighbor saw this guy doing that is better information and evidence the material is stored on his computer or some connected storage device.
trespass
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 3:33 p.m.
The allegation was only used to obtain a search warrant, where the standard of proof is just probable cause. The child porn was found on his home computer. Remember the search warrant for Dr. Weinblatt, accused of peeping, his home computer was seized because he had been observed by his neighbor of masterbating in front of his computer. Now that is a bit flimsy for probable cause. An actual allegation of seeing child porn seems like resonable probable cause for a search warrant.
Steve
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 4:12 a.m.
This is what President Coleman sent out after Penn State We have watched the tragic events at Penn State with shock and sadness. At Michigan, we are devoted to the highest ethical standards; we expect honesty and integrity from every member of our faculty, staff, and student body. This is a chance to remind one another that a community's values are lived out in the actions of each of us as individuals. It is important for us to act immediately in suspected cases of abuse or other crimes, or in a circumstance where you find yourself either a victim or a witness to questionable activity. If this is the case, please take one of the following steps: --If you require immediate emergency assistance or believe a crime is in progress, dial 9-1-1 to connect you to the police. --For a non-emergency situation, call the Department of Public Safety at 734-763-1131. DPS professionals can help assess the situation and determine what other notification or action is necessary. Maybe hospital security should follow this. The hospital is included under her umbrella of authority.
godhelpus15
Tue, Jan 31, 2012 : 8:38 p.m.
@justcurious I agree! I have always felt that way. Are the campus police and hospital security equipped to deal with large scale disasters or tragedies, god forbid they ever occur?
justcurious
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 3:51 p.m.
momRN, it always bothered me when I worked at the Hospital that you could not directly call 911 for anything - even fire. You had to go through their system instead of reporting anything directly. That was their policy. I felt you would get into trouble if you had used your cell to call 911.
trespass
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 3:35 p.m.
When President Coleman wrote that memo in November she almost certainly had been informed about this case. Was that why she wrote the memo?
momRN
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 11:29 a.m.
When I read this article, I was thinking "i would have stayed right there and called 911" but then i remembered that when you call 911 in the hospital, you get security. I don't know... would I have thought to use my cell phone and get the real police?
julieswhimsies
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 3:55 a.m.
" The procedures were at fault here, not the people." Excuse ME, but people write procedures, they don't writ themselves! Aside from the perpetrator, who is at fault here?! IMHO, It is the entire Administrative staff at the University of Michigan Health System, and every employee...doctors, nurses, and staff who knew about this crime. In particular the first young resident who reported it. WHY did she not take the thumb drive with her? YET another example of the "circle of white coats?" This should have been immediately reported to the Ann Arbor police department. This was nothing but a cover-up. It is a lesson for parents, as well. Before you settle on a Pediatrician for your child, do a thorough background check. I, for one,would always go with a female Meanwhile, this whole case smells, and makes the University of Michigan stink right along with it. What about the children? Shall we safegaurd the gargantuan U of M profit making machine's reputation, or look out for our kids?
average joe
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 3:40 a.m.
Dec. 5th, 2011 (AA.com)- The Senate Advisory Committee on University Affairs voted to approve a resolution to set expectations for a university community member who suspects criminal activity. "It is critical that students, staff, faculty and administrators take individual responsibility in matters of suspected or actual criminal activity," the resolution states. "This is true both for witnesses who believe they have credible evidence of criminal activity and for victims who may be reluctant to take on seemingly daunting and powerful opponents." This was in response to the PSU scandal. Less than two weeks later this guy was charged.
Kai Petainen
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 5:25 a.m.
"It is critical that students, staff, faculty and administrators take individual responsibility in matters of suspected or actual criminal activity," the resolution states. "This is true both for witnesses who believe they have credible evidence of criminal activity and for victims who may be reluctant to take on seemingly daunting and powerful opponents." this is why i haven't backed down from the spill that i saw. unless someone tells me that it is legal for me to dump petroleum and/or phosphoric acid into the huron river, then what i saw that day was illegal. unfortunately, the police closed the case and were unable to solve it. but, the answer is out there somewhere -- whoever spilled it, knows it. there was no accident report, so it was criminal. that spill flowed through a point (an outfall) into the river and on a sunny day without rain (rain came later). and they should be fined, charged and brought to justice. and when they are fined, the money should go straight to the AAFD, for the fines would help them hire another firefighter. if the police could solve this, then it could really help our community. what i saw, was an environmental crime... and one that could have received fines that would have saved jobs at the city police, and the fire department. not to mention the UofM could have gotten money from it too, as the spill went through their area -- they too were a 'victim' in this. unfortunately, 'enviro' groups like the HRWC are too busy making $750K art to act on this -- they stay quiet on this issue.
Kai Petainen
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 3:08 a.m.
there's a bunch of blame on communication. but that got me thinking... are there not programs, police schools, training facilities that teach this sort of stuff? certainly there must be professional programs that exist that can train the police to be police? before you go into this line of work, are you not trained and certified? if so, then the 'excuse' of communication is a lousy excuse and better training is required for our those who 'protect and serve' the 'leaders and best' if not... then that's just scary. please, please remember -- the first priority of any police department is to serve the public safety.
julieswhimsies
Tue, Jan 31, 2012 : 9:38 p.m.
Please re-read the article Ma'am.
sHa
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 5:10 p.m.
"Since the police were not involved until six months later, the highest responsibility lies with the attorneys in the General Counsel's Office who failed to report the crime." I agree with Trespass. Why didn't the attorneys do as the law requires, and report this to the police? It wasn't up to U of M's attorneys to decide whether or not to investigate the incident. The audacity of the General Counsel's office is unbelievable.
trespass
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 3:29 p.m.
The hospital security guard who worked with the detective bureau was essentially impersonating a police officer becuase he would introduce himself as Detective Sergeant. If hospital security uses titles like that, how could the poor resident be expected to know they were not police officers.
trespass
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 3:17 p.m.
Since the police were not involved until six months later, the highest responsibility lies with the attorneys in the General Counsel's Office who failed to report the crime.
Kai Petainen
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 4:17 a.m.
it seems crazy to me... that they would build the most expensive building in (the state of) michigan history... at one of the largest hospitals... and not one police officer.
Kai Petainen
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 4:14 a.m.
jester32b, thanks for the clarification. ok, in that case, then the hospital security guards should go through training. it's disturbing, cause i thought they were the police and had appropriate training. this helps explain a bit more, as to why the spill mess was such a goofed up investigation and the culprit wasn't caught -- had a real police officer been there before the hospital security, the odds would have increased in finding the criminal. the hospital campus is large, they should have at least one real police officer there, and security personel should go through training. if the hospital gets their parking lot on fuller, i want a real police officer who checks on the parking lot.
jester32b
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 3:33 a.m.
Hospital security are NOT the police. They are civilians that are security guards for the hospital. When the UofM Police were notified they took action and arrested the suspect. UofM PD has approx. 55 sworn/certified law enforcement officers, and all of them went through a police academy. UofM PD enforces state laws and ordinances authorized by the Regents. I hope this will clarify the difference with hospital security and the police.
trespass
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 2:41 a.m.
The campus police should call in the State Police to do an investigation as to whether or not anyone obstructed justice. The campus police work closely with the General Counsel's Office and cannot be expected to investigate that office themselves.
Mick52
Tue, Jan 31, 2012 : 6:32 a.m.
I agree Sha, that what the hospital employees involved made a decision that does not fit what the President said. My point was simply there is no obstruction of justice for not reporting a crime. It is obvious a crime was not reported, but other than where that is specifically illegal by a statute, I know of none that apply here. I do think the University's policies on crime reporting to DPS should be expanded and publicized better.
sHa
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 5:27 p.m.
The female resident was not a client of the General Counsel's office.
sHa
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 5:24 p.m.
Mick 52 - Maybe you should re-read what President Coleman sent out to everyone connected with the University after the Penn State incident: "We have watched the tragic events at Penn State with shock and sadness. At Michigan, we are devoted to the highest ethical standards; we expect honesty and integrity from every member of our faculty, staff, and student body. This is a chance to remind one another that a community's values are lived out in the actions of each of us as individuals. It is important for us to act immediately in suspected cases of abuse or other crimes, or in a circumstance where you find yourself either a victim or a witness to questionable activity. If this is the case, please take one of the following steps: --If you require immediate emergency assistance or believe a crime is in progress, dial 9-1-1 to connect you to the police. --For a non-emergency situation, call the Department of Public Safety at 734-763-1131. DPS professionals can help assess the situation and determine what other notification or action is necessary." Shouldn't that memo include U of M's own attorneys, or are they somehow above the law?
Mick52
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 4:43 p.m.
Sure they can. But this is silly. But how can anyone investigate an attorney's office? Attorney/client privilege can protect almost anything short of an actual criminal act and there is no evidence of a crime by the attorneys. Do you support charging attorneys with obstructing justice by not letting clients make statements to the police? No, its Constitutionally protected. Not reporting a crime is not obstructing justice nor is it a crime unless it is specifically addressed in a statute like the law that requires social workers, teachers, medical workers, police, etc to report suspected child abuse. For example, if a burglar tells his attorney he broke into a home, that attorney is not obliged to call the police or tell his client to and you can't charge him with obstructing justice for that advice.
justcurious
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 3:55 p.m.
Exactly!
trespass
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 2:38 a.m.
Once again we see the transparency of the Coleman administration. It is always about protecting the institution and the administrators. Whenever one investigates a serious mistake one looks for two things, personal responsibility and systemic problems. The University spokesman is talking about the systemic problems with policy and procedure but there is also an element of personal responsibility that the administration does not want to look at. Certainly the attorney who recieved the report and did not report it to police is culpable because they are an "officer of the court". There should also be a report to the Michigan Attorney Review Committee for all attorneys who failed to report this crime. Even if they did not know if there was enough evidence to convict someone they did know that a crime was committed.
Mick52
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 4:45 p.m.
You need to add some legal requirement that a person or organization's attorney is required to report crimes to the police. I no of no such requirement and attorneys and clients have a very strong protection called attorney/client privilege.
moretothestory
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 2:13 a.m.
Sounds like they wanted is hush, hush. I have my doubts those who knew about it will pay a price. Keith Zeisloft and Ann Savicas still work at 15th District Court after the sexual harassmemt case. It's all about politics and power.
Arborcomment
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 1:07 a.m.
As outlined in the article, the reporting resident thought she had reported the discovery to the "Police" when she talked to hospital security. It is understandable. Some history: Hospital Security was never an accredited Police force and they were never directly connected to the "Campus Security" via the DPS. Hospital Security reported through the hospital chain first, then to DPS. Both "hospital" and "campus" security were not accredited by the state and were without full Police powers, and the training required to be so. Both bodies would take incident reports, and could do "investigations" (often amounting to simple questioning or increased surveillance in areas where occurring crime took place), write a report, and turn it over to AAPD. Bascially folks, think "Mall Cop". Close to 15(?) years ago, when it was decided to establish the UM Police Force, the elements of campus security received additional training and/or hired those already meeting the standards to have full Police powers. The Hospital force was not considered for the upgrade, they remained "mall cop". Uncertain of the reasons why, but rumor at the time included: 1) the current hospital security staff could not meet the training standards for full accreditation. 2) UM hospital did not want to join the campus security and jointly merge into an accredited Police force because they would fall directly under DPS and not the hospital 3) UM hospital officials did not want full Police officers (with sidearms) at the hospital other than when they were there for an incident report or escorting a detainee because it would be seen as "threatening". Many good hospital security officers pushed for their inclusion into the UM Police force and training. They were told this was not happening, and if interested, apply to DPS. By sheer numbers, the hospital is a small town. Why not protected as such?
Kevin McNulty
Tue, Jan 31, 2012 : 7:15 a.m.
Arborcomment, during most of the time I worked as a detective, the two officers from hospital and housing were non sworn PSOs assigned to the DB at DPS. In my opinion they were very competent and did a very good job. We would assist them whenever necessary and they often attended the same training seminars we did. I should point out one does not have to be a sworn police officer to be an accomplished investigator, anyone can develop the skills to become a good investigator like many PIs. I found that the knowledge of their departments, the people who worked there, and the general layout of the physical structures was very helpful and it supported a strong, positive working relationship. Also, having an officer from those departments kept us aware of what was going on in those areas and I think something like this would have been discussed right after it occurred. For me it was an effective and efficient way to handle the cases and I had very few problems with it, certainly way more benefits. That said, I do not know what the current situation is now, or how the hospital admin looks at crime. During the time I was working major crimes there seemed to be no hesitation on reporting criminal behavior. I investigated one case that involved a very prominent U Hosp employee and there was absolutely no issue on the part of the hospital with that case.
Arborcomment
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 11:15 p.m.
Thank you Kevin for the clarification. As I mentioned, I was there pre-PD and during the initial stand-up and hoped it got better. Some questions: were the investigators for the hospital and housing accredited with full Police authority like the line PD officers/detectives? If not, why not? If so, were they PD assigned to the hospital or hospital assigned to the PD? Why are they called "investigators" and not "detectives"? I ask because I saw a similar "caste" system in place between what was then called Hospital Protective Services (security) and DPS Campus Security. And the hospital investigator still reports to hospital admin? @45, when you find the place where you have complete trust, let me know, I want to move there!
Kevin McNulty
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 5:07 p.m.
Sorry, Arborcomment, but Joe is correct. I worked for 12 years in the UMDPS DB and there was a Hospital Security investigator in the DB, assigned there full time with a desk, telephone, etc. I cannot recall any time when reports were just dropped off. Once a full time DB was put in place that was pretty much the way it operated. There was/is also an investigator from Housing Security. It was really a necessity because an investigator with complete knowledge of the hospital was valuable and that investigator did a fantastic job, and worked very well with the DPS detectives. I believe he received reports from his supervisors and only received what was given to him. I do not know if they still do that, but they should, it really helped with the connection between the two departments and improved the efficiency. That said, Hosp Sec does not work for, or under UMDPS, they work for Hosp Admin and have to follow directions from them.
Sesame45
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 3:12 a.m.
@Arborcomment, the incident in my link is from 2 years back. You're addressing issues from 15 years back (some of which you even refer to as "rumors"), so clearly, time does not make something irrelevant. But I digress: my point is that your highly trained officials don't always handle everything perfectly, and are yet to earn my complete trust. Like when they let the National Guard guy with the gun into the stadium.
Arborcomment
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 2:45 a.m.
Joe, there was not an "always connected" As you may be able to infer from my post, I was there in the beginning when there was "hospital security" and "campus security" and during the early formation of the UMPD. In the past, the "hospital security investigator assigned to the UMPD detective bureau" was the guy from the hospital who went over to DPS headquarters and dropped off incident reports - and that was about it. Granted my info is dated and I hope it has improved. You are absolutely correct, the fiefdom issue of the hospital is the crux of the problem.
Joe Kidd
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 2:13 a.m.
I disagree. Hospital Security has always been connected with UMPD. I know a former officer who told me that a hospital security investigator was assigned to the UMPD detective bureau. Can't get much more connected than that. I think the problem here is not the Hosp Security or UMPD but the people Hosp Sec answers to. When you are faced with "do what we tell you or leave" it is not so easy to do what you want to do, particularly if you are very highly paid.
Arborcomment
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 2:06 a.m.
@45, warrant and arrest within 12 days after properly trained officials were notified. Your story link is October 2010 - and your point is?
Sesame45
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 1:51 a.m.
Protected by this guy? No thanks. <a href="http://www.annarbor.com/news/crime/former-university-of-michigan-police-officer-sentenced-to-probation-for-cocaine-possession/">http://www.annarbor.com/news/crime/former-university-of-michigan-police-officer-sentenced-to-probation-for-cocaine-possession/</a>
Publius the Younger
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 12:59 a.m.
I don't understand why anyone would be surprised at this behavior. The whole point of the university starting its own police force was so they could control these sorts of events in order to prevent any negative publicity from occurring. No organization can investigate or police itself.
Joe Kidd
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 2:08 a.m.
That is absolutely not true.
Joe Kidd
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 12:58 a.m.
The "Explanations for Delay," are baloney. All the lines of responsibility and so on are already set in place. A key issue here is that the matter was turned over to the hospital attorneys office where it was determined "there was not enough evidence to continue the investigation." What? If I were writing this story I would recontact the University spokesman and office and asked if they really want that printed. That is ludicrous. If they have attorneys who think that they should no longer be employed by UM. My guess is not one of the attorneys in the hospital general council's office knows a whit about criminal law. Apparently they asked Penn State for advise on how to handle this. It is an attempted cover up, pure and simple. The problem with that is that when a lot of people know, eventually the information comes out. And the suspect must have figured when he got back to correct his oops, no one had looked at his drive. Its lucky in a way that he didn't decide it was time to trash all the evidence. It is all leadership. Some years back a very prominent surgeon was prosecuted without this kind of interference. But there was sound leadership then.
Joe Kidd
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 5:15 p.m.
I agree. I think that law posted here refers to people who come across children who appear to be abused. I am not aware it would apply to an employee who saw a photo that contained child pornography unless the child was recognized as connected somehow with the person in possession of the photo. I think the state should apply some crime reporting requirements to universities, including attorney's employed by the school who become aware of criminal behavior. This is a perfect reason for it. Often, if you do not make the proper decisions someone else will make them for you and you will lose your control over it.
justcurious
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 2:37 a.m.
Joe Kidd, I saw your reply suggesting that the state law does not apply here. I guess you may be right, but I hope the State will look long and hard at this public University and find out who covered this up and why. I hope they do their own investigation and insure that something like this will never happen again.
Sesame45
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 12:40 a.m.
I don't know. I have a hard time trusting any info that comes from the U of M police. After all their embarrassments in the past two years, I'm supposed to believe that in this case, they did everything absolutely perfectly, they are the heroes for the first time in years, and its everybody but them who messed up? Have my doubts!
Kai Petainen
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 12:39 a.m.
on multiple levels, this entire incident makes me sick to my stomach.
anotheruofm
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 11:27 p.m.
"There was confusion about the roles of Hospital Security and DPS. Hospital employees that reported the incident thought they were talking to police when they were talking with Hospital Security." Thank you for the smoke screen Mr. Fitzgerald, but the fact that hospital security did not notify the POLICE is an issue. On the hospital security website it says they "conduct criminal investigations". Really? Is this one of their investigations that their director told them to conduct? Who told hospital security NOT tell the POLICE?
aaparent
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 11:26 p.m.
@momRN -It should be in Lee Higgin's story if the resident went to the Dean of the Medical school. Did the resident first tell the attending physician who was also the supervisor for Jenson? This female resident seems like the only person who acted with concern for children. MomRN sum up is on point.
shrewdrealist
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 11:18 p.m.
Is it true that they're bring back Arrested Development?!?!
Steve
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 10:27 p.m.
I agree with momRN. People made conscious decisions to cover this up and NOT notify the police until the reporting doctor went above them and reported this to the Dean of the Medical school. The Dean brought this forward on behalf of the reporting doctor. And the head "honchos" that knew about this and tried to cover this up need to be fired. It would be nice if Lee would put their names in an article with their side of the story. I would love to know why they chose not to report this to the police.
average joe
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 12:45 a.m.
Steve- I may have missed it, but where is the info on the female resident going to the Dean of the Med school, and when did she do this?
justcurious
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 9:58 p.m.
None of this should have stayed in-house, and slowly climbed up the system. It should have been reported to the State by the Doctors as soon as they heard about it!! Then a proper investigation would have ensued.
sHa
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 9:46 p.m.
Bottom line: U of M's attorneys appear to have been "pushed" by the Penn State incident to take the proper steps (report a suspected crime to the police) that their office had previously decided did not warrant any additional investigation. As a commenter previously stated, there was no "additional or new" evidence available when they finally decided to contact the police.
say it plain
Tue, Jan 31, 2012 : 11:35 p.m.
Really, @Steve?! Has this been confirmed somewhere, or are you speculating, or do you have inside knowledge?! Do tell!
sHa
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 10:40 p.m.
Steve: I stand corrected.
Steve
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 10:18 p.m.
No attorneys hands were "pushed". They are the ones who tried to cover this up and the female doctor went above their heads to report it to the Dean of the Medical School to have something done.
momRN
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 9:39 p.m.
This is disgusting. The fact that this material was found in a place that only certain people could be, and it was NOT immediately reported to police is negligent and incompetent. "The process" relies on people, blaming this on the process is saying that you don't have anyone working for you that is smart enough to do anything besides "if A, than B" and if that's the case there is a serious problem. Hospital security is NOT police, and NOT qualified to investigate anything. ALL computers in the hospital require Login and an audit trail is maintained. It seems like common sense that you would immediately audit who was on those computers in the last 12 hours. The fact that nothing was done for 6 months, potentially leaving children in this mans care at risk (not saying that he was abusing children, but obviously the potential was there) is absurd and horrifying.
Doug
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 9:23 p.m.
Mistakes can be made. Let's hope Dr. Jenson's images was downloaded in error: it does happen. The errors were in the reporting process which is being revised.
justcurious
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 10:03 p.m.
And someone broke into his home and downloaded more stuff on his home computer?
momRN
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 9:40 p.m.
right, and the sea captain really did trip and fall into the lifeboat... oops i downloaded multiple violent child porn images to a thumb drive? Are you serious?
Joe_Citizen
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 9:21 p.m.
Another one!?
RJA
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 8:33 p.m.
SHAME on the U of M !!
average joe
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 7:57 p.m.
You don't think these general counsel folks would knowingly not report a suspected crime to police in order to protect the image of U/M......?
YpsiVeteran
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 3:17 a.m.
Complaints can be filed with the state's attorney grievance board, and these attorneys can and should be sanctioned if they were involved. They are officers of the court.
sHa
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 8:11 p.m.
Scary, isn't it?
Trouble
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 7:46 p.m.
How do you spell " Cover Up ". Hmmm....
Sallyxyz
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 7:20 p.m.
It's the procedure, not the people? Get real. PEOPLE execute procedures. Another UM coverup. "There was confusion about the roles of Hospital Security and DPS. Hospital employees that reported the incident thought they were talking to police when they were talking with Hospital Security." Yeah, and Mr. McQueary at PSU thought he was talking to the police when he told Curley, Shultz and Paterno. Either you are talking to the police or you are not.
justcurious
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 8:10 p.m.
Example of U of M Medical investigating crime. 1. Director of Department tells security money is missing from drawer in her office, says she suspects janitor. . 2. Janitor is called to security and interrogated. 3. Director's kid turns out to have taken the money. 4. Director does not apologize to janitor, no one does. 5. Janitor requests change of buildings. Feels terrible. He was a High School principal in his home country. Parents have put 4 children through college here, 1 more to go.
donderop
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 7:17 p.m.
Always remember this: Pedophiles go where the children are. It's that simple.
Cash
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 7:12 p.m.
Why all of the bull? The University of Michigan attorneys had a report of a suspected federal crime. They stalled it and buried it until the PSU incident. I suspect they were aware that TOO many people knew about it, so it was investigated. The feds need this reported to them. This is a serious. This needs to be reported to the FBI for further investigation. Hiding a federal crime is not something to make excuses about. __________________________________________________________________________________________ Here's a very interesting fact: That date in November that the crime was reported to UM DPS.......was the same week that Greg O'Dell quit his Police Chief job at UM to go back to EMU. Whatever else happened, one has to wonder if he was as totally horrified by his employer as we are.
Mick52
Tue, Jan 31, 2012 : 7:55 a.m.
The fine to EMU was $357,500 <a href="http://emutalk.org/2007/12/emu-fined-357500-for-clery-act-violations/" rel='nofollow'>http://emutalk.org/2007/12/emu-fined-357500-for-clery-act-violations/</a>
Mick52
Tue, Jan 31, 2012 : 7:52 a.m.
Cash, the fine assessed on EMU was for a violation of the Clery Act. The violation was that the EMU police did not make the proper notifications when they found the murder. That fine was assessed by the Dept of Education not the FBI. There are federal statutes for this offense but typically they will not investigate a single person in possession. They usually deal with larger scale cases involving distribution. I don't think there are any violations here with the "employer hiding the federal crime." Now they could get involved with this investigation. The UM could ask them too. But I do not think it is necessary. I am confident the UMPD already knows the whole story and I do not think they would report anything other than what really happened. Sure, some folks here will always allege they will cover it up, protect the U, but risking your reputation is simply not worth doing that and someone who would should not be in police work.
Cash
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 10:50 a.m.
Joe Kidd, That would be true about the doc (although the owners of the websites etc could open a much larger case)...but what about the employer hiding the federal crime? The feds investigated EMU and fined them over$1million for hiding a crime, remember?
Joe Kidd
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 2:03 a.m.
If you reported this to the feds, they would probably turn it over to the UMPD. They usually will not focus on one individual, they look at larger cases.
average joe
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 1:38 a.m.
Yes- the publicity of opening a new hospital..... Not to get anymore carried away here, but perhaps the reason that the former chief (before O'Dell) was paid so well was because he could keep a lid on things like this.
Kai Petainen
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 12:43 a.m.
if you're looking at events in November -- it would make for 'bad' news if the CS Mott CHILDREN's hospital was opening at the same time that a child porn case was being made public. so it's not just the coincidence of O'Dell, but also the opening of the new kids hospital.
average joe
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 12:41 a.m.
Cash- I always thought it was odd that Chief O'Dell had left U/M so abruptly to go back to EMU at a significant salary reduction. If his leaving is in anyway connected to this disturbing story, then one has to wonder how far up the chain of command it went. After all, since he was the chief, couldn't he 'clean up' the mess himself? , unless of course someone above him said not to.... God rest his soul.
Kai Petainen
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 12:34 a.m.
"That date in November that the crime was reported to UM DPS.......was the same week that Greg O'Dell quit his Police Chief job at UM to go back to EMU" i was about to say that.. and noticed that you said it. perhaps its just speculation, but it's an incredibly good point that should be noted. if he left because of that, then he was much more honorable than the others and he had a much more honorable/higher calling. if it horrified him, then that makes me even more upset. and if he was notified of it, and he resigned because of it (and later sad things happen), then it must go up further to the FBI (or whoever investigates this stuff). i miss the guy -- blah. he was the hope i had for public safety. this incident makes me very mad. i was hoping that the small lessons from the past would have helped the future -- and now i realize that they hadn't. shameful.
justcurious
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 8:01 p.m.
<a href="http://www.justice.gov/criminal/ceos/childporn.html" rel='nofollow'>http://www.justice.gov/criminal/ceos/childporn.html</a> <a href="http://www.justice.gov/criminal/ceos/childporn_stats.html" rel='nofollow'>http://www.justice.gov/criminal/ceos/childporn_stats.html</a>
Sallyxyz
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 7:16 p.m.
I agree totally. Thanks for posting. Typical UM coverup.
girlhunter
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 7:08 p.m.
WHat is going on? Yet another pediatrician with this sort of charges!!! I can not believe that the very people that we trust to make our children better.. could be the very ones to harm them!!!! Shaking my head.. what a disappointment! You really never know who you can trust.. I guess you could say "this is the Michigan difference!"
justcurious
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 6:43 p.m.
According to the link I posted, I am thinking that the incident was required to be reported to the State, not just the U of M people and not even the police. They seem clear in what they require to be done. Everyone seems in violation of this. Or am I missing something?
Joe Kidd
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 1:59 a.m.
The feds would not take this case. Justcurious I looked at your post and I do not think that law applies here. I believe it was meant to apply to clients contacted during care.
justcurious
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 7:45 p.m.
OK, the State and the Feds. I only looked up the state rules. Did you find the Federal requirements on this?
Cash
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 7:16 p.m.
Try the feds...internet porn is a federal crime.
sHa
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 6:30 p.m.
Looks like the buck stopped in the office for the General Counsel of the Health System. U of M's office of General Counsel may have to call in outside attorneys to defend itself.
thishastostop11
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 6:18 p.m.
I am out raged. This female doctor has the courage to come forward to report this despicable crime to have her employer to cover it up. There is no confusion in this attempted UofM coverup. Action needs to be taken against the people who knew about this child pornography and tried to cover this up. I applaud the female doctor for coming forward. The hospital officials that knew about this, start looking for another job. And Lee, do you have the names of those officials or can I FOIA those?
YpsiVeteran
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 3:13 a.m.
Now it takes courage to report images of child sex assault to the police? Really? Courage? That's really depressing.
Lee Higgins
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 6:26 p.m.
Search warrant affidavits become public record when they are unsealed after 56 days. These warrants were filed in 15th District Court and are available at the clerk's office.
15crown00
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 6:09 p.m.
fire all the bumbs that delayed doing anything about this. A giant smudge on the might Uni M's image i would say.
jester32b
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 6:05 p.m.
Just want to clarify, Hospital security does NOT report to the police Chief. Hospital Security has there own chain of command that reports up the hospital hierarchy. Once UofM Police were notified, action was taken and the suspect was arrested.
Ron Granger
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 5:54 p.m.
"U-M's explanation for the delay" What a lame bunch of excuses! I can summerize it in one word: COVERUP Heads must roll. If the Penn-State thing had not happened, would this have ever been revealed? What else has become lost in their "investigative" system because there was "confusion" over how to handle it?
anotheruofm
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 5:41 p.m.
Let's look at the facts and what should happen. A resident reports seeing child pornography on a specific residents thumb drive. Hospital security had a name of the suspected resident. That information should have been turned over to the POLICE immediately. Instead, hospital security and general counsel try to investigate/cover this up, until now. So please don't try to divert attention to where the "break down" is at the hospital. The hospital security officials (ie director and officer that investigated this) that knew about this should be FIRED. The person(s) from the Office of General Counsel (ie. director or head of) that knew about this should be FIRED. My question is, did the good doctor see patients by himself as a resident or was he supervised?
Joe Kidd
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 1:54 a.m.
The Clery Act requires crime reporting but since hospital security is not a police department, those requirement may not apply. I think the state legislature should deal with this with state law for crime reporting with very specific requirements. Obviously you can't depend on the schools to do it.
justcurious
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 6:39 p.m.
Actually, I'm wondering if they had an obligation to report it to the State, make written reports, etc. as stated in the State law.
donderop
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 5:40 p.m.
When will people finally understand that child pornography is NOT a victimless crime? Purchasing and viewing this material contributes to a huge market that preys on these children.
timjbd
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 11 p.m.
Who ever said it was a "victimless" crime?
Fat Bill
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 6:31 p.m.
In many cases, there is no "purchasing" involved, pedophiles work in rings creating and exchanging images for their gratification. The currency is the image itself. Strange world we live in.
justcurious
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 5:40 p.m.
Would Michigan law apply here? I don't have enough knowledge to know. Would it apply to the original Doctor who viewed the photo of the bound child and later reported it? Or, those she reported it to? <a href="http://legislature.mi.gov/doc.aspx?mcl-722-623" rel='nofollow'>http://legislature.mi.gov/doc.aspx?mcl-722-623</a> (1) An individual is required to report under this act as follows: (a) A physician, dentist, physician's assistant, registered dental hygienist, medical examiner, nurse, person licensed to provide emergency medical care, .....who has reasonable cause to suspect child abuse or neglect shall make immediately, by telephone or otherwise, an oral report, or cause an oral report to be made, of the suspected child abuse or neglect to the department. Within 72 hours after making the oral report, the reporting person shall file a written report as required in this act. If the reporting person is a member of the staff of a hospital, agency, or school, the reporting person shall notify the person in charge of the hospital, agency, or school of his or her finding and that the report has been made, and shall make a copy of the written report available to the person in charge. A notification to the person in charge of a hospital, agency, or school does not relieve the member of the staff of the hospital, agency, or school of the obligation of reporting to the department as required by this section. One report from a hospital, agency, or school is adequate to meet the reporting requirement. A member of the staff of a hospital, agency, or school shall not be dismissed or otherwise penalized for making a report required by this act or for cooperating in an investigation. (f) "Child abuse" means harm or threatened harm to a child's health or welfare that occurs through nonaccidental physical or mental injury, sexual abuse, sexual exploitation, or maltreatment, by a parent, a legal guardian, or any other person responsible for the child's health or welfare or by a teacher, a teacher's aide, or a member of the clergy.
timjbd
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 5:35 p.m.
Unbelievable. It's the procedure, not the people. Lord knows after watching how whistleblowers have fared under the Obama Admin (in spite of campaign promise to the contrary), would be tough to expect anyone to come forward. The U of M treats Ann Arbor more and more the way a coal company used to treat their company towns. Honesty and transparency, folks. _____________ The resident viewed several files on the drive that was left in the hospital computer she was using as she attempted to identify its owner. She suspected it might belong to another resident physician after opening a document with his name on it, records show. She panicked, left the drive in the computer and went home because her shift was over." (...) "It's safe to say that there were gaps in procedures," Fitzgerald said. "The procedures are at fault here, not the people."
Dan Pepper
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 5:34 p.m.
Picking up a thumb drive or any other device capable of introducing malicious software and inserting it into a network-connected device IS A BRAIN DEAD IDEA. The individual should have turned this drive over to System Administration immediately. This why so many government agencies and public sector entities are so vulnerable to attack. This is why Systems Administrators "lock down" network-connected devices and routinely make archival images of all network drives on a frequent basis. Note: This means your resume and cover letters stored on your "D" drive or flash drive is archived periodically. Just the reality of today's networked environment.
djacks24
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 10:24 p.m.
Not to defend MCIT because they really don't know how to fix a sandwich much less lock down a network (yet I apply for every opening they post and can't get so much as an interview?). But usually there is a standard OS/application image build that is a one size fits all for each machine (sometimes just a base locked down OS build and applications get pushed down from a application server when a machine is setup or reimaged). Then each user has their own domain credentials to log in. Any documents, emails, or otherwise that the user wishes to keep is stored in the user profile on the server. Security policies can easily be set to not allow users to install thumb drives. But with proper security policies in place a thumb drive even with the nastiest malware on it poses little thread installed under a non admin account. But at the same time files viewed or stored on a thumb drive are not saved or stored under the users credentials (unless the user chooses to save them). There is not an archive saved of each machine (I assume you are referring to a incremental backup system). This is too cumbersome and would require incredible bandwidth and resources to do on every machine in an enterprise network, much less some random machine in a locked lounge that several users access.
sHa
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 5:34 p.m.
So what did actually cause it to be reported to the police after 6 months? Somebody must have decided to step up to the plate...
sHa
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 5:36 p.m.
I think CindyY just answered my question!
CindyY
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 5:31 p.m.
Here's an additional "explanation for the delay" -- even though UM had been sitting on this bombshell for approximately 6 months, the institution thought it could ignore it until Jerry Sandusky was indicted on Nov. 5, 2011. Given the ensuing trail of firings and recriminations at Penn State, it is not coincidental that UM suddenly revisited this situation w/in 2 weeks of the Penn State fiasco and (belatedly) reported it, despite the fact that no *additional* or *new* evidence turned up. UM simply realized that it wasn't going to be able to IGNORE the existing evidence any longer.
average joe
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 7:43 p.m.
Your explanation does make more sense than U/M's. Wait, U/M really didn't give an excuse, it suddenly re-opened the case that wasn't one six months ago.
arborani
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 7:38 p.m.
EXCELLENT point.
Donna Briggs
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 5:11 p.m.
Oh nice, why pass up another opportunity to cheap shot Joe Paterno? And yet, here we are, the U of M faced with a similar scandal and a remarkably similar case of the ball being dropped at many levels. Even though Joe didn't witness the alleged incident and even though he took the time to put the witness, whose changed his story on a few occasions, into the hands of the appropriate superiors, he continues to be vilified. How about we let the man rest in peace and focus on what's really important here, the victims of child abuse and child pornography? MB
HeimerBoodle
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 6:19 p.m.
Last I checked, it's possible to condemn different individuals and groups for similar actions (inaction). You don't have to choose which crime gets the outrage, they both can, and should. Also, last I checked, being dead doesn't automatically make one immune from condemnation, especially when the deceased is one of the ones who should have been focused on "what's really important".
Honor
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 5:04 p.m.
"The Office of the General Counsel for the Health System ultimately took ownership of the case and determined that there was not enough evidence to continue the investigation." Last I checked the Office Of the General Counsel is not the prosecutor or the police. They are not the people who decide if there is enough evidence. It should have been turned over to the proper authorities. The General Counsel is in charge of covering the Hospitals liabilities and assets, thats what they were worried about.
average joe
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 7:38 p.m.
All general counsel involved should be shown the door. But they are actually doing their job. All they are paid to do is keep the U/M from losing money, lawsuits, & most importantly image.
sHa
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 5:22 p.m.
You hit the nail on the head.
a2citizen
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 4:44 p.m.
"...Records show police acted swiftly when the child porn was first reported Nov. 21..." Hmmmm, two weeks after Paterno was dismissed someone was motivated to inform the police. Hope Coleman grows a pair and terminates the individual who sat on this for six months.
Joe Kidd
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 1:48 a.m.
You know, another thing that bothers me about this the length of time it is taking for the internal investigation. It should not take this long to make that report.
Basic Bob
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 7:04 p.m.
No, it's probably someone important to the mission of the university to do whatever it does. So they will be quietly rewarded with a new contract, raise, and hefty retirement package. So will anyone else who might be a party to the contract. Coleman included.
Kai Petainen
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 4:26 p.m.
This is not the first incident of miscommunication in the hospital area. I thought people had learned from the pollution spill? First off -- I'm not trying to compare child porn with pollution. But, there is a common theme... with these two incidents -- in that it demonstrates the breakdown of communication and how different departments can view a situation. After the Huron Spill, I thought that lessons had been learned about communication. Let me show you two documents: This document is from the UofM DPS. As noted by the title of the document, "incident non-criminal", the police imply that spilling pollution into the Huron River is non-criminal (how would they know it was non-criminal if it is not solved?). <a href="http://a2docs.org/assets/files/2011/04/05/DPS.pdf" rel='nofollow'>http://a2docs.org/assets/files/2011/04/05/DPS.pdf</a> "U.M O.S.E.H. Representative, #### ###### ((###) ###-####) arrived on scene at approx. 9:30 pm. ###### advised that the Ann Arbor Fire Dept. was in control of the scene and he was there as an observer. [I blocked out the name... also, 9:30 pm is about 2 hours AFTER I called it in to 911] Compare that statement with this document from the AAFD that lists 'chemical spill or leak', and it uses the 'Street Location' of '1700 E. Medical Center' (1st page of report) <a href="http://a2docs.org/assets/files/2011/04/05/AAFD_incident_report_on_spill.pdf" rel='nofollow'>http://a2docs.org/assets/files/2011/04/05/AAFD_incident_report_on_spill.pdf</a> "The scene was then turned over to U of M, and a gentleman by the name of #### ###### [same name as above] who informed us he worked for U of M OSEA, told us that U of M was taking responsibility for the incident since the storm water pipe came from the U of M property" The UofM statement says that the AAFD is in control, but the AAFD points to the UofM. Why the difference? A breakdown in communication? Or passing the blame? When I called in the pollution spill, it was quickly closed but unsolved. Learn from the minor crimes (the spill), and lessons learned can be applied to the major crimes.
John Spelling
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 4:25 p.m.
I find it hard to believe simple communiction (I think Fitzgerald calls it communiction protocal) was the problem. I do know doctors are known to be intimitading to staff - why, I don't know - which could explain the delay of security passing the issue to police. Police would not, and did not, hesitate to take action once apprised of the matter. Hospital doctors still get away with sexual harrassment, petty intimidation, and other things in the workplace that are just unacceptable. Plenty of people, especially staff, still place these folks on a pedestal. This has to stop for the problem to end. I'm guessing if the thumb drive had been found on a janitor's computer by this same resident, the janitor would already have been retrained to produce license plates.
aaparent
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 4:13 p.m.
@Lee Higgins - From the American Academy of Pediatrics: <a href="http://aappolicy.aappublications.org/cgi/content/abstract/pediatrics;128/2/407" rel='nofollow'>http://aappolicy.aappublications.org/cgi/content/abstract/pediatrics;128/2/407</a> Policy Statement Protecting Children From Sexual Abuse by Health Care Providers Committee on Child Abuse and Neglect Is the U-M Pediatric Emergency Department and the U-M hospitals policies on reporting this incidence in compliance with this policy? The medical resident who found this is reported to have initially panicked, but then she did speak up, told her supervising faculty physicians. Lee's report said that this resident spoke to the U-M lawyers. Where were her faculty supervisors? Did they let her deal with this alone or see it as their problem, too, since they supervised all the residents on that service?
average joe
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 7:30 p.m.
sHa- This type of protection is what got PSU in trouble. Kind of odd that expert legal advice leads to trouble.
sHa
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 4:59 p.m.
Not surprised at all that General Counsel (U of M's attorneys) seemed to have drug their feet. I have had experience with their attorneys in the past. Protecting the University is the name of their game.
Another Michael
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 4:07 p.m.
Perspective, folks. There's nothing here to indicate that the University had a reason to suspect that Jenson had personally abused anyone. People often consume pornography depicting things they wouldn't do themselves. Obviously, that's not an excuse for his behavior, but his possession of the images does not mean that he was an immediate danger to anyone under his care. It appears the overhaul of the University's procedures was well overdue, but the comparisons to Penn State and the insistence that heads roll are mere hysterics.
sHa
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 2:13 p.m.
Another Michael - I find your attempts at minimalization offensive and disgusting.
JustMyOpinion
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 2:03 p.m.
IT'S ......A......CRIME. INVOLVING CHILDREN. For all you know the child in the image may have been just recently hurt. Your lack of comprehension of the seriousness of this entire situation is alarming,.
Another Michael
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 11:05 a.m.
(A) University hears from an eyewitness to a man using privileged access to athletic facilities to sexually abuse young boys. University ignores it for years while the man continues to use the facility in a way that could result in more abuse. (B) University hears from an eyewitness to pictures being stored on an employee's flash drive. The pictures depict sexual abuse and are morally abhorrent, but there is no credible reason to suspect that the person who possesses them is actually abusing anyone under his care. University fails to follow up properly with law enforcement for a few months. You're really saying that (A) and (B) are morally equivalent? Frankly, I'm offended and disgusted that you would read a rationalization of child porn into my post. Here's your chance to admit you just didn't understand my point.
YpsiVeteran
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 3:31 a.m.
Moral panic? How sophisticated of you. Any adult who finds images of little kids being sexually abused anything other than horrifying is an immediate threat to every minor he/she may contact. No attempts at rationalization will change that fact. To try to lessen the significance of enjoying images of child abuse and torture by saying it's not as bad as actually committing the acts is pretty disturbing.
Another Michael
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 2:32 a.m.
Um...what? Are you seriously saying that it doesn't matter whether Dr. Jenson sexually abused children? This is why I have no enthusiasm for a moral panic: it inevitably leads to absurd conclusions and overreactions.
Joe Kidd
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 1:45 a.m.
Regardless of whether or not Jenson abused anyone is immaterial. Possession of child pornography is a four year felony in Michigan. There's a perspective for you.
Harm
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 9:31 p.m.
'Another Michael' has a good point. All sane people condemn and deplore child porn. But looking at pictures isn't the same as molesting anyone, or producing or distributing the stuff. Equating Dr. Jensen with Mr. Sandusky on the basis of what they're charged with is ridiculous.
Another Michael
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 5:50 p.m.
Interestingly, no one is defending the pornography or Dr. Jenson. But I should have known better than to post at all. Measured responses are never a match for "THINK OF THE CHILDREN" hysteria.
justcurious
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 5:28 p.m.
This is not "just" pornography. It is CHILD pornography. I hope most of us condemn and deplore it.
Sam Smith
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 5:11 p.m.
People who even look at child porn do hurt and abuse all children and are an immediate danger to all of us!
Tru2Blu76
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 4:02 p.m.
Across the country, institutions of all kinds hold the same belief and attitude: "We will handle this internally." Often, this attitude and belief is strongly enforced "internally." This, despite that institutions of all kinds (including businesses) are FIRST subject to state and federal laws. Unreported criminal activity caused the Recession of 2008 (impacting millions of people). Unreported criminal activity caused the firing of prominent university officials at Penn State. Ignorance (of the law and many other things) is our enemy. This case all started with: "She panicked, left the drive in the computer and went home because her shift was over." There are no "shifts" in our responsibility to the law and the protection of society, our children or our fellow human beings. That a "resident physician panicked" - is itself scary. This "witness" found time to carefully examine other images and files on that thumb drive. Suggesting: something besides "panic" played a role in their thinking and "response."
YpsiVeteran
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 3:04 a.m.
Jeff, anyone who has a dilemma after finding what she is reported to have found on that thumb drive should do the rest of us a favor and leave the country. That's just ridiculous. She had every right to take it...and turn it over the police. If she'd have found a loaded gun lying there, are you suggesting she would have no right to either stand there with it until the police arrived to confiscate it or take immediately to a police officer? And how do you know there was no immediate risk? For all she, or you, know, that child could have been a patient in the hospital at that very minute. She had a legal obligation to report this matter to the police, and she should be charged for failing to do so. Everyone in the "security" dept. who failed to do their jobs should also be charged. All these attempts at rationalization make me physically sick.
Tru2Blu76
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 5:01 p.m.
Hi Jeff, 1. "panicked" - is possibly used incorrectly. But this report suggests it was the person's own word choice. Just a mistake - or something indicating the true nature of their reaction? Don't know. Ref: "Something besides panic..." 2. Procedure: that's the point of my entire post. Having been involved in "critical discoveries" of (non-pornographic) irregularities at a large private institution, I can say that training is needed for most people to meet this kind of discovery. First instance: my ASAP report to internal security resulted in the head of toxicology having to come from home to correct his major security oversight. 2nd instance: My ASAP report averted a potential fire and explosion. TRAINING is essential to meet critical situations. Betting: U of M has no specific training in this area for its staff(s).
Jeff Gaynor
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 4:38 p.m.
"panicked" is not the appropriate word, and using it is unfair to the Resident. She had a dilemma. Clearly she opened it to find clues to whose it was - then came across these photos. She also didn't have the right to take it; it wasn't hers. She had the moral obligation to report it - but as there wasn't any immediate risk - doing so the next day was appropriate.
Kai Petainen
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 3:57 p.m.
btw -- Ann Arbor news.... doing a report like this can't be easy. thank you for having the guts to do it, and a 'job well done' in serving the community.
Kai Petainen
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 3:54 p.m.
"I was told a few days after making the report that the matter was closed." she recalled. deja vu. i saw a different crime that would go through the hospital area, and the matter was closed in a couple days. it was never solved. actually, i saw the impact of the crime, and had to file FOIAs to realize that it went through the hospital area. "University officials waited another six months before reporting the child porn to university police." why the wait? should people call the city police instead? long waits like that can provoke conspiracy theories. "It's safe to say that there were gaps in procedures," Fitzgerald said. "The procedures are at fault here, not the people." "There was not a clear line of responsibility for investigating the case." Look... if you learn from the small unsolved crimes in the hospital area, then you can learn how to handle the bigger crimes. One of the problems with the 'smaller' crime in that area, dealt with the procedures that were in place. If the procedures/communication were in place, then perhaps the 'smaller' crime could have been solved. And from the lessons learned from that, I would have hoped that there wasn't a repeat in problems with communication and 'how it was handled'. "Fitzgerald said DPS and Hospital Security have strong policies and procedures for their individual departments, but weak communication protocols between the two departments." fix it and work with the city or state police if you can't figure it out. "The delay in reporting revealed gaps in our procedures and misunderstandings among employees that we are determined to correct," good. fix it. disappointing. "There was confusion about the roles of Hospital Security and DPS." then fix it. i remember asking hospital security about the crime that i saw. they wouldn't answer any of my questions and told me to talk to DPS. they were aware of the crime, but they would not comment on it.
Joe Kidd
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 1:40 a.m.
Those excuses, the no clear line of responsibility and weak communications are just not true. In fact there used to be a Hospital Security investigator assigned to the UM DPS detective bureau. I am amazed the UM would state this.
Linda Peck
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 3:46 p.m.
It is horrible. There are no words. Why was this not considered an emergency by the police?
sHa
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 3:56 p.m.
From the above article, it sounds like the police never even knew about it until 6 months after it was reported by the female resident to her supervisors.
average joe
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 2:55 p.m.
So here you have a resident pediatrician who was suspected of viewing disturbing images involving children on a computer in a lounge for resident pediatric physicians. This was properly reported to the hospital security staff, and the investigation lingered there for six months. All the while these same people in the hospital security office, who are human and are trained(?) in how to handle these situations and know what is prevalent in the news these days, basically said that it's alright for this guy to continue to see patients(children). Common sense anyone?
average joe
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 3:13 a.m.
Ypsi- Okay, the security staff is not the people to go to except to report shoplifting. But she also reported it to the authority (general counsel) of the U/M, & the question being how did she go from security staff to general counsel, but not U/M police? Perhaps someone above her instructed her to. Should she have gone 'beyond' the U/M?, in this 'universe', yes perhaps she should have.
YpsiVeteran
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 2:56 a.m.
In what universe is notifying a security guard "proper reporting" for any crime? Not in this one. Security guards have authority over nothing. They are not empowered by law to investigate anything. Are we to believe these grown adults don't know enough to call the police to report a crime? Do they call a security guard if there's a fire? Do they call a plumber when the lights go out? Please. The entire situation is beyond outrageous.
justcurious
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 4:31 p.m.
This scenario, which seems to be what happened, makes me sick. My wish is that the female resident who found the thumb drive would have gone directly to the Ann Arbor police with it, instead of going "through the system". What a horrific find! And people who enjoy looking at this type of trash are walking around free. Wrong.
Daniel
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 2:46 p.m.
What are the responsibilities for U of M employees to report a crime? Is it as simple as call a number of different law enforcement agencies. Can there be liability for the person who discovered the thumb drive and reports the discovery outside of her employer. If we suggest employees of bureaucratic entities take discovery outside, can they be terminated if the information proves to be benign? This is a much bigger issue than someone should have done more!
Joe Kidd
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 1:37 a.m.
The UM Standard Practice Guide is the basic directions. In re to reporting to police, the 601.18 requires people to report violent crimes. Other crime reporting is under 510.01 Department of Public Safety and Security Public Safety and Security Services. It requires reporting for Emergency medical response, fires, crimes in progress, thefts and damage to property. I think this is too vague and obviously it does not include many crimes. And it is not easy to find. Odd that there is no section on Crime Reporting as a basic title rather than bury under the DPS section. A proper policy would be to instruct staff to report all crimes, any activity suspected as a crime and suspicious behavior to the police. A policy as is, is not as concerned with what is going on , it also about "who."
Daniel
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 4:27 p.m.
What happens when someone does follow procedure, doesn't like or agree with the conclusion and then goes outside? If law enforcement agrees with their decision to further an investigation, it is easy to support the person who blew the whistle. Conversely, if they go outside and the outside agency concludes there is no crime, then what happens? The vast majority of us claim we would be a whistle blower when we are not not part of the situation, but history shows the vast majority of us do choose to look the other way when we could be a scapegoat.
average joe
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 2:58 p.m.
Can employees be fired for going to an outside agency? Only if they don't follow 'procedure'.
Sarcastic1
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 2:41 p.m.
This is not the first time that something happened in the hospital that wasn't handed over to the police in a timely manner.
UtrespassM
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 3:04 p.m.
If you called your department office to make an appointment to meet with the chairman, the DPS criminal investigator would charge you stocking in a timely manner.
The Black Stallion3
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 2:56 p.m.
Hans.......are you suggesting everyone on the internet is not to be trusted? This is a tool to share information is it not?
The Black Stallion3
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 2:42 p.m.
Would you care to elaborate?
Dante Marcos
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 2:31 p.m.
Let me take a wild guess: if the University made this information public--namely, that pediatricians working in their hospital are enjoying footage of children being raped--it might hamper (to say the least) UM Health System's ability to go on reaping wonderful profits. And to think it's always Ypsilanti that is demonized as the realm of darkness and danger . . .
Basic Bob
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 6:59 p.m.
"there was miscommunication" That is a dishonest assessment of the dishonesty problem at the U - honesty includes telling things that you should to the proper authorities, not just those you are compelled to under oath.
naturalize
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 3:29 p.m.
You're jumping to absurd conclusions. They'll make a profit regardless. Clearly there was miscommunication when reporting to hospital security vs. DPS, and some clear failures on reporting procedures within the system. The system needs to be constantly fixed and upgraded as the nature of crimes and technology changes. Clearly not about profit.
Cash
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 2:22 p.m.
Really people? Would you need someone to tell you what to do???? Would it matter which police dept said or did what? If I didn't get an immediate result, knowing whose thumb drive it was an that person is still around..... knowing it is internet child porn.....I pick up the phone and call the FBI. They can figure out jurisdiction. NO EXCUSES!
Joe Kidd
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 1:11 a.m.
That would amount to a perfect Whistle blower lawsuit UtrespassM
Cash
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 3:52 p.m.
But possibly save some little children from being raped. Fired in this life, rewarded in the next.
UtrespassM
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 2:54 p.m.
If anyone did calling FBI, he or she would be fired for leaking the information.
aaparent
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 2:20 p.m.
@Lee Higgins - Can you clarify what the procedures are that the resident followed, not the explanation from the U-M's side about the reasons for the delay? You report that she talked to supervisors. Her supervisors are faculty physicians who are a part of a department within the hospital. Who were those faculty physicians? Who do those faculty physicians report to? A department chair? Do those physicians and the resident physician have to follow state reporting laws about suspected child abuse and have a duty to inform Child Protective Services about this immediately? Then was it the resident on her own who talked to public safety and university attorneys, or did her supervisor/faculty physician accompany her? "She spoke with her supervisors and met with hospital security officials, sharing what she had seen and showing them the computer. She also met with the Office of the General Counsel and told them about it."
Lee Higgins
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 6:31 p.m.
We will continue to follow this story. Right now, we don't have all the details.
Cash
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 2:18 p.m.
University image above all, eh? Talk about the wrong priorities! Time to clean house at U of M. No excuses. No bull. Clean house.
The Black Stallion3
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 2:11 p.m.
Fire everyone who knew about this and did not call police immediately. These people at the U of M are no better than the ones at Penn State. We can not allow this type of behavior to continue at the U of M without taking action. They all must go.
lumberg48108
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 3:21 p.m.
As I sated above - any similarities between Penn State and this case or only in our minds; comparing peer institutions and the same subject matter does not make these cases similar. Why? Because Penn State had actual VICTIMS and in this case, the doctor in questions viewed images To compare these cases is insulting to the victims of the Penn State case.
mkm17
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 2:11 p.m.
After all the notoriety about universities being fined because of Clery Act violations (EMU, Virginia Tech, Penn State (?)), it's hard to believe U-M would set itself up for a similar violation and fine by not immediately reporting Mr. Jenson to the police.
Joe Kidd
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 1:09 a.m.
C'mon. The fines for violating the Clery Act are petty compared to what these universities can afford to pay. I highly doubt the fine would enter into a decision on how to protect themselves.
Carole
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 2 p.m.
Commend the first individual who found the photo and for trying to pursue the issue by reporting it to higher authorities. Shame on those individuals who did not take the responsibility to follow through to prove there was misconduct or not.
YpsiVeteran
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 2:45 a.m.
Commend the presumably "adult" resident physician who found the material and then "panicked" and ran, leaving the drive behind and requiring at least 24 hours before she could collect herself sufficiently to make a simple phone call to the police? Oh wait...I'm sorry...this adult who at this point had been through at least 6 years of advanced education didn't call the real police, she called hospital security, because she's somehow reached this stage in her life without being able to tell the difference btwn. a security guard and a police officer? Yes. Of course. Let's throw her a parade.
Real Life
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 1:58 p.m.
As Average Joe pointed out, the University official says, "The procedures are at fault, not the people." What!?
annarboral
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 1:49 p.m.
Joe Paterno was quickly fired for "not doing enough" even though he followed proper preocedures in notifying the authorities. I'm sure the Ann Arbor "ELITES" will rationalizie their similar behavior because they are so much smarter than a mere football coach.
Joe Kidd
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 1:07 a.m.
Joe Paterno should have called the police. Calling his supervisor and doing nothing else makes no sense. He could have called his boss on the second call.
Craig Lounsbury
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 5:39 p.m.
Going to Schultz would be like one of us going to the City manager to report a crime. If I witness a crime, or suspect a crime The city manger isn't on my list of contacts, let alone at the top. Senior vice president of finances and business does not equal the police, anymore than the city manager equals the police.
a2citizen
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 4:20 p.m.
Craig, if Schulz oversaw the university police that makes the the real HMFIC. I was never a Paterno fan but who the heck else was he suppose to go to?
Hans Masing
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 2:36 p.m.
What if your 'boss at work' is responsible for oversight of the university police? (who are deputized law enforcement officials). Shultz, at Penn State, was exactly this position. Paterno did follow up, and was told that they were investigating. Shultz and Curley decided to bury it. The focus here, however, needs to be on the clear parallels between the Penn State case and what is/has happened here at Michigan. It appears that there is a systematic need to hide and bury embarrassing and damaging stories, regardless of the human cost. When the institutions become more important than the people (or, in both these cases, the children), then we need to seriously reexamine our priorities. The reputation of the university is not important when real lives are being damaged, however based upon this article and my experiences, it sure seems that institutional reputation tends to trump 'right' all too often.
Craig Lounsbury
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 2:12 p.m.
we can argue the definition of "authorities" but if one knows or suspects or has information that suggests a serious crime has been committed one ought to go to the police. City police, county police, state police, I don't care, they are the folks we as a society have licensed to catch bad guys, to solve crimes, to arrest "suspects'...errrr.... "persons of interest" That is the morally responsible thing to do, not report it to your "boss' at work. It isn't a work place issue its a crime against society.
Hans Masing
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 2:06 p.m.
The next 'nucklehead' (or nuckleheads) were Athletic Director Tim Curley and senior VP of finances and business Gary Schultz . Both have been charged with perjury. Both resigned their positions. They weren't fired, you'll note. Schultz oversaw the university's police department. He and Curley knew child protective services had investigated Sandusky in 1998. They still decided the new information was "not that serious." How is notifying the top cop at Penn State 'merely notifying the next knucklehead'? Paterno's critical mistake was in not following up. Was he required to do so? Legally, no, but ethically (especially when children are involved), yeah.
Craig Lounsbury
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 1:55 p.m.
actually Paterno didn't notify the "authorities" he merely notified the next knucklehead up in his paycheck chain of command
Mr. Me
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 1:45 p.m.
The UM Hospital and Medical School are their own fiefdoms. They hate cooperating across departments, let alone with other parts of the University. I am not surprised that there are two separate police forces that communicate poorly.
Craig Lounsbury
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 1:44 p.m.
This whole story has eerie, frightening similarities to the Penn State scandal as roll tide alluded.
lumberg48108
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 3:20 p.m.
any similarities between Penn State and this case or only in our minds; comparing peer institutions and the same subject matter does not make these cases similar. Why? Because Penn State had actual VICTIMS and in this case, the doctor in questions viewed images To compare these cases is insulting to the victims of the Penn State case.
cinnabar7071
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 8:50 p.m.
Makes you question the term "higher education" doesn't it. Degrees mean nothing.
A2comments
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 1:14 p.m.
I'd love to how U of M can justify two separate police forces.
Joe Kidd
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 1:04 a.m.
Housing has its own security department too.
Arborcomment
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 3:26 p.m.
Hospital security is "security" and not a Police force. The establishment of the UM Police was supposed to address this issue at least 10 years ago. In the meantime, you've paid $182K a year for a UM Police Chief, more than what a three star general makes in the US Military. Better raise tuition and get this fixed.
pbehjatnia
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 1:04 p.m.
Anyone who was aware and chose not to act should be fired. If it turns out this guy was actively abusing children (not using only pictures for his thrill) then I hope they can be charged. The children in the pictures were being abused. To know this and not report it to appropriate agencies such as the FBI is beyond repulsive. Another Penn case of "Don't rock the boat. It might cost you." And this includes the female Dr. who reported the incident but failed to go to proper outside police authority.
Basic Bob
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 6:53 p.m.
Once one reports a potential crime to the police, one's public duty been performed. The police don't want witnesses investigating crimes and potentially interfering with an active investigation. If the police need help from outside agencies such as the FBI, it is their job to contact the FBI and gain their assistance. Whether or not a police department or prosecutor chooses to follow up, it is not the responsibility of the witness.
Hans Masing
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 1:20 p.m.
> If it turns out this guy was actively abusing children (not using only pictures for his thrill) then I hope they can be charged. Using the pictures for his 'thrill' *is* actively abusing the children by creating a market for it, and therefore creating a climate of sexual abuse for vulnerable children.
average joe
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 12:59 p.m.
Fitzgerald said. "The procedures are at fault here, not the people." It's all about procedures.....Can any common sense be used? It appears that a crime may have been commited six months ago, & who do you report a suspected crime to?
UtrespassM
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 12:43 p.m.
If this guy were a professor, the matter would be closed for ever at University.
Steve Hendel
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 11:37 a.m.
What's not clear here is this: if the thumb drive had been removed over night, then what solid evidence was there to link Jenson with it?
Joe Kidd
Mon, Jan 30, 2012 : 1:03 a.m.
You have to log on to the hospital computers. That will tell them who was on it before the witness found the thumb drive. After getting that log it would be relatively simple to figure out who your suspect is. Not only do you get logs of who was on, you also get data of what they were doing. Even if the contents of the drive could not be found, similar activity, web sites for example can show what each logged on employee was doing. The delay is a huge problem. Even if info was not saved or deleted, it remains on the computer's disk until it is written over. Get that computer to the police asap and that image might have been recovered.
thedime
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 11:31 a.m.
If anyone is complicit, derelict or happened to be negligent in their duties, they must go. No exceptions.
Michigan Man
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 10:40 p.m.
Two Ann Arbor physicians, both apparently connected to Pediatrics, now involved in child porn. This is a an ugly story. U of M inept in its reporting functions. Washtenaw County Medical Society + U of M need to stand tall, speak out and assure that it is still oriented toward protecting patients and the public health from child predators.
cinnabar7071
Sun, Jan 29, 2012 : 8:46 p.m.
I would also think criminal charges should explored.