Oral Argument

A Death in the Hospital /Oral Argument

On March 17, 2004, oral argument was held on our appeal over the refusal of the New York State Supreme Court to permit us to sue Thomas R. Moore, Esq. The members of the New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division, First Department, were Justices Saxe, Ellerin, Gonzalez, Lerner and Tom. Arguing for Thomas R. Moore was Harris J. Zakarin of the firm RivkinRadler.

“May It Please The Court,” I said. “The New York State Court’s has, to date, taken away the right of my wife and me to sue. This right was taken away without a hearing and only on the basis of a gratuitous and summary opinion.” Judge Klein- Heitler admitted on the record, “I don’t know what Moore said or did not say to you.” “That’s precisely the point,” I said to the Appellate Judges. “There was no Due Process involved here, as was required by the 14th Amendment, only some gratuitous comments. In our system of Justice, this is exactly what a Judge is not supposed to do. A Judge is not supposed to decide between opposing allegations without as much as a hearing on the evidence. Our charges should have gone to a Jury to decide.”

“In this case,” I went on, “It is really a matter of whom to believe.” I said to the Court, “I think it may help you to know a bit about me. I am in my 18th year as a psychiatrist working for the City of New York. My work with the Adult Protective Services frequently involves me in life and death situations, often in close cooperation with the New York Police Department and the Emergency Medical Services. I have also been qualified as an expert witness in Psychiatry over 400 times in the State Supreme Courts of New York City in Guardianship hearings.

There are several accomplishments I am proud of. These include my co-founding of the Fordham Tremont Community Medical Health Center in the Bronx. My efforts led to President Jimmy Carter coming to the Bronx shortly after his inauguration. This in turn sparked the redevelopment of the Bronx that continues to this day. I am also proud of my commendation from the Mayor and the Commissioner of Human Resources for my volunteer work during 9/11.

Your Honors, I am not known as a liar. Mr. Moore, on the other hand, is. My motion to you includes a detailed explanation of the tax matter that brought him before the Division of Tax Appeals, State of New York. Mr. Moore was guilty of trying to avoid payment of New York State Taxes. He may have avoided paying Federal Taxes on over $2 million dollars.

Judge Heitler’s and Judge Tolub’s decision deprived us or our 7th and 14th Amendment Due Process rights. There never was a hearing on our charges, just gratuitous comments that essentially imply we were lying. The Justices asked no questions. Mr. Zakarin’s only statement was that he stood on his written motions that the matter had been ‘decided.'”

My final response was to say that the matter had not been decided since it was never truly addressed. Justice Klein-Heitler’s comments were totally gratuitous and even in contradiction to what she said herself when she expressed the opinion, “I do not know what Mr. Moore said or did not say to you.”