Australian Associated Press
Friday 10 October 2014 00.34 EDT
Dr Neville Davis pleads not guilty to common assault after mother claims he tied her seven-year-old to prove ?he doesn?t have Asperger?s syndrome?
A Gold Coast mother says she completely ?lost it? after allegedly witnessing a paediatrician hog-tie her child during a consultation.
Dr Neville Davis, 60, has pleaded not guilty to single charge of common assault arising from the alleged October 2012 incident.
The mother of four, who cannot be identified, told Southport magistrates court during the second day of Davis?s trial she felt her then seven-year-old son had been abused during the consultation.
The boy, who has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, had experienced increased behavioural problems in the build-up to the consultation.
Fearing he may have had Asperger?s syndrome, the mother raised her concern with Davis.
?Neville Davis said there was no way he could have Asperger?s,? she told the court on Friday.
?He said, ?I?ll prove to you that he doesn?t have Asperger?s syndrome? and I said ?OK?.?
The mother claimed Davis twice tied up the child, most tightly and with his hands and ankles bound behind his back the second time.
She broke down and requested a small break when asked to describe three photos of the incident she had taken on her mobile phone.
After the boy freed himself on both occasions, the mother then claimed Davis had asked the boy to lie on his stomach and sat on his back, laughing as the boy struggled and cried out for him to get off.
?He just kept sitting there and was laughing and I was getting more agitated,? she said. ?He [Davis] thought it was funny.?
Davis?s lawyer Steve Zillman argued the doctor had only lightly restrained the boy and was showing the mother he did not have Asperger?s because a child with the condition would have reacted more to the restraint.
Zillman said the doctor had merely squatted over the boy, not sat on him, in an effort to show the mother how to calm him after a tantrum.
The mother denied Zillman?s claims, stating adamantly Davis had sat down on the boy.
She also denied a suggestion a civil case against Davis showed the assault claim was about seeking damages.
?This has never been about money,? she said, but did confirm she was seeking damages for her son and herself from Davis.
Here is the rest of the story with photos>>> http://www.theguardian.com/australia-ne ... diatrician
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Last edited by tall-p on 10 Oct 2014, 3:55 am, edited 1 time in total.
10 Oct 2014, 3:24 am
