more on the botched castration

[Dave (imported)]

http://www.observer-reporter.com/285445450736798.bsp

Transgendered woman testifies at assault trial

Associated Press

McKEESPORT - A man who police said posed as a doctor and performed a castration on a transgendered woman was ordered to stand trial, even though his attorney said the man did her a favor and that she didn't want him prosecuted.

Catherine Watson, 45, appeared ambivalent when McKeesport District Justice Thomas Brletic asked her if she wanted to prosecute Doug Lenhart.

"I don't want him to do this again. É I don't think he's capable," Watson, weeping, said during Lenhart's preliminary hearing Monday. She said she nearly bled to death from the Sept. 12 procedure, which was performed on the dining room table of her McKeesport home in suburban Pittsburgh.

Though Watson didn't answer Brletic's question directly, Shanicka Kennedy, assistant district attorney for Allegheny County, said Watson's wishes were irrelevant because the state was prosecuting.

Lenhart, 48, of Lower Burrell, was held for trial on charges of aggravated assault, reckless endangerment and unauthorized practice of medicine and surgery.

"Is this a case of compassion or predator? I don't know, but we're going to find out," Brletic said.

Watson testified that she is a transgendered woman who became "Catherine" when she was 6 years old. She began looking for someone to perform a castration after the doctor who was to perform sexual reassignment surgery earlier this year told her he wanted several thousand dollars more, she said.

"I just wanted to solve my problem," she said, describing herself as "desperate."

She found Lenhart through the Internet and agreed to pay him $800, with $200 up front and the rest in installments. He told her he was a doctor, but not licensed in Pennsylvania, and had performed 23 other castrations, she said.

Lenhart doesn't have a medical license. His attorney, James Waymard, said Lenhart has a doctorate and two masters degrees, but he wouldn't say in what. He also said Lenhart had "some experience in this area" and said he felt Lenhart was qualified to perform the procedure. Lenhart declined comment.

Watson said she was awake throughout the procedure. She said Lenhart told her to have something to drink and take over the counter pain medication beforehand, then sprayed her with "something to dull the pain."

Watson said Lenhart's instruments weren't sharp and that she was in "horrible pain" and screaming as the procedure went on.

She said she felt herself bleeding internally and became scared as he reopened her sutures to try to stop the bleeding.

Watson said Lenhart told her he was "having problems" and she had her partner call for an ambulance, at which point Lenhart "packed his stuff and left."

She said she spent a day and a half in a hospital. "I heard one of the doctors say, "We're losing her,"' she said.

Under cross-examination, Watson said that Lenhart "did do what I asked him to do."

Watson said she didn't recall telling Lenhart to leave before the ambulance arrived because she didn't want him to get involved, but admitted she may have.

Waymard unsuccessfully sought to have the aggravated assault charge dismissed, but conceded there was enough evidence for the other charges. He said Lenhart didn't act with recklessness or an intent to cause serious bodily injury, an element of aggravated assault.

"He did this to help her," Waymard said. "She was going to do this herself."

Lenhart "did this, really, in my opinion, as an act of kindness and charity," Waymard said.

[Robby (imported)]

For all the guys who heard about Catherine's experience... let this be a "lesson learned." All too often, we are eager to accomplish a task, even to the point of near death like Catherine's first hand knowledge. There are several posts here on the Archive detailing the horrors that can and do go wrong. For more information on difficult procedures (read that as "had a problem"), ask Krister or Luvpain about their knowledge on this subject matter.

Here at the Archive, we want your safety and welfare to come first

http://www.observer-reporter.com/285445450736798.bsp

Transgendered woman testifies at assault trial

Associated Press

McKEESPORT - A man who police said posed as a doctor and performed a castration on a transgendered woman was ordered to stand trial, even though his attorney said the man did her a favor and that she didn't want him prosecuted.

Catherine Watson, 45, appeared ambivalent when McKeesport District Justice Thomas Brletic asked her if she wanted to prosecute Doug Lenhart.

"I don't want him to do this again. É I don't think he's capable," Watson, weeping, said during Lenhart's preliminary hearing Monday. She said she nearly bled to death from the Sept. 12 procedure, which was performed on the dining room table of her McKeesport home in suburban Pittsburgh.

Though Watson didn't answer Brletic's question directly, Shanicka Kennedy, assistant district attorney for Allegheny County, said Watson's wishes were irrelevant because the state was prosecuting.

Lenhart, 48, of Lower Burrell, was held for trial on charges of aggravated assault, reckless endangerment and unauthorized practice of medicine and surgery.

"Is this a case of compassion or predator? I don't know, but we're going to find out," Brletic said.

Watson testified that she is a transgendered woman who became "Catherine" when she was 6 years old. She began looking for someone to perform a castration after the doctor who was to perform sexual reassignment surgery earlier this year told her he wanted several thousand dollars more, she said.

"I just wanted to solve my problem," she said, describing herself as "desperate."

She found Lenhart through the Internet and agreed to pay him $800, with $200 up front and the rest in installments. He told her he was a doctor, but not licensed in Pennsylvania, and had performed 23 other castrations, she said.

Lenhart doesn't have a medical license. His attorney, James Waymard, said Lenhart has a doctorate and two masters degrees, but he wouldn't say in what. He also said Lenhart had "some experience in this area" and said he felt Lenhart was qualified to perform the procedure. Lenhart declined comment.

Watson said she was awake throughout the procedure. She said Lenhart told her to have something to drink and take over the counter pain medication beforehand, then sprayed her with "something to dull the pain."

Watson said Lenhart's instruments weren't sharp and that she was in "horrible pain" and screaming as the procedure went on.

She said she felt herself bleeding internally and became scared as he reopened her sutures to try to stop the bleeding.

Watson said Lenhart told her he was "having problems" and she had her partner call for an ambulance, at which point Lenhart "packed his stuff and left."

She said she spent a day and a half in a hospital. "I heard one of the doctors say, "We're losing her,"' she said.

Under cross-examination, Watson said that Lenhart "did do what I asked him to do."

Watson said she didn't recall telling Lenhart to leave before the ambulance arrived because she didn't want him to get involved, but admitted she may have.

Waymard unsuccessfully sought to have the aggravated assault charge dismissed, but conceded there was enough evidence for the other charges. He said Lenhart didn't act with recklessness or an intent to cause serious bodily injury, an element of aggravated assault.

"He did this to help her," Waymard said. "She was going to do this herself."

Lenhart "did this, really, in my opinion, as an act of kindness and charity," Waymard said.

[luvpain (imported)]

This event didn't turn out as bad as it could have. The things I have learned from my experienace and also from reading about other's bad experiances are:

1. Make sure you have a friend on hand that can drive you home, call 911, or make sure you are safe and cared for. This does apply mostly to cutters, but even if you have Dr. Kimmel or another Doctor do it, having someone around to help out while you rest and recover is always good.

If you definitely have a cutter do you, make sure you have a freind with you that you trust. The thing about cutters is that you never know how experianced they are and what they might do if things go wrong. In this particular case what would have happened if Catherine's friend wasn't there to call 911?

2. Make sure you and the cutter have a backup plan incase things do go wrong. Don't fool yourself into thinking nothing will go wrong. Being prepared is always a good idea.

The castration I witnessed had a number of things go wrong. If the cutter would have just said he didn't feel comfortable with going on instead of listening to Don's wishes things wouldn't have turned out like they did. Also Don should have been OK with getting 911 involved sooner instead of saying he was against it.

Whatever you decide either using a Doctor or choosing a cutter be prepared for as much as possible. Things should be fairly painless during the proceedure, but you will ave a bout a week's healing time that can be painful or annoying.

I know the stance here is it is better to use a Doctor then using a cutter. The reason for that is safety, experianced Doctors and cutters can and ocassionally do make mistakes, but a Doctor has access to a lot more supplies and others to help out if things do go wrong.

[A-1 (imported)]

Luvpain,

Surgery is a bit like rebuilding an automatic transmission in a car.

If you have not been properly trained to do either of these things and you attempt to do them anyway you will fuck something up. It doesn't matter how many books you have read on automatic transmission repair or minor surgery, you have not done it until you have done it.

If you do it for the first time without somebody who REALLY knows what they are doing, you are really asking for it. If you get by with it once without a major mishap then you are damned lucky. But like automatic transmissions, all human bodies operate on the same principles, but they all differ slightly. If an automatic transmission is slightly out of tolerance, or the case has a minor flaw, you may discover that it will not work, no matter how well you put it together.

Patients can crash during minor surgery.

If you do not know a medical history, you can kill somebody. Old, Experienced Cutters are like Old, Bold Plane Pilots. There are Old Plane Pilots and there are Bold Plane Pilots, but there are no old, bold plane pilots.

There are old cutters and there are experienced cutters, but there are no old, experienced cutters.

They get arrested. They fuck up. They get caught. It is just a matter of time, luck and the law of averages.

A-1

[luvpain (imported)]

I know all about the risks and such, What I was trying to say is that people need to know the risks, and not just blindly go into being cut.

I have done a lot of different from simple piercings to some more advanced mods, I have delt with problems popping up.

I have done research on somethings and jumpped blindly into other things with fairly good luck.

[An Onymus (imported)]

Since the blood vessels from which substantial hemorrhaging could occur, would seem ordinarily to be only those in the seminal cords, you would think that someone doing this type of surgery, could administer a local anesthetic to the seminal cords, tie them off with absorbable suturing thread (possibly also a membrane patch), and then sever the cords below the threads, with the loss of only a few drops of blood. The suturing thread would be left on when the scrotum was sutured, to prevent postoperative hemorrhaging. But, of course, you still have to know exactly what you're doing when you embark on any surgery. And, even then, a lot of operations turn out to be harrowing adventures, regardless of the training or competence of the surgeon.

[luvpain (imported)]

If the castration is done correctly there is hardly any bleeding involved. the most bleeding would be from cutting open the sac.

You are right when it comes to tieing off the cord, but the problem is doing it correctly. If not done correctly the suture could come off and lead to massive bleeding. That was what happened with the Detroit cutter.

[A-1 (imported)]

But that is the thing, doing it correctly.

Bleeding can be controlled with hemostasis form electro-cautery, but few people have this type of equipment at their disposal. In addition, ther is the factor of pain. Surgery in the Civil War era was limited by the time the patient could stand the proceedure. They would try to get them drunk first, but pain always has a sobering effect. The best surgeons could amputate a leg or an arm at a joint in kess than a minute. Of course tournequets (sp) were applied and bleeding was controlled.

If you go to the RAWA site they used to have a video of an Islamic sentence being carried our on a man and his hand anf foot being amputated at the joint. It was less than a minute.

Castration is not that complicated, but with the sentences that these people are getting, I would not try it.

A-1

[Dave (imported)]

I don't think bleeding and safety to death is the only message of the news story. Acceptance is another.

The court in Bridgeville was not intersted in punishing the victim they were more interested in protecting her. That's an attitude that you might not expect. This lady spent a time in pain from the cutter antics and would have died because he messed up. The authorities and society can't tolerate that.

The real crime is the practice of unsafe medicine without a license and without being prepared for emergencies. That was what shocked the court and the legal authorities.

The authorities accepted and understood (in a limited way) the need for the castration. That is an improvement over what has gone on in years past.

[luvpain (imported)]

Are you sure about that, she didn't commit a crime so they can't really charge her with anything, If they did charge her with something I think the public would be outraged.

When Don was castrated a year and a half ago and ended up in the ER, he was never charged with anything amd his name wasn't released to the media.

The authorities didn't understand the reason for castration, they were totally grossed out by it and were more concerned about how to make it into a media attraction to boost their legal carreers.

I wasn't able to attend the whole trial, because I was a witness and had to stay outside the courtroom unless I was on the stand.

The authorities were not interested in the truth, but more in destroying my friend's reputation. They tried make it seem like he was uncaring and did it against Don's will.

They also filled the jurry with lies that it was easy for any person seeking castration to get it down by Doctors in the area.

I know there was a lot more that was done to mislead the jury, but I don't remember everything my cutter friend brought up afterwards.

I wish I would have known a lot more about those points as his lawyer could have cleared up some of that by asking me more questions, instead I was only able to mention what went on that night and show that the things they were claimming happened didn't.