Arthur Henry Douthwaite
Encyclopedia
Arthur Henry Douthwaite was a British doctor
, Vice President of the Royal College of Physicians
and a prolific medical textbook
writer. He was the foremost expert on heroin in Britain
in the 1950s, leading to him being called as an expert witness
in the trial of suspected serial killer
Dr John Bodkin Adams
.
at Guy's Hospital
, and an Honorary Physician at All Saints' Hospital for Genito-urinary Diseases.
Douthwaite was Britain's foremost expert on dangerous drugs, and was instrumental in dissuading the Home Office
from banning heroin for medical use.
Dr Douthwaite was greatly respected for his diagnostic skills. One story told of how he had walked into the casualty
department in his usual morning dress and greeted the casualty officer, "I am Arthur Henry Douthwaite and I have just perforated my duodenal ulcer, please arrange my admission." According to the story, he had.
murder trial, one of the first in Britain to be based on the testimony of expert witness
es. As Lord Justice Patrick Devlin
explained: "It is a most curious situation, perhaps unique in these courts, that the act of murder has to be proved by expert evidence".
Adams had been arrested the previous year for the murder of two elderly widows, Gertrude Hullett
and Edith Alice Morrell
. He was tried for the murder of the latter and the prosecution, led by Sir Reginald Manningham-Buller, alleged that he had killed her with excessive doses of heroin and morphine
. Douthwaite and Michael Ashby
were the prosecution's key witnesses. But while Ashby was more hesitant as to whether Adams had meant to kill Morrell, Douthwaite was adamant that Adams had intended her death. He could think of "no legitimate reason" for Adams' drug prescribing, and could only summise that it suggested "a desire to terminate life". At times however, his testimony seemed over-confident and even arrogant, and only succeeded in putting off the jury
and the judge
. He was also criticised for what seemed to be a change in his hypothesis half-way through the trial, when he selected a different date for when Adams had begun his attempt to kill Morrell.
Defence counsel, Frederick Geoffrey Lawrence
, put it to him thus:
Douthwaite replied:
Historian Pamela Cullen defends Douthwaite, however, saying that Manningham-Buller had intentionally lost vital evidence - nurses' notebooks - which detailed Adams' treatment of the patient. Douthwaite was therefore not able to examine these to prepare his theory of events. Cullen adds furthermore, that Manningham-Buller actually gave them to the defence, which allowed defence counsel
Frederick Geoffrey Lawrence
QC
to present them on the second day of the trial. Douthwaite, caught unawares, was then forced to quickly adjust his hypothesis to take into account the new evidence, which gave the impression that he was being inconsistent and speculating on the hoof.
Douthwaite's evidence's underwhelming impact, coupled with defence witness John B. Harman
's evidence in favour of Adams, helped ensure Adams' acquittal. Douthwaite's performance at the trial however did not endear him to his fellow doctors, who resented his attempt to convict one of their peers. Douthwaite had previously been greatly respected within the profession, but his involvement is widely considered to have cost him the presidency of the Royal College of Physicians
. As Devlin later wrote in his account of the trial, the case was "a very important one for the medical profession, which was naturally worried by the thought that the prescription of drugs might lead to a charge of murder".
According to Scotland Yard
's files on Adams, the police believed that 163 of Adams' patients died in highly suspicious circumstances. Reporter Rodney Hallworth
and historian Pamela Cullen also identify another patient, Annie Sharpe, as a possible victim not included in this number, and Cullen further identifies Edward Cavendish, 10th Duke of Devonshire
as a probable victim. Adams was only ever convicted on 13 counts of prescription
fraud
, lying on cremation
forms, obstructing a police search and failing to keep a dangerous drugs register. He was removed from the Medical Register in 1957 and reinstated in 1961.
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
, Vice President of the Royal College of Physicians
Royal College of Physicians
The Royal College of Physicians of London was founded in 1518 as the College of Physicians by royal charter of King Henry VIII in 1518 - the first medical institution in England to receive a royal charter...
and a prolific medical textbook
Textbook
A textbook or coursebook is a manual of instruction in any branch of study. Textbooks are produced according to the demands of educational institutions...
writer. He was the foremost expert on heroin in Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
in the 1950s, leading to him being called as an expert witness
Expert witness
An expert witness, professional witness or judicial expert is a witness, who by virtue of education, training, skill, or experience, is believed to have expertise and specialised knowledge in a particular subject beyond that of the average person, sufficient that others may officially and legally...
in the trial of suspected serial killer
Serial killer
A serial killer, as typically defined, is an individual who has murdered three or more people over a period of more than a month, with down time between the murders, and whose motivation for killing is usually based on psychological gratification...
Dr John Bodkin Adams
John Bodkin Adams
John Bodkin Adams was an Irish-born British general practitioner, convicted fraudster and suspected serial killer. Between the years 1946 and 1956, more than 160 of his patients died in suspicious circumstances. Of these, 132 left him money or items in their will. He was tried and acquitted for...
.
Career
Douthwaite was a senior physicianPhysician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
at Guy's Hospital
Guy's Hospital
Guy's Hospital is a large NHS hospital in the borough of Southwark in south east London, England. It is administratively a part of Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust. It is a large teaching hospital and is home to the King's College London School of Medicine...
, and an Honorary Physician at All Saints' Hospital for Genito-urinary Diseases.
Douthwaite was Britain's foremost expert on dangerous drugs, and was instrumental in dissuading the Home Office
Home Office
The Home Office is the United Kingdom government department responsible for immigration control, security, and order. As such it is responsible for the police, UK Border Agency, and the Security Service . It is also in charge of government policy on security-related issues such as drugs,...
from banning heroin for medical use.
Dr Douthwaite was greatly respected for his diagnostic skills. One story told of how he had walked into the casualty
Emergency department
An emergency department , also known as accident & emergency , emergency room , emergency ward , or casualty department is a medical treatment facility specialising in acute care of patients who present without prior appointment, either by their own means or by ambulance...
department in his usual morning dress and greeted the casualty officer, "I am Arthur Henry Douthwaite and I have just perforated my duodenal ulcer, please arrange my admission." According to the story, he had.
Bodkin Adams trial
In 1957 Douthwaite gave evidence at the Dr John Bodkin AdamsJohn Bodkin Adams
John Bodkin Adams was an Irish-born British general practitioner, convicted fraudster and suspected serial killer. Between the years 1946 and 1956, more than 160 of his patients died in suspicious circumstances. Of these, 132 left him money or items in their will. He was tried and acquitted for...
murder trial, one of the first in Britain to be based on the testimony of expert witness
Expert witness
An expert witness, professional witness or judicial expert is a witness, who by virtue of education, training, skill, or experience, is believed to have expertise and specialised knowledge in a particular subject beyond that of the average person, sufficient that others may officially and legally...
es. As Lord Justice Patrick Devlin
Patrick Devlin, Baron Devlin
Patrick Arthur Devlin, Baron Devlin, PC was a British lawyer, judge and jurist. He wrote a report on Britain's involvement in Nyasaland in 1959...
explained: "It is a most curious situation, perhaps unique in these courts, that the act of murder has to be proved by expert evidence".
Adams had been arrested the previous year for the murder of two elderly widows, Gertrude Hullett
Gertrude Hullett
Gertrude "Bobby" Hullett , a resident of Eastbourne, East Sussex, England, was a patient of the suspected serial killer Dr John Bodkin Adams, who was charged with her murder but never tried for it.-Jack Hullett:...
and Edith Alice Morrell
Edith Alice Morrell
Edith Alice Morrell , was a resident of Eastbourne and patient of the suspected serial killer John Bodkin Adams. He was tried for her murder in 1957 but acquitted...
. He was tried for the murder of the latter and the prosecution, led by Sir Reginald Manningham-Buller, alleged that he had killed her with excessive doses of heroin and morphine
Morphine
Morphine is a potent opiate analgesic medication and is considered to be the prototypical opioid. It was first isolated in 1804 by Friedrich Sertürner, first distributed by same in 1817, and first commercially sold by Merck in 1827, which at the time was a single small chemists' shop. It was more...
. Douthwaite and Michael Ashby
Michael Ashby
Michael George Corbett Ashby, M.A., M.B., M.R.C.P., F.R.C.P. was a consultant neurologist at the Whittington Hospital, London and an expert witness for the prosecution in the failed trial of suspected serial killer John Bodkin Adams.-Life:Ashby was born in London, the son of Arthur Brian Ashby, a...
were the prosecution's key witnesses. But while Ashby was more hesitant as to whether Adams had meant to kill Morrell, Douthwaite was adamant that Adams had intended her death. He could think of "no legitimate reason" for Adams' drug prescribing, and could only summise that it suggested "a desire to terminate life". At times however, his testimony seemed over-confident and even arrogant, and only succeeded in putting off the jury
Jury
A jury is a sworn body of people convened to render an impartial verdict officially submitted to them by a court, or to set a penalty or judgment. Modern juries tend to be found in courts to ascertain the guilt, or lack thereof, in a crime. In Anglophone jurisdictions, the verdict may be guilty,...
and the judge
Judge
A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as part of a panel of judges. The powers, functions, method of appointment, discipline, and training of judges vary widely across different jurisdictions. The judge is supposed to conduct the trial impartially and in an open...
. He was also criticised for what seemed to be a change in his hypothesis half-way through the trial, when he selected a different date for when Adams had begun his attempt to kill Morrell.
Defence counsel, Frederick Geoffrey Lawrence
Frederick Geoffrey Lawrence
Sir Frederick Geoffrey Lawrence QC was a British lawyer, High Court Judge, Chairman of the Bar Council and Chairman of the National Incomes Commission. He first came to prominence when he defended suspected serial killer Dr John Bodkin Adams in 1957, the first murder case he handled...
, put it to him thus:
"The truth of all this matter is this, Dr Douthwaite, that you first of all gave evidence on one basis to support a charge of murder and then thought of something else after you had started?"
Douthwaite replied:
"That is quite likely. In fact, I think it is probable. I had been turning it over in my mind but at what time it crystallised and became clear I do not know."
Historian Pamela Cullen defends Douthwaite, however, saying that Manningham-Buller had intentionally lost vital evidence - nurses' notebooks - which detailed Adams' treatment of the patient. Douthwaite was therefore not able to examine these to prepare his theory of events. Cullen adds furthermore, that Manningham-Buller actually gave them to the defence, which allowed defence counsel
Counsel
A counsel or a counselor gives advice, more particularly in legal matters.-U.K. and Ireland:The legal system in England uses the term counsel as an approximate synonym for a barrister-at-law, and may apply it to mean either a single person who pleads a cause, or collectively, the body of barristers...
Frederick Geoffrey Lawrence
Frederick Geoffrey Lawrence
Sir Frederick Geoffrey Lawrence QC was a British lawyer, High Court Judge, Chairman of the Bar Council and Chairman of the National Incomes Commission. He first came to prominence when he defended suspected serial killer Dr John Bodkin Adams in 1957, the first murder case he handled...
QC
Queen's Counsel
Queen's Counsel , known as King's Counsel during the reign of a male sovereign, are lawyers appointed by letters patent to be one of Her [or His] Majesty's Counsel learned in the law...
to present them on the second day of the trial. Douthwaite, caught unawares, was then forced to quickly adjust his hypothesis to take into account the new evidence, which gave the impression that he was being inconsistent and speculating on the hoof.
Douthwaite's evidence's underwhelming impact, coupled with defence witness John B. Harman
John B. Harman
John Bishop Harman, FRCS, FRCP was a British physician, president of the Medical Defence Union and chairman of the British National Formulary. He was also notable as a medical expert witness for the defence in the trial of suspected serial killer John Bodkin Adams...
's evidence in favour of Adams, helped ensure Adams' acquittal. Douthwaite's performance at the trial however did not endear him to his fellow doctors, who resented his attempt to convict one of their peers. Douthwaite had previously been greatly respected within the profession, but his involvement is widely considered to have cost him the presidency of the Royal College of Physicians
Royal College of Physicians
The Royal College of Physicians of London was founded in 1518 as the College of Physicians by royal charter of King Henry VIII in 1518 - the first medical institution in England to receive a royal charter...
. As Devlin later wrote in his account of the trial, the case was "a very important one for the medical profession, which was naturally worried by the thought that the prescription of drugs might lead to a charge of murder".
According to Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard is a metonym for the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police Service of London, UK. It derives from the location of the original Metropolitan Police headquarters at 4 Whitehall Place, which had a rear entrance on a street called Great Scotland Yard. The Scotland Yard entrance became...
's files on Adams, the police believed that 163 of Adams' patients died in highly suspicious circumstances. Reporter Rodney Hallworth
Rodney Hallworth
-Journalism:Hallworth worked as a crime reporter for the Daily Mail. He reported on many cases but most famously on that of suspected serial killer Dr John Bodkin Adams in 1956...
and historian Pamela Cullen also identify another patient, Annie Sharpe, as a possible victim not included in this number, and Cullen further identifies Edward Cavendish, 10th Duke of Devonshire
Edward Cavendish, 10th Duke of Devonshire
Edward William Spencer Cavendish, 10th Duke of Devonshire, KG, MBE, TD , known as Marquess of Hartington , was the head of the Devonshire branch of the Cavendish family...
as a probable victim. Adams was only ever convicted on 13 counts of prescription
Medical prescription
A prescription is a health-care program implemented by a physician or other medical practitioner in the form of instructions that govern the plan of care for an individual patient. Prescriptions may include orders to be performed by a patient, caretaker, nurse, pharmacist or other therapist....
fraud
Fraud
In criminal law, a fraud is an intentional deception made for personal gain or to damage another individual; the related adjective is fraudulent. The specific legal definition varies by legal jurisdiction. Fraud is a crime, and also a civil law violation...
, lying on cremation
Cremation
Cremation is the process of reducing bodies to basic chemical compounds such as gasses and bone fragments. This is accomplished through high-temperature burning, vaporization and oxidation....
forms, obstructing a police search and failing to keep a dangerous drugs register. He was removed from the Medical Register in 1957 and reinstated in 1961.
Publications
Douthwaite wrote many textbooks:- The injection treatment of varicose veins, London, H. K. Lewis, 1928
- The treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, London, H. K. Lewis, 1929
- The treatment of chronic arthritis, London, Cape, 1930
- The treatment of asthma, London, H. K. Lewis, 1930
- A guide to general practice, London, H. K. Lewis, 1932
- The treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and sciatica, London, H. K. Lewis, 1933
- An Index of Differential Diagnosis of Main Symptoms (with Herbert French), Bristol, John Wright, 1945 (6th edition)
- French's Index of Differential Diagnosis, Williams & Wilkins, 1960
- The use of heroin, S.I., 1956
- Materia medicaMateria medicaMateria medica is a Latin medical term for the body of collected knowledge about the therapeutic properties of any substance used for healing . The term 'materia medica' derived from the title of a work by the Ancient Greek physician Pedanius Dioscorides in the 1st century AD, De materia medica libre...
, pharmacology and therapeutics (with Sir William Hale-WhiteWilliam Hale-WhiteSir William Hale-White , was a distinguished British physician and medical biographer. He was the son of writer Mark Rutherford. During the First World War he was a colonel in the RAMC and was created KBE in 1919...
), London, Churchill, 1949, 1959, 1963.