Horizon Dive Adventures Complaint Filed in Federal Court

[boulderjohn]

As stated in a link at the top of this page, that contributed to what can only be described as Dr Beavers firing. I wonder if he is vindicated now?

As an aside, I always felt that Dr. Beaver was an outstanding coroner regarding diving accidents.

I only know what I read in the article about his firing, but it seems like they had a lot of reasons for firing him that had nothing to do with this case. In fact, none of the reasons cited involved this case. Just reading about things as an outside observer, I would say that his firing has no relevance to this discussion and does not in any way invalidate or reflect in any way upon his actions here.

 

[Ayisha]

As stated in a link at the top of this page, that contributed to what can only be described as Dr Beavers firing. I wonder if he is vindicated now?

As an aside, I always felt that Dr. Beaver was an outstanding coroner regarding diving accidents.

My perception is that there were severe and unresolved (unresolvable) personality struggles that came to a head with this incident. Shouting by Dr Beaver was cited as one of the issues over a 3 year period. He could have been fired, except they waited 3 months after the incident to not renew his contract. That's constructive dismissal in human resources terms anyway.

Someone can be extremely good at their profession but not have the people skills to work with other stakeholders. That may even be why he chose to primarily work with dead people.

 

[Ayisha]

What I wonder though since Dr Beaver evaluated all the evidence and came to the conclusion that both Stewart and Sotis suffered from hypoxia, where the disconnect is with the computer graphs that were posted elsewhere. The poster, a lawyer who would know, stated that it could not be hypoxia. The graphs support that and show a rapid ascent and missed deco, as Dr Beaver also indicated in his autopsy report.

However, we are not being shown the crucial next graph, when he goes from a very slight downward trend in the PPO2 to the point where he physically dropped like a rock according to Dr Beaver. We don't know if he continued to breathe the loop at the surface and became hypoxic in the missing graph or if he removed the loop without closing the BOV and flooded the unit and sank like a rock or if he succumbed to DCS.

If we are to believe that both Stewart and Sotis suffered from DCS, how was Sotis treated with only O2? Or did he receive further unpublished treatment?

 

[Wookie]

My perception is that there were severe and unresolved (unresolvable) personality struggles that came to a head with this incident. Shouting by Dr Beaver was cited as one of the issues over a 3 year period. He could have been fired, except they waited 3 months after the incident to not renew his contract. That's constructive dismissal in human resources terms anyway.

Someone can be extremely good at their profession but not have the people skills to work with other stakeholders. That may even be why he chose to primarily work with dead people.

Guess I read it differently.

Beaver contended his critics — he cited Sheriff Rick Ramsay as his primary nemesis — based their complaints on three incidents in Beaver’s three years of work in Monroe County.

Two involved differences over fatalities in deep water off the Keys: the August 2014 boating death of Noah Cullen and the January dive death of underwater filmmaker Rob Stewart. The third was the January death of three utility workers, killed in an underground Key Largo sewer pipe filled with lethal gas.

For those who don't know Noah Cullen, he died in deep water when his sailboat sunk. Rob Bleser, acting on behalf of the KLVFD and WET team, recovered a piece of the body for DNA testing. Beaver wanted the whole body recovered, the parents wished to leave Cullen in his boat. Cullen is on the boat. The DNA testing was inconclusive. I know the divers who recovered the piece.

 

[boulderjohn]

Beaver contended his critics — he cited Sheriff Rick Ramsay as his primary nemesis — based their complaints on three incidents in Beaver’s three years of work in Monroe County.

Two involved differences over fatalities in deep water off the Keys: the August 2014 boating death of Noah Cullen and the January dive death of underwater filmmaker Rob Stewart. The third was the January death of three utility workers, killed in an underground Key Largo sewer pipe filled with lethal gas.

You are quoting Beaver's analysis of the problem only. That is not what the rest of the article says.

 

[Wookie]

You are quoting Beaver's analysis of the problem only. That is not what the rest of the article says.

And the keys news article is even more interesting. If you can't read it, I'll paste it.

Options limited for removing coroner – Keys News

 

[Ayisha]

And the keys news article is even more interesting. If you can't read it, I'll paste it.

Options limited for removing coroner – Keys News

This article you linked to was published almost 2 years (June 2015) prior to the end of his contract and supports ongoing issues even from his first year as Medical Examiner, when they were publicly contemplating how to fire him. Again, Stewart's death may have been the last straw, but they had lots of reasons to get rid of him.

 

[Wookie]

This article you linked to was published almost 2 years (June 2015) prior to the end of his contract and supports ongoing issues even from his first year as Medical Examiner, when they were publicly contemplating how to fire him. Again, Stewart's death may have been the last straw, but they had lots of reasons to get rid of him.

Yup. Agreed.

 

[uwxplorer]

What I wonder though since Dr Beaver evaluated all the evidence and came to the conclusion that both Stewart and Sotis suffered from hypoxia, where the disconnect is with the computer graphs that were posted elsewhere. The poster, a lawyer who would know, stated that it could not be hypoxia. The graphs support that and show a rapid ascent and missed deco, as Dr Beaver also indicated in his autopsy report.

However, we are not being shown the crucial next graph, when he goes from a very slight downward trend in the PPO2 to the point where he physically dropped like a rock according to Dr Beaver. We don't know if he continued to breathe the loop at the surface and became hypoxic in the missing graph or if he removed the loop without closing the BOV and flooded the unit and sank like a rock or if he succumbed to DCS.

If we are to believe that both Stewart and Sotis suffered from DCS, how was Sotis treated with only O2? Or did he receive further unpublished treatment?

Check ALL the posted documents, or go to the accident thread. You will find the information you are missing.
As to the coroner concluding hypoxia when there is evidence to the contrary, this puts him in a rather weak position of authority...

 

[Wookie]

Check ALL the posted documents, or go to the accident thread. You will find the information you are missing.
As to the coroner concluding hypoxia when there is evidence to the contrary, this puts him in a rather weak position of authority...

Do you not find that the law puts him in a rather strong position?

But I agree with the sentiment that his mischaracterization of the cause of death makes his cause somewhat diluted. He was invited to the report of findings at Panama City. Which makes it all stranger.