Monaghan Says He Has No Conflict in Carhart Case

March 22, 2000

Monaghan Says He Has No Conflict in Carhart Case

BY DEBORAH ALEXANDER
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

U.S. Attorney Tom Monaghan said Tuesday that he sees no conflict in his office's reviewing a complaint seeking an investigation of the relationship between the University of Nebraska Medical Center and Dr. LeRoy Carhart even though Monaghan was Carhart's attorney in a lawsuit filed nine years ago.

Carhart, a volunteer faculty member for the NU College of Medicine, provides tissue from elective abortions for Medical Center research. Bob Blank, president of Metro Right to Life, has asked Monaghan's office to investigate the relationship.

"He (Carhart) is not accused of doing anything improper," Monaghan said. "It's the university. I was not representing the university. It's been nine years. I don't see a conflict of interest."

Blank said the NU Medical Center has given Carhart the volunteer faculty appointment and, in return, he supplies fetal tissue. Blank wrote that Carhart's appointment "is clearly consideration or payment for the aborted fetal tissue."

Federal law allows those who provide fetal tissue to recover their costs, but they are not to receive other compensation. Blank says the arrangement between the Medical Center and Carhart violates federal statutes.

University officials repeatedly have said that they neither pay for fetal tissue nor compensate Carhart.

Monaghan was Carhart's attorney in a lawsuit filed in 1991 by the former administrator of the Women's Medical Center of Nebraska. Deborah Reay claimed that she was wrongfully fired for seeking an outside review of Carhart's behavior at the clinic. Reay sued the clinic, its parent company and the company's owner.

Monaghan was Carhart's attorney in a lawsuit filed in 1991 by the former administrator of the Women's Medical Center of Nebraska. Deborah Reay claimed that she was wrongfully fired for seeking an outside review of Carhart's behavior at the clinic. Reay sued the clinic, its parent company and the company's owner.

A Douglas County District Court judge dismissed the lawsuit in May 1993 after two days of testimony, ruling that Reay was employed at will and could be fired for any reason or no reason at all.

Reay and Roslynn Thom, the former nursing supervisor at the clinic, testified about several actions by Carhart that they said were not in the best interests of patients.

They testified that changes were made in the entries on a patient's chart and that personal phone calls were taken while abortions were performed.

A separate disciplinary complaint by the Nebraska Attorney General's Office stemming from Reay's lawsuit was dismissed in June 1993. The complaint was dismissed because Carhart signed an agreement saying he would not engage in the conduct of which he had been accused. Carhart admitted no wrongdoing.

Monaghan said he will review Blank's letter and will consider whether it should be forwarded to an appropriate agency. He has said that no further information will be released on whether there is an investigation into Blank's complaint.