Physician in West case says mother was in poor health

Kim Smith

Wednesday, July 18, 2001 | 10:11 a.m.

A family physician called by the defense in the Brookey West case Tuesday testified he believes her mother suffered from severe lung disease.

The testimony of Dr. James Anthony was intended to cast doubt on the prosecution's theory that Christine Smith, 64, died at the hands of her daughter.

Anthony was one of two witnesses who took the stand Tuesday on West's behalf. The state rested its case Monday.

Prosecutors believe West, 46, killed her mother in February 1998 and hid her remains in a trash can for more than three years. Smith's liquefied remains were found in a storage unit after complaints were lodged about a horrendous smell in February of this year.

According to witnesses, West had told friends her mother had gone to live in California with her son. A neighbor testified Tuesday he saw West and her mother get into a packed car around the time Smith was last seen.

Dr. Gary Telgenhoff, a prosecution witness, said he was unable to determine what caused Smith's death, although a plastic bag over the victim's face led him to suspect she had been suffocated.

West's attorney, Deputy Public Defender Scott Coffee, concedes his client placed her mother in the trash can and continued to use her mother's Social Security checks. He maintains, however, that Smith died of natural causes and West merely panicked.

On Tuesday Anthony said medical tests taken months before Smith died indicate she was suffering from severe lung disease.

In one of the tests, Anthony said Smith was only exhaling 67 percent of the air in her lungs. Other people her age and size normally expel 75 percent to 80 percent.

A diminished breathing ability could be indicative of congestive heart failure or an enlarged heart, Anthony said.

Anthony also said Smith suffered from asthma and people with heart problems can sometimes suffer fatal heart attacks while using their inhalers. In such instances, the medication in the inhalers has the opposite effect of what is desired and narrow the air passages instead of widening them, he said.

Anthony, who never met Smith, also testified the medicine used in the inhalers have serious side effects that could cause death just by themselves.

Under cross-examination, however, Anthony acknowledged that it is "very, very rare" for inhaler medications to cause death.

Anthony conceded some literature states the chances of such a death could be less than 1 percent or even less than 0.01 percent.

But, Anthony insisted "That's not zero."

The trial was expected to continue this afternoon before District Judge Donald Mosley.