Destroying the life and career of a valued physician-scientist who tried to protect us from plague: was it really necessary?
Thomas Campbell Butler, at 63 years of age, is completing the first year of a 2-year sentence in federal prison, following an investigation and trial that was initiated after he voluntarily reported that he believed vials containing Yersinia pestis were missing from his laboratory at Texas Tech University. We take this opportunity to remind the infectious diseases community of the plight of our esteemed colleague, whose career and family have, as a result of his efforts to protect us from infection by this organism, paid a price from which they will never recover.
Murray
Barbara E
BE
Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Texas Medical School, Houston, TX 77030, USA. bem.asst@uth.tmc.edu
Anderson
Karl E
KE
Arnold
Keith
K
Bartlett
John G
JG
Carpenter
Charles C
CC
Falkow
Stanley
S
Hartman
J Ted
JT
Lehman
Tom
T
Reid
Ted W
TW
Ryburn
Frank M
FM
Sack
R Bradley
RB
Struelens
Marc J
MJ
Young
Lowell S
LS
Greenough
William B
WB
D023482:Bioterrorism / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D032982:Contracts / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D005607:Fraud / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D049673:History, 20th Century; D049674:History, 21st Century; D006801:Humans; D035846:Law Enforcement / Q000941:ethics*; D010930:Plague / Q000517:prevention & control*; D012637:Security Measures / Q000941:ethics / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D013048:Specimen Handling / Q000592:standards; D013781:Texas; D014481:United States; D037041:United States Government Agencies; D014495:Universities; D015010:Yersinia pestis