Blackwell Case Dismissed · 2008-02-20 15:45

On February 8, 2008, Judge Stuart R. Berger of the Circuit Court for Baltimore City, Maryland, granted vaccine manufacturer Wyeth’s motion for summary judgment in Blackwell v. Sigma Aldrich, Inc. et al (No. 24-C-04-004829) — a lawsuit in which the plaintiffs alleged that their child’s exposure to thimerosal-containing vaccines caused him to become autistic.

Judge Berger ruled that:

“Upon consideration of Defendant Wyeth’s Motion for Summary Judgment, and the Plaintiffs’ Response filed thereto… [t]his court finds that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact… Defendant Wyeth is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.”

This ruling comes eight weeks after the court precluded the testimony of plaintiffs’ expert witnesses Dr. Mark Geier. Dr. Stephen Siebert, Dr. Elizabeth A. Mumper, Prof. Richard C. Deth, and Prof. Boyd E. Haley:

“In sum, the plaintiffs, the proponents of the above-identified expert witnesses, have failed in their burden of proving that the bases of the expert witnesses’ testimony are generally accepted as reliable within the relevant scientific field… [T]hey have failed to show that the methodologies underlying their expert witness’ opinions are generally accepted to be reliable in the relevant scientific community.”
“[I]t is generally accepted in the relevant scientific community that autism is genetic in origin except in rare instances of prenatal exposures to certain substances at defined periods during pregnancy… [I]t is generally accepted in the relevant scientific community that thimerosal in vaccines does not cause or contribute to neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism.”

The full text of the new order is available on this website in .pdf format.

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