The Civil Lawsuits Against Tara Levicy and Duke

The Cooper lawsuit (Carrington et al v. Duke et al) charges that “Defendant Tara Levicy intentionally provided the Durham [Police] Investigators information about the medical and physical evidence of rape that was false and misleading. This information was provided in repeated interviews over a long period of time with intentional or reckless disregard for the truth. The Durham Investigators expressly relied on this misinformation, and without it the rape investigation would not have occurred or would have been terminated promptly.” (C 483).

The Cooper civil lawsuit also charges that DUMC breached its duties with regard to “Levicy’s misrepresentations to the Durham Investigators and other that the medical and physical evidence was consistent with Mangum’s rape allegations; defendants’ failure to require sufficient training to its sexual assault nurse examiners and its failure to ensure that a properly trained SANE nurse examined Mangum; defendants’ failure to provide adequate supervision of Levicy and other SANE nurses; Levicy’s subsequent mischaracterizations of the medical and physical evidence to the Durham Investigators; defendants’ suppression of and/or failure to disclose exculpatory information derived from Duke’s examinations of Mangum on March 14; Arico’s public statements ratifying Levicy’s misrepresentations concerning the medical and physical evidence from Duke’s examinations of Mangum; defendants’ failure to correct Levicy’s misrepresentations…” (C 506)

The Ekstrand lawsuit (McFadyen et al v. Duke at al) charges Levicy, Arico, Manly and Victor Dzau (DUMC chief), among other things, with negligence, negligent supervision, and infliction of emotional distress.

To wit:

“1313. At the time they made their respective public statements and statements to law enforcement falsely claiming the medical evidence supported Mangum’s accusations, Levicy and Arico each knew or should have known that such statements were false and inflammatory and likely to cause Plaintiffs harm.

“1314. At the time they fabricated the records of Mangum’s SAE and delivered them to the police investigators, Levicy and Arico knew or should have known that such conduct was likely to cause Plaintiffs harm.

“1320. Arico, Manly, the PDC, DUHS and Duke University negligently supervised Defendant Levicy by failing to monitor her conduct and performance, to discipline her, retrain her, and/or terminate her employment when they knew of her propensity to abuse her status as a forensic nurse examiner to prop up or fabricate evidence to support plainly false claims of sexual assault, fabricate forensic medical records, and otherwise engage in misconduct in the performance of her duties as a SANE nurse, but instead, assigned her or acquiesced in her assignment to conduct Mangum’s SANE exam while still a SANE in training.

“1322. Arico (viz. Levicy), Manly, the PDC, DUHS and Duke University further negligently supervised Levicy and Arico by ignoring evidence demonstrating their misconduct in their public statements and statements to law enforcement and prosecutorial authorities, and instead continuing to allow Levicy to hold herself out to law enforcement and prosecutorial authorities and to the public as an expert qualified to render opinions as to observations during an SAE that she did not conduct, nor was qualified to evaluate, and, throughout the 13 month investigation, to allow Levicy and Arico to continue to proffer testimony, expert and otherwise.

“1327. Levicy, Arico, Manly, the PDC, DUHS and Duke University acted individually and in concert to manufacture false evidence and to conceal the forensic medical evidence that proved Mangum’s claims were false, for the purpose of enabling Durham Police to obtain and abuse an NTID Order, perpetuating the 13 month investigation, and in an attempt to force a trial on Mangum’s claims, placing Plaintiffs and their teammates in grave danger of wrongful convictions, which charges they knew or reasonably should have known and believed were false and not supported by probable cause.”

In Conclusion

Tara Levicy R.N. did not renew her North Carolina nursing license (inactive status as of July 25, 2007) and moved to New Hampshire in 2007. She has a New Hampshire nursing license and lives in West Lebanon, NH. It has not been confirmed where she works, but an internet page states she is running in a July, 2008 benefit for Dartmouth’s Norris Cotton Cancer Center in Lebanon NH (13). She faces civil legal liability in the Cooper and Ekstrand suits and is expected to be thoroughly deposed should these cases go forward. She was not named in the civil lawsuit filed by attorneys on behalf of Evans, Finnerty and Seligmann against Durham because her activities were covered by their prior confidential eight-figure settlement with Duke University.

Ms. Levicy’s actions in the attempted Duke lacrosse frame-up show how important the SANE is in the investigation of sexual assault cases. Her actions also demonstrate how inexperience and ideological bias in a SANE can be dangerous. The case also underlines the importance of good supervision and review of in-training nurses and SANEs by their superiors. Hers is a cautionary tale for all those who work in forensic medicine.

References:

1) Search warrant text
http://news.findlaw.com/hdocs/docs/d...e41806sw4.html

2) NC Attorney General report
http://www.newsobserver.com/content/...7_AGreport.pdf
3) Levicy at University of Maine
http://www.newsobserver.com/1534/story/566819.html

4) Levicy article concerning “The Vagina Monologues”
http://home.att.net/~ltc8k9/eletter_august_03.pdf

5) KC Johnson on Levicy exam
http://durhamwonderland.blogspot.com...vicy-exam.html

6) Levicy background
http://web.archive.org/web/200603210..._prof_k_r.html
7) Motion to Suppress the Alleged Identification of the Defendants p. 5 , para. 10, 12/14/06
http://www.newsobserver.com/content/...214_motion.pdf

8) Neff article on SANE exam of Mangum 4/16/07
http://www.newsobserver.com/100/story/564692.html

9) Neff article on Dr. Manly interview 4/18/07
http://www.newsobserver.com/1537/story/565336-p3.html

10) KC Johnson on Levicy & law enforcement
http://durhamwonderland.blogspot.com...forcement.html

11) Wilson & Glater, New York Times 8/25/06
http://www.dukenews.duke.edu/mmedia/pdf/nytimes825.pdf

12) “Kethra” on Levicy’s performance as a SANE

13) Tara Levicy in New Hampshire

Civil Complaints

The Ekstrand lawsuit (McFadyen et al v. Duke at al)
http://www.ninthstreetlaw.com/docs/a..._complaint.pdf


The Cooper lawsuit (Carrington et al v. Duke et al)
http://www.bork.com/downloads/02-21-08-Complaint.pdf

Video

Levicy being questioned at the NC State Bar where the former Durham DA Nifong was disgraced and disbarred for his actions in indicting three innocent players over a sexual assault which never happened.


THE FORENSIC NURSE'S CODE OF ETHICS

http://www.iafn.org/displaycommon.cf...barticlenbr=56