Arizona cosmetic surgeon Peter Normann charged with murder after his 'ghastly shop of horrors' claimed 3 lives
Cosmetic surgery is a very common phenomenon nowadays especially with many people keen to alter their appearance in fit into their idea of "beauty". For most people, a tummy tuck here or liposuction there is a very doable and desirable beauty and cosmetic procedure. However, it is imperative that the surgeon or doctor one chooses, is good at what they do, and most importantly, knows the job and is verified.
A clinic in Phoenix, Arizona, was at the center of a massive botched-up cosmetic surgeries scandal that cost three lives. The clinic was run by Dr Peter Normann, who is said to be responsible for the deaths, and also leaving others injured. Oxygen's series 'License to Kill' which airs on Saturdays at 6/5c, looks into the disturbing practices of Normann and the experience of some of those who have survived the ordeal.
Survivor's story
One such survivor is JeanAnn Schwark, a mother of five, who had been wanting to restore some of her youth via a cosmetic procedure. While speaking in the documentary, she said, "I had decided I wanted to maybe look a little bit better in my bathing suit. I wanted to have my upper body done and on the backs of my arms." Schwark recalled how she had seen a magazine advertisement for Normann's "lunchtime lipo" which had been described as a quick and minimally invasive liposuction procedure. She also looked Dr Normann's name on the Arizona Medical Board website and saw that he had "a completely clean complaint history".
Schwark shared that she was not at all worried or skeptical of the advertisement or the doctor. She went to the clinic on September 14 in 2006 and was given a handful of pills which completely knocked her out. When she woke up after 12 hours, Schwark was in complete darkness and felt as though she has been beaten up. She managed to get herself to the bathroom and was shocked and terrified when she looked at the mirror. "I couldn’t believe the reflection I was seeing was me. Something very bad had happened to me. I didn’t know what it was. All I knew was that I had to get out of there as quickly as I possibly could and get to some sort of safety."
She eventually made it home only to discover that there were seven holes in her body with the incisions infected. Being a nurse practitioner she decided the best course of action was to clean the wound and allow it to heal. However, she did not report him to the Arizona board.
Other terrifying cases at the clinic
In December that same year, first responders were called to the scene to find an employee desperately giving a patient Ralph Gonzalez, 33, CPR. The patient was in cardiac arrest following a liposuction procedure. His stomach was very distended which meant that the airway tube had likely been put down Gonzalez's esophagus and not his trachea. Former firefighter and paramedic David Duarte said that when he tried to intubate Gonzalez, Normann had snatched the tube and shoved it into Gonzalez's throat in a "violent" manner. He was rushed to a hospital but was later pronounced dead.
Four months later, another patient, Alicia Santizo, 41, had coded during her cosmetic procedure with Normann. While speaking to an ex-firefighter and paramedic, Jeff Hinrichs, Normann said he was unsure of what exactly happened with Santizo. When Hinrichs had checked her oxygen tube, he realized that there was none flowing. As paramedics attempted to revive her, Santizo died at the hospital. Another victim died during the time that Normann's clinic was being investigated. The victim, Leslie Ann Ray, 53, had her stomach distended and she was not breathing. She was rushed to the hospital by paramedics but did not survive.
Investigators learned that Ray's procedure was done by Dr Gary Page who Normann had contracted to perform surgeries as his own practice had been restricted. Dr Page was not licensed to perform any surgical procedures in Arizona and was just following Normann's instructions.
The truth
A plastic surgeon, Edward Eades, who was asked by the Arizona Medical Board to be an external medical consultant, said he found a "laundry list of deviations from the standard of care". He also called Normann's clinic a "surgical nightmare, a ghastly shop of horrors". Eades found that in the case of Gonzalez's liposuction, he was given 10 times the lethal dose of lidocaine which had resulted in his oxygen levels dropping, stopping his heart. Investigators found that in the case of Santizo's death, she suffered from a cardiac arrest due to a fat embolism. This occurs when fat is accidentally injected into the vein. The fat had entered her blood vessels and caused a blockage that stopped her heart.
The sentencing
Normann was indicted on two-second degree murder charges with regards to the deaths of Gonzalez and Ray. He was charged with manslaughter for Santizo’s death. In 2011, he was tried and was found guilty as charged for all three cases. He was sentenced to prison for 25 years. He appealed his sentence which led to a judge stating that the three cases would be retried separately. Around five years later, he was found guilty of second-degree murder in Ray’s death. For the other two cases, he had pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and manslaughter.