US: New HIV as a 'deadly weapon' case in North Carolina (updated)

Another US jurisdiction has classified a person living with HIV as a walking deadly weapon. North Carolina police yesterday charged a 45 year-old HIV-positive man with "assault inflicting serious bodily injury and assault with a deadly weapon" after he resisted arrest in Durham.

According to a brief report in The News & Observer, the police report says that the man

knowing he is HIV-positive, twice tried to expose the officer to his blood, once by cutting the officer's thumb and also by head-butting him and biting his ear.

This prompted one local citizen to write in the comments section

This was a vicious act. If the officer had escalated the continuum of force level to shooting and killing this person he wwould [sic] have been justified. We don't know how this individual acquired HIV and that doesn't matter in that a decent human being would not knowingly have exposed another to the disease.

Another wrote

This event should lead to a charge of attempted murder because that is what it is. This act by this infected man is willful and intentional. May God be with the officer and find him or her free and clear of this dreadful disease.

The man, who was also charged with "injury to real property and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle," will appear in court on June 29th.

Update: June 23rd

The man actually appeared in court yesterday. The hearing was filmed by local TV station, News14.

It is now patently clear to me, from the details revealed, that the risk of HIV transmission from the acccused to the police officers was so slim as to be negligable.The facts are that he cut a police officer's right thumb while he was bleeding (interestingly, it doesn't say how he got to be bleeding) while that officer was trying to arrest him (and it doesn't say that he intentionally did so). He also didn't actually bite the other policeman's ear, but only "tried to bite that officer's ear".

And yet, Judge William Marsh III tells the court

"If Mr. Perry is engaged in the behaviour described, knowing that he has a potentially fatal condition with the ability to infect others, I consider that a serious offence, and could very well have potential to be increased to something more serious."

This still suggests that when someone who is HIV-positive resists arrest, they can be seen as being 'deadly weapons' in the absence of any real possibility of transmitting the virus. This surely is a prime example of HIV-related discrimination based on ignorance and stigma.

US: North Carolina man under house arrest for having an STI

The 23 year-old North Carolina man previously named, shamed and given a 45 day suspended sentence for disobeying North Carolina's public health laws, and allegedly having unprotected sex without disclosure, has now been sentenced to six months' house arrest and 30 months' probation.

'Proof' that the man had violated his previous probation order was that he had acquired a new sexually transmitted infection (STI). However, it is completely plausible that he could have acquired an STI via oral sex - there are no STI's that can be diagnosed in a man's penis that can be exclusively acquired via unprotected anal sex.

This man has been the subject of intense media scrutiny - witness, the three articles below, which are just the tip of the iceberg in terms of TV and print time this case has taken up in local media. And for what 'crime'? Not for "spreading HIV", which is what the press say he is doing. For doing what most gay men of his age actually do - allegedly having sex without condoms without first talking about HIV risks.

HIV-positive DJ given house arrest for violating court order about sexual contact
McClatchy News Service/The Times News

October 22, 2008

RALEIGH -- Health officials are so worried Joshua Weaver will keep spreading HIV that a probation officer will now monitor Weaver's every move with an electronic bracelet.

Weaver, a 23-year-old disc jockey from Raleigh, has been under the close watch of health officials -- and now the court system -- since August, when he admitted to disregarding rules about alerting sex partners of his status and wearing a condom during intercourse. The judge ordered him to a 30-month probation, insisted he wear a condom during sex and told him to steer clear of night clubs unless he had secured a job as a DJ.

Weaver admitted Tuesday that he had strayed from his probation orders. A Wake County public health official caught Weaver when he came to the clinic infected with another sexually transmitted disease that would have been blocked if Weaver had worn a condom, said Boz Zellinger, Wake assistant district attorney.

"His behavior hasn't changed,'' Zellinger said after the hearing.

District Court Judge Jacqueline Brewer put Weaver on house arrest for six months. She barred him from leaving his father's home for anything other than probation-approved employment. Further, she ordered him to undergo a mental health assessment and to follow through on whatever recommendations the therapist suggests.

Man with HIV accused of breaking probation for health violation

By Mandy Locke
News & Observer
October 17th, 2008

RALEIGH - An HIV-positive man is being held in the Wake County jail, accused of violating probation by having sex without using a condom.

Joshua Weaver, 23, was put on probation in August for violating a little-used provision of the public health code. Weaver, a disk jockey who is widely known in the dance club circuit in Wilmington, was ordered to refrain from sex without a condom and steer clear of nightclubs unless he was hired to spin.

Earlier this month, Wake County health department staff contacted Weaver's probation officer to say they believed he had engaged in unprotected sex, said Keith Acree, spokesmen for the state Department of Correction, which oversees probation officers.

If a judge agrees, Weaver could be sentenced to 40 days in jail. He currently is in the Wake County jail awaiting an Oct. 21 hearing on the probation violation.

The state's public health code gives public health officials the right to tell infected patients how to behave in the privacy of their bedrooms.

This summer, Weaver became the second Wake County person in more than 15 years to face criminal charges for violating a contract he must sign when diagnosed with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Weaver didn't heed the county's orders to alert sexual partners that he has HIV or protect them by wearing a condom during sex, according to court records. In August, he agreed to a plea deal that spared him prison but put him under the close watch of a probation officer.

Across the state last year, health officials convicted 16 people of violating public health law. Most were infected with tuberculosis, and a trip to jail or a hospital guaranteed they would receive a treatment that would cure them.

Club DJ with HIV arrested on probation violation

WRAL.com
Oct. 16, 2008

A Raleigh man who pleaded guilty in August to charges that he failed to use a condom and notify sexual partners that he has HIV has been arrested on a charge that he violated the terms of his probation.

Joshua Waldon Weaver, 23, was arrested in April on charges brought under North Carolina Administrative Code 10-41 A.02020 (1)(a)(e), which addresses control measures regarding HIV, and North Carolina General Statute 130A-144 (f), which requires all people to comply with measures controlling communicable diseases.

A DJ in Raleigh and Wilmington, Weaver pleaded guilty in August and received a 45-day jail sentence that was suspended and 30 months of supervised probation under the conditions that he comply with the public health laws under which he was charged.

He was also ordered to undergo a mental health and substance abuse assessment and stay away from nightclubs unless he is working.

Weaver was arrested Oct. 8 and was scheduled for a bond hearing Thursday. His probation hearing is scheduled for next Tuesday.

He was in jail Thursday under a $50,000 secured bond.

US: North Carolina man gets suspended sentence, named and shamed on TV, for HIV exposure

When does privacy include televising someone's name, address, the place and nature of their work, and showing their face?

That's the question I am sure you will ask yourself when you watch how two local TV stations in Raleigh, North Carolina, report on the "sensitive" issue of an apparently HIV-positive 23 year-old man who appeared in court under North Carolina's public health laws, for allegedly having unprotected sex without disclosure.

I was alerted to the case on August 22nd when the outcome of the man's hearing was published on two local TV websites.

Then, I found a link to a story from a week earlier, which was all about how the man's attorney, Evonne Hopkins, had argued before District Court Judge James Fullwood that the hearing should be done in a closed court because it was "a sensitive matter and that exposing medical information might violate medical privacy laws."

Even the prosecutor, Wake County Assistant District Attorney Boz Zellinger, conceded that, "We recognize the sensitivity of this issue."

And yet, how do I know all of this? Because it was all shown on the local TV news, including the face and name of the 23 year-old, and a close-up shot of his charge sheet that lasts a good five seconds, showing not just his full name and job alias, but also his address!



(Click on image for a link to the video of the news report which includes showing the 23 year-old's face, name, and address, which I have blurred in this still)

In the end, the man agreed to a plea bargain which results in him being able to keep his job - he received a 45 day suspected sentence and three years' probation.

But I wonder if he really will be able to keep his job now that he has been named and shamed on local TV?

Attorney wants closed court for client's health-law case
Aug. 15, 2008
WRAL.com

The case of a Raleigh man charged with a public health violation was continued Friday after his attorney said she does not want the matter heard in open court.

Joshua Waldon Weaver, 23, was arrested in April on charges stemming from North Carolina General Statute 130A-144 (f), which requires all people to comply with measures controlling communicable diseases, and North Carolina Administrative Code 10-41 A.02020 (1)(a)(e), which addresses control measures regarding HIV.

According to an arrest warrant, the alleged offenses ranged from Aug. 1, 2006, to the present. Weaver is out of jail on a $50,000 bond.

Weaver's attorney, Evonne Hopkins, tried to have a judge close proceedings Friday morning when Weaver was in court for what was to have been a plea deal with prosecutors. She said it is a sensitive matter and that exposing medical information might violate medical privacy laws.

"The Americans With Disabilities Act, HIPAA – I'm concerned about State Bar consequences. I am highly alarmed," Hopkins said. She referred to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, a federal law that guards patients' privacy.

After several hours of delays and arguments, District Court Judge James Fullwood agreed to continue the case until next Friday.

"We recognize the sensitivity of this issue," Wake County Assistant District Attorney Boz Zellinger said. "We're not out to get anyone."

According to court documents, the Wake County Public Health Department reported Weaver to the district attorney's office.

Although she said she could not talk specifically about Weaver's case, director Gibby Harris said that, in general, the agency has a responsibility to monitor people with communicable diseases to make sure they don't spread them.

"Our intent is to change behavior," Harris said.

When a person is diagnosed with a communicable disease, such as HIV, health officials ask the person to supply a list of people they have had contact with so those people can be notified.

Harris said the patient is initially given an isolation/no-contact order not to spread the disease.

If they fail to comply, they are first warned, Harris said. Criminal charges are a last resort.

"If we see someone who just can't comply for one reason or another or just will not comply, then we do have the option of prosecuting that individual," Harris said.

Overall, there were 229 documented cases of HIV in Wake County last year, down 31 from 2006. Three-quarters of the patients were men.

Raleigh man pleads guilty to public-health violation
Aug. 22, 2008
WRAL.com

A Raleigh man received a 45-day suspended jail sentence Friday after pleading guilty to charges that he failed to use a condom and notify sexual partners that he has HIV.

Joshua Waldon Weaver, 23, a DJ in Raleigh and Wilmington, was also sentenced to 30 months of supervised probation and ordered to pay a $300 fine, plus court costs.

Weaver was arrested in April on charges brought under North Carolina Administrative Code 10-41 A.02020 (1)(a)(e), which addresses control measures regarding HIV, and North Carolina General Statute 130A-144 (f), which requires all people to comply with measures controlling communicable diseases.

The offenses, which ranged from Aug. 1, 2006, to April 2008, are misdemeanors in North Carolina.

"The defendant's repeated violations of those are what brought him here today," Wake County Assistant District Attorney Boz Zellinger said Friday.

As part of his probation, Weaver must pay a $300 fine, plus court costs, and comply with the public health laws under which he was charged. He must also undergo a mental health and substance abuse assessment and stay away from nightclubs unless he is working.

Zellinger said that if Weaver violates his probation, he could be quarantined for up to two years.

Last Friday, District Judge James Fullwood continued the case after Weaver's attorney, Evonne Hopkins, tried to have court proceedings closed, saying the case is a sensitive matter and that exposing medical information might violate medical privacy laws.

Although she would not speak about the specifics in Weaver's case, Gibby Harris, director of the Wake County Public Health Department, said patients diagnosed with a communicable disease, such as HIV, must agree to a no-contact order so that the disease will not spread.

Criminal charges are a last resort, she said, if patients don't comply.

"Part of the issue, I do believe, is that people have started to believe that HIV is a chronic disease. It used to be that it was a death sentence," she said. "We're having difficulty educating our younger community about this."

Zellinger said he hopes the case will be a wake-up call for others.

"When you think about it, somebody's lives have been changed irreparably by this defendant's actions," he said. "Having a cavalier attitude about following public health laws can't really be tolerated because other people are put in harm's way."

Man pleads guilty to endangering public health
Friday, August 22, 2008
WTVD.com

RALEIGH (WTVD) -- A Wake County man takes plea agreement for allegedly endangering public health by exposing others to HIV.

A Wake County man takes plea agreement for allegedly endangering public health by exposing others to HIV.

Joshua Weaver plead guilty to health code violation Friday in court for alleged multiple violations between August 2006 to April 2006.

"The fact that this happened over and over again is what caused this to come to court today," said Boz Zellinger with the District Attorney's Office.

The 23-year-old disc jockey faced charges of violating the state's public health control law by exposing partners to an incurable, sexually transmitted disease. No one will name his specific offense citing medical privacy laws.

A judge sentenced Weaver to 30 months probation and a 45 day suspended jail sentence.

The judge also ordered Weaver to refrain from having sex unless he uses a condom and must tell past and future partners of any infection.

He will be allowed to keep his jobs as a DJ in the Triangle and at a gay and lesbian club in Wilmington, but he must stay away from clubs if he is not working.

Wake County Prosecutors charged Weaver with failure to use protection during sexual intercourse, in violation of the state's control measures for HIV. They also accused him of not notifying his sexual partners that he is HIV-positive.

North Carolinians diagnosed with HIV are obligated under the law to limit others' exposure to the virus that can lead to AIDS. Carriers are required to sign an agreement that orders them to practice safe sex and be honest with partners about their status.

"They have to avoid having sex with people without letting them know that they're HIV positive and without using condoms," Wake County Public Health Gibby Harris said.

The penalty for violating the law holds a maximum of up to two years in prison. Wake County health officials say they haven't brought a case like this to court in more than 15 years.