Steven Hatfill

Steven Hatfill
Born
Steven Jay Hatfill

(1953-10-24) October 24, 1953 (age 70)
St. Louis, Missouri
EducationSouthwestern College (BS)
University of Zimbabwe (MChB)
University of Cape Town (MS)
University of Stellenbosch
Rhodes University (PhD candidate, 1992–95)

Steven Jay Hatfill (born October 24, 1953) is an American pathologist and biological weapons expert. He became the subject of extensive media coverage beginning in mid-2002, when he was a suspect in the 2001 anthrax attacks.[1] His home was repeatedly raided by the FBI, his phone was tapped, and he was extensively surveilled for more than two years; he was also terminated from his job at Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC).[2] At a news conference in August 2002, Hatfill denied that he had anything to do with the anthrax letters and said "irresponsible news media coverage based on government leaks" had "destroyed his reputation".[1] He filed a lawsuit in 2003, accusing the FBI agents and Justice Department officials who led the criminal investigation of leaking information about him to the press in violation of the Privacy Act.[1]

In 2008, the government settled Hatfill's lawsuit with a $4.6 million annuity totaling $5.8 million in payment.[3] The government officially exonerated him of any involvement in the anthrax attacks, and the Justice Department identified another military scientist, Bruce Edwards Ivins, as the sole perpetrator of the anthrax attacks.[1] Jeffrey A. Taylor, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, wrote in a letter to Hatfill's lawyer that "we have concluded, based on laboratory access records, witness accounts and other information, that Dr. Hatfill did not have access to the particular anthrax used in the attacks, and that he was not involved in the anthrax mailings."[1]

In 2004, Hatfill filed lawsuits against several periodicals and journalists who had identified him as a figure warranting further investigation in the anthrax attacks. He sued the New York Times Company and New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof for defamation, defamation per se, and intentional infliction of emotional distress in connection with five of Kristof's columns in 2002. The courts dismissed this suit, finding that Hatfill was a limited purpose public figure.[4][5][6] In 2007, Hatfill settled a similar libel lawsuit against Vanity Fair and Reader's Digest for an undisclosed amount, after both magazines agreed to formally retract any implication that Hatfill was involved in the anthrax mailings.[7]

In 2010, Hatfill was an independent researcher and an adjunct assistant professor of emergency medicine at the George Washington University Medical Center.[8] He has criticized the response of health authorities to the Ebola virus epidemic in West Africa and suggested that it is possible that Ebola could be transmitted by aerosol, a position which other experts have criticized.[9][10]

In 2020, he became a coronavirus advisor to the Trump White House, where he strongly promoted the use of hydroxychloroquine to treat the virus despite FDA objections to the drug. After the 2020 election he became part of[clarification needed] Donald Trump's attempt to overturn the election results.[11]

  1. ^ a b c d e Lichtblau, Eric. "Scientist Officially Exonerated in Anthrax Attacks". The New York Times. August 8, 2008.
  2. ^ David Freed, The Wrong Man, The Atlantic, May 2010.
  3. ^ Shane, Scott; Eric Lichtblau (June 28, 2008). "Scientist Is Paid Millions by U.S. in Anthrax Suit". New York Times.
  4. ^ Jerry Markon, Former Army Scientist Sues New York Times, Columnist, Washington Post, July 14, 2004.
  5. ^ Timothy J. Connor, Fourth Circuit Throws Out Hatfill Libel Claim Against The New York Times, Holland & Knight, September/October 2008.
  6. ^ Bill Mears, High court tosses scientist's libel suit against New York Times, CNN, December 15, 2008.
  7. ^ Gerstein, Josh (February 27, 2007). "Hatfill Settles $10M Libel Lawsuit". New York Sun. Archived from the original on June 17, 2023.
  8. ^ Bird, Cameron (June 18, 2014). "Steven Hatfill's Strange Trip From Accused Terrorist to Medical Adventurer". Newsweek.
  9. ^ Hamblin, James (October 26, 2014). "21 Days: An expert in biological warfare warns against complacency in public measures against Ebola". The Atlantic.
  10. ^ Goldstein, Stephen (October 28, 2014). "Assessing the Science of Ebola Transmission: The research on how the virus spreads is not as ambiguous as some have made it seem". The Atlantic.
  11. ^ Cite error: The named reference Diamond was invoked but never defined (see the help page).