This morning, Charlottesville General District Court Judge Robert Downer denied a review of slain UVA student Yeardley Love’s medical records and, in doing so, dealt a blow to defense attorneys for George Huguely, the 23-year-old former UVA student charged with her murder. However, Huguely’s attorneys will have access to Love’s Adderall prescription.
Last week, a private medical consultant hired by Huguely’s attorneys testified that Love could have died from a cardiac arrhythmia rather than blunt-force trauma. Love’s medical history, he testified, could show whether her Adderall prescription interacted with another medication and fatally affected her heartbeat. Love’s post-mortem toxicology report returned less than 0.05 milligrams of amphetamine per liter of her blood.
According to the Washington Post, Downer reviewed Love’s medical records and said they contained nothing "remotely embarrassing or unusual for a woman who is a student-athlete." Commonwealth’s Attorney Dave Chapman called the defense’s request for records "grossly overbroad," and told Downer last week that a review of Love’s medical records from her time at UVA would amount to a "fishing expedition."
