City's Medical Examiner Links Lawyer's Death To WTC Dust

By REUVEN BLAU

The city's Medical Examiner May 24 confirmed for the first time that the death of an attorney from the U.S. Department of Education was caused by the dust cloud after the collapse of the World Trade Center.

DR. CHARLES S. HIRSCH: A key reversal.

Felicia Dunn-Jones, 42, died Feb. 10, 2002 of sarcoidosis, a rare debilitating condition that attacks the lungs and other vital organs. Initially, the Chief Medical Examiner, Dr. Charles S. Hirsch, denied her sarcoidosis was caused by 9/11, noting that her autopsy showed scars on her heart muscle that had presumably been there from before.

Showed a Pattern

But Richard H. Bennett, the Jones's family attorney, compiled medical reports that showed a sharp increase of sarcoidosis diagnoses among first responders who worked at Ground Zero. Citing those studies, he continued to push Dr. Hirsch to re-evaluate his decision.

In October 2006, Representatives Carolyn B. Maloney and Vito J. Fossella also urged Dr. Hirsch to reconsider his original conclusion on Ms. Dunn-Jones, whose family was earlier awarded a $2.6 million death benefit by the Federal Sept. 11 Victim Compensation Fund.

Last week, in a letter to Mr. Bennett, Dr. Hirsch stated, "It is likely, with certainty beyond a reasonable doubt, that exposure to WTC dust was harmful to [Ms. Dunn-Jones]." As a result, he amended her cause of death from natural causes to homicide.

Ms. Maloney and others hailed the decision, but called on Dr. Hirsch to review other similar cases. "Sadly, we have known that Felicia is not alone and that others have died from ailments caused by 9/11," she said in a statement.

Ms. Dunn-Jones was working a block away from the World Trade Center on 9/11 and was engulfed by the dust that included asbestos and other toxic materials as she fled from the area.

Many are hoping that Dr. Hirsch's decision will have far-reaching ramifications for other cases. Last April, a New Jersey Medical Examiner directly linked Retired Det. James Zadroga's death to work done at the World Trade Center. City officials, however, have not acknowledged that conclusion.