Eithan Haim: ‘We Took On the Federal Leviathan and We Won’
The
courageous Texas surgeon was facing a decade in federal prison for blowing
the whistle about gender surgery for minors. Trump just dismissed the case.
DR.
EITHAN HAIM POSES FOR A PORTRAIT ON SEPTEMBER 26, 2024, IN HOUSTON. (MARK
FELIX FOR THE FREE PRESS)
Until
Friday afternoon, Dr. Eithan Haim, 34, was facing a potential decade in
federal prison for revealing publicly that Texas Children’s Hospital was
continuing to perform gender transitions on children even after declaring a
moratorium on the controversial practice. For this, Haim, a Texas surgeon,
became the target of the Biden Department of Justice, which indicted him for allegedly
violating patient privacy laws. There
was no violation of patient privacy. What Haim blew the whistle on were
mostly surgeries to insert hormonal devices that prevent children from going
through puberty. The records he revealed about these interventions carefully
redacted identifying information about the patients. What’s more: He had
caught the hospital in a bald-faced lie about the very existence of the
program. Most dangerous for Haim was that he had run afoul of the Biden
administration’s unquestioning support of medical transition of young people
distressed about their gender. “Eithan
Haim was the only person with the courage to stand up for what was right,”
Haim’s wife, Andrea, wrote
on X about her husband taking on the powerful children’s hospital, the
country’s largest. “For him, it wasn’t even a decision. Kids were being
harmed, and he had to stop it.” It came
with a high price. The couple lost close friendships, all their savings, and
their peace of mind. But they never budged. On
Friday came vindication. At
around 2:30 p.m. on Friday, Haim received notice that the Trump DOJ issued a dismissal
of all charges against him, with prejudice—meaning the charges cannot be
refiled. In a conversation with The Free Press, while he and his wife
were celebrating over champagne, he
said, “We didn’t think it was going to happen. We took on the federal
leviathan and we won.” He added, “This is epic. This is like Lord of the
Rings.” Although
Haim had raised more than $1.2 million in a GiveSendGo
account, mounting a case to stay out of federal prison has cost $2
million. “We’ll be paying legal bills for 20 years,” he said. Andrea
knows about federal indictments. She herself is an assistant U.S. attorney
for the Northern District of Texas—her husband was indicted in the Southern
District. Andrea, who gave birth to their daughter four months ago, said of
their ordeal, “I haven’t had a good night’s sleep in a year without worrying
my husband would be in prison and I would be raising our daughter alone. We
are now going back to normal life.” As the
Trump administration got underway, Haim had an upcoming jury trial on the
Biden-era indictment. “I was facing a kangaroo court in a few weeks,” he
said. Marcella
Burke, Haim’s attorney, said she and his other lawyers began to ask everyone
they knew with any connection to the new administration to make the dismissal
of Haim’s case a priority. But she said she had no warning that their efforts
had been successful. “We
thank everyone who helped along the way to bring this massive injustice to
light, and we are grateful to secure this victory on behalf of our client,”
Burke said in a statement. “The fight against the evils he exposed continues,
but this dismissal represents a repudiation of the weaponization of federal
law enforcement and the first step in accountability for the misdeeds we have
all witnessed in this case.” Missouri
senator Josh Hawley went on X Friday afternoon to
tout the effectiveness of his lobbying to get the charges against Haim
dismissed. He wrote, “Following my call this morning, I am delighted to
report the Trump DOJ is now moving to DISMISS this illegitimate prosecution.” Andrea
Haim wrote
on X that the couple had no regrets. “[I]f you ask either of us, we would
do it again in a heartbeat. Because of Eithan, the world is a better place
for children, including our daughter. There is no greater gift we can give
her than the knowledge that her daddy is a hero.” |
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