THE UNSWORN STATEMENT UNDER PENALTY
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Unsworn Statement Under Penalty of Perjury by John Bugge, Ph.D.
1, Dr. John Bugge, serve as the President of the Emory Chapter of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP). In that capacity I have worked with Dr. Murtagh very closely over the last three years.
2. Dr. Murtagh's record shows that he has been an exemplary member of the medical
school faculty. He compiled a fine record of achievement in research before he
was enthusiastically recruited to Emory from the NIH. He was granted tenure just
four years ago after a rigorous review process and has been promoted to various
positions of responsibility within the medical school.
3. His teaching has been judged first-rate in students', residents', fellows'. and
faculty evaluations. I've read more than 75 copies of these from years 1993
through 1999, and all respondents uniformly rate Dr. Murtagh as excellent.
4. One physician wrote in September of 1997 that "Dr. Murtagh's an outstanding
example of both a good teacher and an astute clinician, extremely well liked and
his presence is eagerly anticipated by faculty, residents and medical students."
5. I've reviewed the evaluations that Dr. Murtagh's received by senior members of
the Emory medical schools including Dr. Juha Kokko, Dr. Martinez-Maldonado,
Dr. Roman, Dr. Aguayo, Dr. Honig; all have uniformly rated Dr. Murtagh as an
excellent clinician.
6. Emory's "Gray Book" is a handbook of policies for internal governance of the
University. It contains regulations regarding tenured faculty. Emory's Statement
of Principles Governing Faculty Relationships, approved by the University Board
of Trustees and last revised April 16, 1998 provides in pertinent part:
"Appointments, whether limited or continuous, may be terminated for one or more of the following reasons: moral delinquency, neglect of academic duty, incompetence, permanent physical or mental incapacity, or other such adequate cause.
The Executive Committee of the Faculty council, in consultation with the Provost, shall select five members of the tenured faculty to serve as the Faculty Hearing Committee. The Faculty Hearing Committee shall conduct hearings, make findings of fact, and make recommendations to appropriate University officers when a faculty members' employment is or may be suspended, transferred, or terminated for any reason specified in paragraph 12(c) above." (Emphasis added).
7. The Gray Book applies to the whole university, including the Medical School.
Thus, tenure in the Medical School is no different than in any other part of the
University.
8. To date, to my knowledge, Dr. Murtagh has had no review board hear the case
concerning his suspension from duties on December 20, 1999, nor has there been
any allegation of any permanent physical or mental incapacity. Failure to provide
these is a clear violation of the above policy set forth in the Emory Gray Book,
since Dr. Murtagh has been suspended and placed on forced leave for over a year.
9. Emory University freely adopted the 1940 Statement on Academic Freedom and
Tenure of the American Association of University Professors.
10. The statement provides inapplicable part:
4. Termination for cause of a continuous appointment, or the dismissal for cause of a teacher previous to the expiration of a term appointment, should, if possible, be considered by both a faculty committee and the governing board of the institution. In all cases where the facts are in dispute, the accused teacher should be informed before the hearing in writing of the charges and should have the opportunity to be heard in his or her own defense by all bodies that pass judgement upon the case. The teacher should be permitted to be accompanied by an advisor of his or her own choosing who may act as counsel. There should be a full stenographic record of the hearing available to the parties concerned. In the hearing of charges of incompetence the testimony should include teachers and other scholars, either from the teachers own or from other institutions. Teachers on continuous appointment who are dismissed for reasons not involving moral turpitude should receive their salaries for at least a year from the date of notification of dismissal whether or not they are continued in their duties at the institution.
(Emphasis added).
11. In the statement of procedural standards and faculty dismissal proceedings, Jointly
approved by the American Association of University Professors and the
Association of American Colleges in 1958, the issue of suspension is discussed:
"Suspension of the faculty member during the proceedings is justified only if immediate harm to the faculty member or others is threatened by the faculty members' continuation. Unless legal considerations forbid, any such suspension should be with pay. A suspension which is not followed b either reinstatement or the opportunity for a hearing is in effect a summary dismissal in violation of academic due process."
(Emphasis added).
12. Based upon the foregoing, I believe that in Dr. Murtagh's case, Emory has clearly
violated the statement of procedural standards and faculty dismissal proceedings
jointly approved by the American Association of University Professors, of which
it is a signatory member through the Association of American Colleges.
13. I have written numerous letters to the administration of Emory University asking
that Dr. Murtagh receives due process. I am distressed that even at this late date,
due process has been completely lacking in the case of Dr. Murtagh. Attached
hereto are true and correct copies of these letters.
14. As early as July 15, 1998 1 met with President Chase and Emory Provost, Rebecca
Chopp, concerning Dr. Murtagh's treatment by Emory Medical School
administrators. President Chase stated he was sincerely concerned about the case
and that he would ensure that Dr. Murtagh receives due process. He also assured
me that Dr. Lawley, the Dean of the Medical School, would make sure that Dr.
Murtagh received a proper review. After I met with Dr. Chase, Dr. Murtagh was
investigated thoroughly for six months, and received the proper vindication.
15. 1 was distressed that fresh actions were taken against Dr. Murtagh again as a
result, he alleges, of his whistle-blower activity, and of his having lodged
administrative complaints, and I wrote to Dr. Rebecca Chopp about this on
August 30, 1999. A copy of that letter is attached. At that time I made it clear to
Dr. Chopp that despite Dr. Murtagh's excellent performance ratings: (1) he did not
receive raises in salary and his salary was actually reduced-, (2) his name was
deleted from faculty rosters; (3) members of the Medical School had actively been
involved in denying him privileges at St. Joseph's Hospital apparently in
retaliation for some of the activities; and (4) most importantly, Dr. Murtagh had
been accused of impropriety in the application of do-not-resuscitate (DNR)
policies by a nurse.
16. 1 am concerned that even though Dr. Murtagh was removed from ICU duty in
May of 1999, he has not to this day received a formal statement or charge in the
DNR matter. It is completely contrary to the principles of academic fair play for an investigation of a faculty member to be held regarding such a serious allegation without elementary principles of due process being followed.
17. Dr. Murtagh worked with me and with Dr. James Fowler of the Emory Center for
Ethics and with Dr. Dennis Liotta, the Vice-President of Research. and with other
senior members of the faculty to attempt to find a way to solve this problem
through due process without embarrassing the university, without litigation. and
without publicity. However, the Emory administration and legal departments
have preferred not to attempt to settle the matter outside the legal process.
18. 1 was later very concerned to find that Dr. Murtagh was ejected from campus in
December 1999 and told to report to a psychiatrist.
19. 1 know Dr. Murtagh very well. He shows no sign of any instability. I've
examined affidavits from more than 12 physicians concerning six fitness- for-duty
examinations. It seems obvious to me that Dr. Murtagh is fit for duty.
20. More disturbing, it appears to me that the fitness-for-duty examination may have
been a pretext to move Dr. Murtagh off campus for reasons having nothing to do
with his mental health.
21. The use of a fitness-for-duty examination to suspend a professor without a stated
justification and without due process is a frightening breach of academic freedom,
It is contrary to the mission of a university and it threatens to undermine the very
basis of a university's search for truth.
22. 1 fully support the national AAUP's position that Dr. Murtagh should be returned
to duty. Dr. Murtagh has not received the guaranteed due-process rights
embodied in the AAUP's statement on tenure and academic freedom, nor the
Emory Gray Book.
I declare under the penalty of perjury under the laws of United States of America that the foregoing is true and correct.
John Bugge, Ph.D.
President, Emory Chapter
American Association of University Professors
