00:00:04
[music playing]
00:00:07
NARRATOR: Four-month-old
Ryan Stallings had spent
00:00:09
an entire weekend vomiting.
00:00:12
When he also developed
breathing problems,
00:00:15
his mother decided
to take him to St.
00:00:16
Louis Children's Hospital.
00:00:18
[music playing, baby crying]
00:00:26
Somewhere along the way,
Patricia Stallings made
00:00:29
the wrong turn and got lost.
00:00:33
It was a mistake she'll regret
for the rest of her life.
00:00:37
[music playing]
00:01:03
Patricia and David Stallings had
been married for about a year
00:01:07
and had recently
moved into a home
00:01:09
overlooking Lake Wauwanoka just
outside of St. Louis, Missouri.
00:01:15
David was a printer.
00:01:17
Patricia worked in
a convenience store.
00:01:20
Four-month-old Ryan
was their only child
00:01:23
and had always been sickly.
00:01:28
After an entire weekend
of vomiting and breathing
00:01:31
problems, Patricia decided
to take the baby to St.
00:01:34
Louis Children's Hospital.
00:01:38
During the trip, Patricia
got lost and ended up
00:01:42
at the emergency room
of Cardinal Glennon
00:01:45
Children's Hospital instead.
00:01:48
Doctors there perform
tests to understand what
00:01:51
was causing Ryan's illness.
00:01:53
He was listless,
almost comatose,
00:01:56
and continued to vomit.
00:01:57
Nurse, let's get
that blood right away.
00:01:59
NARRATOR: He was given a
complete medical examination,
00:02:02
including blood and urine tests.
00:02:08
Ryan's blood samples
were sent for testing
00:02:10
to an outside, independent
lab, the SmithKline Beecham
00:02:15
Clinical Lab in St. Louis.
00:02:18
Gas chromatography on
Ryan's blood sample
00:02:21
found the cause of
the child's illness.
00:02:24
It was ethylene
glycol poisoning.
00:02:27
Ethylene glycol is a colorless,
sweet-tasting substance
00:02:30
found in industrial
solvents and resins.
00:02:33
It can be fatal in
large enough doses.
00:02:37
Hospital officials
notified both the sheriff's
00:02:40
department and the Missouri
Department of Family Services.
00:02:47
I'll take the basement.
00:02:49
NARRATOR: Investigators
searched the Stallings' home.
00:02:54
In the basement, they found
two containers of antifreeze
00:02:58
under a pool table.
00:03:02
One of the containers
was half empty,
00:03:04
and it listed ethylene glycol
as the main ingredient.
00:03:10
You cannot form ethylene
glycol in your body.
00:03:13
The body can
naturally form that.
00:03:15
Therefore, it has
to be ingested.
00:03:17
And when you've
got a child who's
00:03:18
four months old, a child
who's four months old
00:03:21
doesn't have the capability
of ingesting anything,
00:03:23
therefore, it had to be
purposefully ingested.
00:03:26
NARRATOR: Fortunately, Ryan's
condition gradually improved.
00:03:30
When he was released
from the hospital,
00:03:32
he was not returned
to his parents.
00:03:34
Instead, the Department
of Family Services
00:03:37
placed Ryan in foster
care until they
00:03:41
completed their investigation.
00:03:43
And that investigation revealed
some troubling information.
00:03:48
They discovered that Patricia
Stallings was the mother
00:03:51
of another child, a
five year old son who
00:03:54
was in her sister's
custody because
00:03:56
of allegations of child abuse.
00:03:59
He was born out of
wedlock when she was young.
00:04:04
Subsequent to his birth,
he was taken away from her
00:04:07
by the state when
they discovered
00:04:08
that he was in the first stages
of frostbite and malnutrition.
00:04:13
Now, Patricia's explanation
to me at the time
00:04:15
was that, you know, the reason
that he was in that state
00:04:18
was because she was
in a similar state
00:04:19
because she didn't have any
money, any place to live.
00:04:24
NARRATOR: While Ryan
was in foster care,
00:04:27
Patricia was only permitted
to visit him once a week
00:04:30
under the supervision of the
Department of Family Services,
00:04:33
or DFS.
00:04:35
A few days after her
sixth parental visit,
00:04:39
Ryan got sick once again
and was taken to Cardinal
00:04:43
Glennon Children's Hospital.
00:04:45
This time, the lab
found even higher levels
00:04:49
of ethylene glycol in
Ryan's blood, 911 milligrams
00:04:53
per milliliter of blood serum.
00:04:57
Ryan's blood was also
sent to the toxicology lab
00:05:00
at the University of St. Louis.
00:05:02
They performed
another test called
00:05:05
mass spectrometry that found
the same thing, ethylene
00:05:09
glycol in Ryan's blood.
00:05:13
Although the baby bottle
Patricia used to feed Ryan
00:05:16
during her supervised visit
had been washed and refilled,
00:05:20
tests on that bottle found trace
amounts of ethylene glycol.
00:05:25
And prosecutors learned
that the individual assigned
00:05:29
to stand guard during
Patricia's visit with Ryan
00:05:32
inexplicably left the
room for a short time
00:05:35
against instructions.
00:05:38
Prosecutors suspected
that Patricia
00:05:40
had poisoned Ryan again after
the supervisor left the room.
00:05:45
We went over in detail talking
to every person that was there
00:05:48
in the room, every movement
that was in the room,
00:05:51
what things were
brought into the room,
00:05:52
the bottle seized
from the visit, again,
00:05:55
tested positive for
ethylene glycol.
00:05:58
NARRATOR: Patricia
Stallings was arrested
00:06:00
and charged with assault. Is
00:06:03
That the ethanol drip?
00:06:04
Yes, it is.
00:06:05
Get that in right away.
00:06:06
NARRATOR: When Ryan was
diagnosed with ethylene glycol
00:06:08
poisoning, his treatment
included both fasting
00:06:11
and ethanol given intravenously
to counteract the effects
00:06:15
of the ethylene glycol.
00:06:19
One week later,
Ryan Stallings died.
00:06:24
The charge against Patricia
Stallings was now murder.
00:06:32
When four-month-old
Ryan Stallings died,
00:06:35
a social worker from Cardinal
Glennon Children's Hospital
00:06:39
called Patricia
Stallings in prison
00:06:41
to inform her of
her son's death.
00:06:46
I don't care about that.
00:06:48
Put David on the phone.
00:06:49
I want to get out
of this hellhole.
00:06:51
NARRATOR: Patricia's
response raised suspicions.
00:06:54
When you put those kinds of
statements and the reactions
00:06:57
and all the things and the
circumstantial evidence
00:06:59
together with the science, it
only pointed to one person.
00:07:04
NARRATOR: Laboratory
tests revealed
00:07:06
large amounts of ethylene
glycol in Ryan's blood.
00:07:11
Ethylene glycol is the main
ingredient in antifreeze.
00:07:15
Scientists also found trace
amounts of ethylene glycol
00:07:19
in the baby bottle Patricia
Stallings used to feed
00:07:22
Ryan during her last visit.
00:07:25
Three months later, while
still in prison awaiting trial,
00:07:29
Patricia Stallings learned
some surprising news.
00:07:33
She was pregnant.
00:07:35
During her pregnancy, Patricia
became friends with prison
00:07:38
guard Patty Matthews.
00:07:40
She was very depressed
most of the time.
00:07:45
You know, she'd
been through a lot.
00:07:46
And it was just a--
00:07:50
an amazing emotional strain
that she was going through.
00:07:54
NARRATOR: Five months
after Ryan's death,
00:07:57
Patricia Stallings gave
birth to David Stallings Jr.
00:08:00
in a hospital near the prison.
00:08:03
Patricia and David
nicknamed him DJ.
00:08:06
When DJ was just
a few weeks old,
00:08:10
he had an episode of vomiting,
seizures, and breathing
00:08:14
problems while in foster care.
00:08:17
DJ was rushed to St.
Louis Children's Hospital.
00:08:21
Ironically, it was the hospital
Patricia planned to take
00:08:25
Ryan to before she got lost.
00:08:28
Doctors diagnosed DJ with a
very rare metabolic disorder
00:08:32
called methylmalonic
acidemia, or MMA, which
00:08:37
inhibits the body's
ability to process
00:08:39
food, especially proteins.
00:08:42
It also produces
toxins in the blood.
00:08:46
To prosecutors, it was
a startling development.
00:08:49
They wondered if
Ryan Stallings might
00:08:52
have died of the
same disease instead
00:08:55
of ethylene glycol poisoning.
00:08:58
We went back to square one.
00:09:00
Met again with all the
doctors and said, look,
00:09:04
something's not right here.
00:09:05
And matter of fact,
released her from custody
00:09:07
at that point on a
recongizance bond, which
00:09:09
is unheard of in a murder case.
00:09:12
NARRATOR: But the prosecution's
medical experts did not
00:09:15
believe that Ryan died of MMA.
00:09:18
His blood had been tested at
two independent laboratories.
00:09:22
Both found ethylene
glycol in Ryan's system.
00:09:26
And the autopsy revealed
calcium oxalate crystals
00:09:29
in Ryan's brain, consistent
with ethylene glycol poisoning.
00:09:34
Tests on Ryan's baby bottle
also found trace amounts
00:09:38
of ethylene glycol.
00:09:41
Everyone was saying there was
ethylene glycol in the body.
00:09:45
Tests from different
laboratories showed that.
00:09:47
And everyone agreed
that if there's
00:09:50
ethylene glycol in
the body, it wasn't
00:09:52
MMA that killed the child.
00:09:54
NARRATOR: So the murder case
against Patricia Stallings
00:09:57
went to trial.
00:09:58
Prosecutors were seeking
the death penalty.
00:10:02
Despite the genetic
illness diagnosed in DJ,
00:10:06
Patricia Stallings'
defense attorney could not
00:10:09
produce one medical
expert to testify
00:10:12
that it was MMA and not
antifreeze poisoning that
00:10:16
caused Ryan's death.
00:10:18
I put on my witnesses, all
of them said ethylene glycol,
00:10:22
all of them said it
had to be ingested,
00:10:24
all the evidence pointed
toward Patty Stallings.
00:10:27
If somebody fed the
baby antifreeze,
00:10:30
it must have been her.
00:10:32
NARRATOR: The jury
also heard what
00:10:33
Patricia Stallings said
to the social worker
00:10:36
when informed of Ryan's death.
00:10:39
Patricia Stallings was
found guilty of murder
00:10:42
in the first degree and was
sentenced to life in prison
00:10:46
without possibility of parole.
00:10:51
Her husband, David, collapsed in
shock after hearing the verdict
00:10:54
and was rushed to the hospital.
00:10:56
She was just devastated.
00:11:00
She was very upset.
00:11:01
She was crying.
00:11:03
We talked for a little while.
00:11:06
There wasn't a
whole lot of comfort
00:11:07
I could offer at that point.
00:11:09
NARRATOR: Although the jury
had reached its verdict
00:11:12
beyond a reasonable doubt,
two local scientists
00:11:16
had doubts of their own.
00:11:21
Although Patricia Stallings was
found guilty of the poisoning
00:11:24
death of her son
Ryan with antifreeze,
00:11:27
not everyone was convinced.
00:11:30
Dr. William Sly and
Dr. James Shoemaker
00:11:33
wondered whether the lab
tests done by their colleagues
00:11:37
and by the SmithKline
Beecham lab were accurate.
00:11:40
JAMES SHOEMAKER: It was
only when I found out
00:11:42
that no one had really
thoroughly explored the science
00:11:45
behind the ethylene
glycol testing
00:11:48
that I became convinced
that I had to do it myself.
00:11:52
NARRATOR: First,
Dr. Shoemaker turned
00:11:53
his attention to the
gas chromatography
00:11:56
used to test Ryan's blood.
00:12:00
In gas chromatography, the
sample is vaporized and sent
00:12:04
down a tube with an inert gas.
00:12:07
Each compound settles in the
tube at a different rate, which
00:12:10
is called the retention time.
00:12:13
Those retention times are
then charted on a graph.
00:12:17
A reference library
of retention times
00:12:20
is then consulted in order
to identify any compounds
00:12:24
found in the blood.
00:12:26
Medical experts who testified
against Patricia Stallings
00:12:30
said that the peak on the
graph of Ryan's blood serum
00:12:33
appeared at a retention
time that matched
00:12:36
that of ethylene glycol.
00:12:39
Dr. Shoemaker retested
Ryan's blood samples
00:12:42
and analyzed the
retention times.
00:12:45
He didn't find ethylene glycol.
00:12:48
He found something else.
00:12:51
There was a compound that
was very highly elevated
00:12:53
in the serum, compound
called propionic acid, that
00:12:59
comes off very close, but
not identically with ethylene
00:13:01
glycol.
00:13:02
And he and I speculated
that that might be the--
00:13:06
the basis of a
misidentification that
00:13:10
led to the incorrect diagnosis
of ethylene glycol poisoning.
00:13:15
NARRATOR: Proprionic acid is
often produced in patients who
00:13:18
have MMA, the rare
genetic illness diagnosed
00:13:22
in Ryan's brother, DJ.
00:13:24
The only difference between
propionic acid and ethylene
00:13:28
glycol is a few carbon atoms.
00:13:32
To find out if other labs
were capable of misreading
00:13:35
propionic acid as
ethylene glycol,
00:13:38
Dr. shoemaker sent blood samples
spiked with propionic acid
00:13:43
to seven different laboratories.
00:13:45
Sure enough, three out
of the seven laboratories
00:13:48
that we tested came back with
positive results for ethylene
00:13:51
glycol when we knew the
only thing in those samples
00:13:54
was propionic acid.
00:13:55
NARRATOR: When Dr. Shoemaker
examined the graph shown
00:13:58
to the jury during
Patricia Stallings' trial,
00:14:01
one showing the ethylene
glycol found in Ryan's blood,
00:14:05
and next to it, a
graph of a known
00:14:08
sample of ethylene glycol,
he discovered a huge mistake.
00:14:14
But the tragic thing is that
no one bothered to actually
00:14:18
superimpose the two like this.
00:14:22
And when you look
at it very closely
00:14:24
and line up the
injection point here
00:14:26
and the internal standard
here, the two pigs
00:14:29
are actually quite different.
00:14:31
And you move them up
here so you can see,
00:14:36
they don't come out at
the same time at all.
00:14:38
The retention times are
actually very different.
00:14:42
NARRATOR: Dr.
Shoemaker suspected
00:14:44
that Ryan Stallings died
of MMA and had not been
00:14:48
poisoned with ethylene glycol.
00:14:51
But Dr. Shoemaker was a
junior member of the faculty
00:14:53
at the time and knew
that his conclusions
00:14:56
would be challenged by experts.
00:14:59
When prosecutors learned
about these new test results,
00:15:03
they were stunned.
00:15:04
Was it possible that
Patricia Stallings
00:15:07
had been convicted of a
murder that never happened?
00:15:14
The Stallings hired
attorney Robert
00:15:16
Ritter to handle their appeal.
00:15:18
He immediately
requested a new trial,
00:15:21
arguing that Patricia Stallings'
first lawyer had not mounted
00:15:25
a proper scientific defense.
00:15:27
After several
hours of discussion,
00:15:29
I came away convinced that
Patty did not poison her child
00:15:33
and that a horrible
injustice had resulted here.
00:15:37
NARRATOR: When prosecutors heard
the new test results from St.
00:15:40
Louis University,
even they agreed
00:15:43
that this new
medical information
00:15:45
raised serious questions.
00:15:48
Once we were well aware that
there were actually doctors
00:15:51
out there prepared to say that,
that, obviously, didn't testify
00:15:54
at trial, may have made a
difference at the trial,
00:15:57
and we agreed to a new trial,
and we didn't have to do that.
00:16:01
NARRATOR: But
prosecutors had two
00:16:03
independent laboratories
that found ethylene
00:16:06
glycol in Ryan's blood.
00:16:08
Traces of ethylene glycol
were found in the baby bottle.
00:16:11
And the autopsy report
found oxalate crystals
00:16:14
in Ryan's brain, a finding
consistent with ethylene glycol
00:16:19
poisoning.
00:16:21
To sort through the
scientific inconsistencies,
00:16:24
prosecutors sought
an outside expert.
00:16:28
At Yale University,
they found Dr. Piero
00:16:30
Ronaldo, one of the
world's leading experts
00:16:33
in metabolic diseases.
00:16:35
He reviewed the
scientific data that
00:16:37
formed the basis for the case
against Patricia Stallings.
00:16:41
I received all
the raw material,
00:16:43
all the data from the labs
where the tests were done.
00:16:48
That was really the exceptional
moment for me in this story
00:16:51
because I couldn't
believe how low
00:16:55
was the quality
of analytical work
00:16:57
done in the commercial lab.
00:17:00
NARRATOR: Dr. Ronaldo called
the lab reports garbage.
00:17:04
He agreed with Dr.
Shoemaker and Sly
00:17:07
that the gas chromatography
peak shown to the jury as that
00:17:10
of ethylene glycol was
not ethylene glycol at all
00:17:15
and did not match the graph
depicting the known sample
00:17:19
of ethylene glycol.
00:17:20
The retention time
of the peak in question
00:17:23
was 33 seconds later, which,
in gas chromatography,
00:17:28
is an enormous difference.
00:17:31
It's-- it's really huge.
00:17:33
NARRATOR: And when
Dr. Ronaldo reviewed
00:17:35
the mass spectrometry results,
he found a similar error.
00:17:40
The spike in Ryan's blood
identified as ethylene glycol
00:17:44
did not match the known sample.
00:17:48
That really blew me
away because, especially
00:17:52
in a case where, obviously,
with legal implications,
00:17:55
it must be perfect match.
00:17:57
This was not even close.
00:17:59
It was, again, absolutely
strikingly obvious evidence
00:18:04
that there was no match.
00:18:06
NARRATOR: Dr.
Ronaldo immediately
00:18:08
presented his
findings to prosecutor
00:18:10
George McElroy the next day,
McElroy held a news conference.
00:18:15
State of Missouri is
dismissing all pending charges
00:18:18
against Patricia Stallings
based upon the death
00:18:20
of her child, Ryan.
00:18:22
And I'm satisfied, I'm convinced
that Patricia Stallings
00:18:27
did not poison her child.
00:18:29
NARRATOR: Dr. Ronaldo
believes that Ryan Stallings
00:18:32
died of MMA, the
same genetic illness
00:18:35
his brother DJ was born with.
00:18:38
Is that the ethanol drip?
00:18:40
Yes, it is.
00:18:41
Let's get that in right away.
00:18:42
NARRATOR: He also believes that
the inaccurate lab reports led
00:18:45
doctors to administer
the wrong treatment,
00:18:49
the ethanol drip, which possibly
contributed to Ryan's death.
00:18:54
The ethanol drip was also the
suspected cause of the calcium
00:18:58
oxalate crystals found during
Ryan's autopsy and not ethylene
00:19:04
glycol.
00:19:05
Scientists also suspect that the
process of washing Ryan's baby
00:19:09
bottle caused the false
readings of ethylene glycol
00:19:13
when the bottle was tested.
00:19:16
The conviction of Patricia
Stallings had been a mistake.
00:19:22
Oh, wow, if DJ
hadn't been born,
00:19:24
Patty Stallings would be in
jail for the rest of her life
00:19:27
without parole and
no one would ever
00:19:29
have raised a second question.
00:19:31
I think DJ--
00:19:34
DJ's birth is what
saved her because it--
00:19:39
the first child's diagnosis
would never have been made.
00:19:43
I can understand a person
who's been through all that she
00:19:50
went through finding the--
00:19:53
an apology pretty lacking.
00:19:58
But as I told her, I--
00:20:02
I had a job to do.
00:20:04
I had the evidence before me
that I felt gave me no choice.
00:20:10
NARRATOR: Patricia
Stallings filed lawsuits
00:20:12
against the hospitals,
doctors, and laboratories
00:20:15
that had misdiagnosed Ryan.
00:20:18
All were settled
before going to trial.
00:20:22
Their son, DJ, who by
being born with MMA,
00:20:26
led scientists to the real
killer of his brother, Ryan,
00:20:29
is managing his disease
with a special diet
00:20:32
and other treatments.
00:20:34
It is strange that such
a small mistake on paper
00:20:39
could make such a huge change
in the lives of people.
00:20:42
But in this case, you can
see that a few millimeters
00:20:45
of difference in where a peek
appeared on a sheet of paper
00:20:51
made all the difference
in a woman's life.
00:20:54
The science was the
strongest evidence
00:20:57
and was what ultimately
convicted her,
00:21:00
but it was also what
ultimately freed her.
00:21:03
[music playing]
