Fredric Rieders (July 9, 1922 – November 26, 2005) was an internationally renowned forensic

toxicologist Toxicology is a scientific discipline, overlapping with biology, chemistry, pharmacology, and medicine, that involves the study of the adverse effects of chemical substances on living organisms and the practice of diagnosing and treating ex ...

. He was born in

Vienna, Austria en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

and reportedly emigrated to the United States alone at age 16 to escape Nazism. During the

O.J. Simpson murder trial ''The People of the State of California v. Orenthal James Simpson'' was a criminal trial in Los Angeles County Superior Court starting in 1994, in which O. J. Simpson, a former National Football League (NFL) player, broadcaster and actor, was tr ...

, he testified that the presence of detectable amounts of the preservative

EDTA Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) is an aminopolycarboxylic acid with the formula H2N(CH2CO2H)2sub>2. This white, water-soluble solid is widely used to bind to iron (Fe2+/Fe3+) and calcium ions (Ca2+), forming water-soluble complexes eve ...

found in blood at the scene indicated it may not have come from a human being, but possibly was planted. Other of his well-known cases include the Robert Curley, in which Curley's wife, Joann, poisoned him with

thallium Thallium is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Tl and atomic number 81. It is a gray post-transition metal that is not found free in nature. When isolated, thallium resembles tin, but discolors when exposed to air. Chemists W ...

; another case is that of

Michael Swango Michael Joseph Swango (born October 21, 1954) is an American serial killer and licensed physician who is estimated to have been involved in as many as 60 fatal poisonings of patients and colleagues, although he admitted to only causing four deat ...

, or "Dr. Death"—a serial killer who killed as many as 60 of his patients at various hospitals he worked at using

succinylcholine Suxamethonium chloride, also known as suxamethonium or succinylcholine, or simply sux by medical abbreviation, is a medication used to cause short-term paralysis as part of general anesthesia. This is done to help with tracheal intubation or ele ...

and

epinephrine Adrenaline, also known as epinephrine, is a hormone and medication which is involved in regulating visceral functions (e.g., respiration). It appears as a white microcrystalline granule. Adrenaline is normally produced by the adrenal glands and ...

. Rieders also offered testimony in 1991 at one of the many trials at which

Jack Kevorkian Murad Jacob "Jack" Kevorkian (May 26, 1928 – June 3, 2011) was an American pathologist and euthanasia proponent. He publicly championed a terminal patient's right to die by physician-assisted suicide, embodied in his quote, "Dying is not ...

was a defendant. Rieders testified that Kevorkian might have used an excessive amount of the sedative

thiopental Sodium thiopental, also known as Sodium Pentothal (a trademark of Abbott Laboratories), thiopental, thiopentone, or Trapanal (also a trademark), is a rapid-onset short-acting barbiturate general anesthetic. It is the thiobarbiturate analog of pe ...

, and the sedative might actually have killed her before a lethal dose of potassium chloride had a chance to stop her heart, as Dr. Kevorkian had intended. Rieders received his PhD in

Pharmacology Pharmacology is a branch of medicine, biology and pharmaceutical sciences concerned with drug or medication action, where a drug may be defined as any artificial, natural, or endogenous (from within the body) molecule which exerts a biochemica ...

Toxicology Toxicology is a scientific discipline, overlapping with biology, chemistry, pharmacology, and medicine, that involves the study of the adverse effects of chemical substances on living organisms and the practice of diagnosing and treating expo ...

from

Thomas Jefferson University Thomas Jefferson University is a private research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Established in its earliest form in 1824, the university officially combined with Philadelphia University in 2017. To signify its heritage, the univer ...

. He worked as the Chief Toxicologist for the

City of Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

for fourteen years. He later founded National Medical Services in

Willow Grove, Pennsylvania Willow Grove is a census-designated place (CDP) in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. A community in Philadelphia's northern suburbs, the population was 15,726 at the 2010 census. It is located in Upper Dublin Township, Abington To ...

in 1970. Now called NMS Labs, it is a private toxicology lab that handles forensic and clinical toxicology. Rieders established the non-profit Fredric Rieders Family Renaissance Foundation. Most notably, he established the non-profit Forensic Sciences Mentoring Institute, described as a "hands-on research and academic instruction organization designed to support scientific and humanitarian activities serving students of all ages but specifically the young and especially the disadvantaged." Currently the Foundation is affiliated with

Arcadia University Arcadia University is a private university in Glenside, Pennsylvania. The university enrolls approximately 4,000 undergraduate, master's, and doctoral students. The campus features Grey Towers Castle, a National Historic Landmark. History Be ...

Master of Science A Master of Science ( la, Magisterii Scientiae; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast to ...

Forensic Science Forensic science, also known as criminalistics, is the application of science to criminal and civil laws, mainly—on the criminal side—during criminal investigation, as governed by the legal standards of admissible evidence and criminal ...

program. Rieders died on November 26, 2005, aged 83.

O.J. Simpson murder trial ''The People of the State of California v. Orenthal James Simpson'' was a criminal trial in Los Angeles County Superior Court starting in 1994, in which O. J. Simpson, a former National Football League (NFL) player, broadcaster and actor, was tr ...

Dr. Rieders testified in the criminal trial of O.J Simpson on July 24, 1995 and August 14, 1995. His testimony was interrupted because he had to leave the country. When he returned, according to the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'', "Not only did he refuse to answer questions directly, but his mood ranged from belligerent to confused."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rieders, Fredric 1922 births 2005 deaths American toxicologists American forensic scientists Austrian emigrants to the United States