John Oliver Nestor (November 7, 1912 – May 1, 1999) was a

U.S. Food and Drug Administration The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a federal agency of the Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is responsible for protecting and promoting public health through the control and supervision of food ...

medical officer and

whistleblower A whistleblower (also written as whistle-blower or whistle blower) is a person, often an employee, who reveals information about activity within a private or public organization that is deemed illegal, immoral, illicit, unsafe or fraudulent. Whi ...

Early life

Nestor was born in Franklin, New Jersey, and had nine siblings. He graduated from

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

medical school in 1940. During World War II, he served in the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Aerial warfare, air military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part ...

as a flight surgeon and was awarded a

Bronze Star The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

for valor for his actions in Corsica in 1944. Specifically, during a bombing and strafing raid, left his trench's safety to provide

first aid First aid is the first and immediate assistance given to any person with either a minor or serious illness or injury, with care provided to preserve life, prevent the condition from worsening, or to promote recovery. It includes initial in ...

to the wounded and help ensure their evacuation.

Career

After the war, Nestor served as chief resident at Children's Hospital. While in private practice, he taught pediatrics at Georgetown and

Howard University Howard University (Howard) is a Private university, private, University charter#Federal, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education, classifie ...

medical schools, as well as consulting with hospitals and government agencies. In 1961, Nestor joined the FDA. During his employment at the FDA, Nestor revealed to the public that FDA leaders pressured reviewers, demanding new drugs be approved without adequate testing. He testified to Congress about the influence of pharmaceutical companies at the FDA and about FDA officials allowing drugs to stay on the market even after serious side effects had been identified. Despite receiving commendations from the Justice Department for uncovering fraudulent lab reports, Nestor was transferred from drug review duties by the FDA. Nestor fought the transfer and eventually resumed reviewing drugs. On March 19, 1972, the FDA reassigned Nestor to its Office of Compliance, as part of a reorganization in which Civil Service doctors were replaced as drug approvers by consultants who were often affiliated with commercial companies. Nestor began a grievance proceeding. A review panel determined that senior FDA officials gave "misleading" testimony against Nestor and concluded that Nestor was due an apology and appropriate duties. In 1977, the FDA commissioner restored Nestor to the position he held before the 1972 transfer. Robert G. Vaughn wrote in his book "The Successes and Failures of Whistleblower Laws" that Nestor "became one of the best-known FDA whistleblowers of all time."

Driving practices

Nestor also achieved fame in the

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

area in 1984 after ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'' published his letter describing his favored driving method: On highways Nestor would settle his vehicle in the far left lane and set the cruise control at the speed limit, at the time 55 mph. He would not move to the right for drivers behind him. "Why," he asked, "should I inconvenience myself for someone who wants to speed?" Nestor also believed he was performing a public service by forcing people to obey the nationwide 55 mile-per-hour speed limit. Nestor's letter enraged many motorists and led Paul J. Leonard to coin the term 'Nestoring' to describe the practice in another letter to the editor.

Death

Nestor died of renal failure in 1999 at the age of 86 at the Hospice of Northern Virginia; he had lived in

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

for 50 years.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nestor, John People from Washington, D.C. 1999 deaths 1912 births Food and Drug Administration people American whistleblowers Georgetown University alumni