DC Superior Court Judge Frederick Weisberg last week ruled that experts testifying that cell phone radiation causes brain cancer relied on appropriate and admissible scientific evidence in reaching their conclusions. The court is considering the cases of thirteen men (or their surviving family members) who had developed brain cancer after long term use of cell phones.
While agreeing with the U..S. National Institute of Medicine, the Government Accountability Office, EHT and many other expert groups that more research is needed, the court expressly held that “If the probability of carcinogenicity is low, but the magnitude of the potential harm is high, good public policy dictates that the risk should not be ignored.”
Referencing the pivotal work of Judge Richard Posner, in his book Catastrophe: Risk and Response, Judge Weisberg noted that recent studies not reviewed by the court by French scientists had reported higher risks of brain cancer in those using phones a decade.
“The families of these men have paid a heavy price for the failures to provide clear information on ways to reduce health risks from these two-way microwave radiating devices,” noted Dr. Devra Davis, President of Environmental Health Trust and author of Disconnect–the truth about cell phone radiation.
