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As Ivy League-educated pediatrician Robert P. Lindeman sat on the stand in Suffolk Superior Court this month, defending himself in a malpractice suit involving the death of a 12-year-old patient, the opposing counsel startled him with a question.<\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n Was Lindeman Flea?<\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n Flea, jurors in the case didn’t know, was the screen name for a blogger who had written often and at length about a trial remarkably similar to the one that was going on in the courtroom that day.<\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n In his blog, Flea had ridiculed the plaintiff’s case and the plaintiff’s lawyer. He had revealed the defense strategy. He had accused members of the jury of dozing.<\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n Shortly before the end of his second day on the witness stand, while focusing on Lindeman’s views of a pediatric textbook, Mulvey asked him whether he had a medical blog, she recalled. He said he did. Then she asked him if he was Flea. He said he was.<\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n The exchange may have been lost on jurors, but Meyer said Mulvey had telegraphed that she was ready to share Lindeman’s blog — containing his unvarnished views of lawyers, jurors, and the legal process — with the jury.<\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n The next day, the case was settled.<\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n from the Boston Globe<\/a><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n Is there any such thing as anonymous blogging anymore? Is a blogger with a track record as extensive and injudicious as that of the Dowbrigade permanently disqualified from seeking legitimate employment, a fair shake in the judicial system, public office or jury duty?<\/em><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n Budding bloggers beware – it may be too late for the Dowbrigade, but you still have time to save yourselves…… <\/em><\/font> <\/font> <\/font> <\/font><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" As Ivy League-educated pediatrician Robert P. Lindeman sat on the stand in Suffolk Superior Court this month, defending himself in a malpractice suit involving the death of a 12-year-old patient, the opposing counsel startled him with a question. Was Lindeman … Continue reading