Bloodlines
After dermatologist David Cornbleet was murdered in his Michigan Avenue office, his son, Jonathan, devoted himself to finding the killer. Now a shy and troubled young man—a former patient of Dr. Cornbleet's—has confessed. But that man's anguished father is arguing that a drug prescribed by the slain doctor may have contributed to the killing.
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In the late afternoon of an early fall day, Tom Peterson looks weary. Since his son's confession, he says, he has received "horrendously harassing phone calls," people saying things such as "Aren't you proud of how you raised your son?" and "You must be a horrible person yourself."
Still, he feels deep sympathy for the Cornbleets and acknowledges that they are victims of a terrible tragedy. "I can understand his opinions," he says of the other son in this case, Jon Cornbleet, "and I'm not trying to put him down for it. My feeling is, [Hans] is my son. And in spite of whatever happened, I love him and feel that he should have" a chance to defend himself. "I'm speaking as a parent for my child," he adds. "If that wasn't the case, I don't know if I'd be saying it either. But if you're going to ask me my personal opinion about my child, I'm going to tell you, and I don't need to apologize for that."
* * *
The son has not returned to his father's grave and won't anytime soon, most likely. "I have not gone back as of yet because everything is still kind of up in the air," Jon Cornbleet says. "I am not sure if I can face his grave until Hans is brought back to the U.S."
Jon says he has considered reaching out to the other father, Tom Peterson. "Contrary to what he probably thinks, my heart does go out to him," Jon says. "Let's face it: For all practical purposes, his life is ruined. And he's right: His son is never going to get married, never going to live free, never going to spend another Christmas with his family. I do think about that. At the end of the day, what I think is, this is a major tragedy between two families."
Sitting across from me, staring into his coffee, the father shares similar feelings. He has never spoken with Jon Cornbleet. But he would be willing to. Maybe someday.
Meanwhile, in the waning afternoon, the father picks up his briefcase, stuffed with documents and studies on the drug he believes took his son, and heads home, alone.
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Reader Comments:
My heart really goes out to Jon Cornbleet. He is a real hero and something should be done to grant him the justice he so badly has worked so hard for. He is somebody I greatly admire and respect. I think that Jon Cornbleet is the next John Walsh.
I really hate France for making this nightmare continue for him.
This is an excellent article. I am very impressed with the class and respect that Jon Cornbleet always shows.
Jon Cornbleet is a real life hero and somebody we should all aspire to be. I sit here and can not believe not only how strong a person he is, but how wonderful a son he is to his father. Jon's pursuit of justice is so admirable.
This is such a sad tragedy. Hans Peterson is a scum and shame on France for not extraditing this guy.
Why is France not extraditing him? He visited France a dozen or so times and thus he is protected under their laws? No wonder EVERYBODY hates the French. I think that what they are doing is criminal and I hold France personally responsible for aiding and abedding a confessed murderer.
I am very touched by the dedication and determination of Dr. Cornbleet's son. I think that all of us inside wish that we had the heart and courage that he does.
I have been following this sad tragedy since it happened. I think that John's persistency and determination is so honorable and such an ode to his love of his father. He shows a lot of class toward the Peterson family which is admirable.
Shame on France. I thought that the new President wanted to be different yet it is the same old song and dance with France. I will never visit or support those jerks.
who ever came up with the website/myspace idea was a genius
Excellent article. I never thought about the impact on the Peterson family. I now feel a great deal of sympathy for them (excepting Hans) as well.
Hans Peterson should be extradited and face his crime. You cannot tell me that in 4 years, he did not have one single lucid moment where he could have expressed and sought help for his feelings of anger. There are many medications that will help a psychotic individual function in society without murdering others.
Excellent article. I am saddened by the tragedy of Dr Cornbleet. He was the greatest doctor that I was ever fortunate to know. I miss his wisdom and humor tremendously.
Kudos have to be given to the son of Dr Cornbleet who has become a real life hero.
I can assure you that I or nobody that I know will ever support the French again. I think that they are obstructing justice and should be ashamed of themselves for not extraditing an American citizen.
It would appear that no one is addressing the issue that Hans only took this drug twice, from his own fathers' admission. Unless I missed it somewhere!? How about having someone, who is qualified to do so, evaluate the effects it can have on a person: same height, weight and gender, as Hans, having only taken the drug twice as well as compared to those mentioned in the article that the drug had a psychotic effect on (in terms of how long, etc., they took it). Let's get some conclusive evidence that it was the drug FIRST. In addition, someone else said it, he had more than enough time, Hans and his father, to seek help (or intervene on behalf of his son) before this happened. This is an unforgiveable crime, and he should pay. And ditto, SHAME ON FRANCE for even becoming involved: whether he was there once or a dozen times, in my opinion, it does not matter - he didn't live there!
Just a horrible crime and plan by Tom Peterson to distract attention from a first degree murder to two pills of vitamin a. Not to say that I wouldn’t do the same if this was my son, but it is clear that the Peterson family feels so much shame that they will do anything to transfer the blame. They are loosing a son in all of this, so it is OK to feel sympathy for them, but if one really reads between the lines of this story, Tom Ps previous comments, and even Hans’ posting on the Asberg blog, it is clear that Hans was an unguided child from the start. It seems that Top P may never really have known Hans, and only now is getting involved in his life by starting a crusade against accutatne. Perhaps this is noble cause or just a way for him to make up for lost time. Either way if wants to build support for his cause he should do everything in his power to get his son back to the US, including hitting the media in the same format and volume that the Cornbleets did.
I think it is time for France to update their law of 1927.