PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — A hearing on Tuesday centered on potential new evidence in the bizarre case of a Lehigh Valley doctor accused of over-diagnosing child abuse, resulting in parents losing custody of their children.
Several families filed a lawsuit against the Lehigh Valley Health Network — now owned by Jefferson — in 2024. The suit accuses Dr. Debra Jenssen, then the medical director of the network’s child advocacy center, of separating families when their parents sought medical treatment for routine illnesses or injuries and found themselves accused of abuse.
It also claims the network left Jenssen in place even after her misdiagnoses became clear. Jenssen has since retired.
Attorney Francis Malofiy spoke to his clients after the hearing on his motion to make public a document he uncovered in the course of the suit.
Malofiy said he found proof in a disciplinary email to Jenssen and asked Judge Gwendolyn Bright to make the email public. Bright turned him down, but Malofiy was not discouraged.
“It’s only a matter of time before all the truth comes out. There’s a smoking gun and that will be revealed in time,” he said.
Malofiy represents 12 families that Jenssen baselessly accused of abuse. Ten others are also suing. Efforts to reach Jenssen were unsuccessful.