Let's Talk About the Completely Healed Back Injury and Highly Successful Back Surgery

Hey y'all, wanted to post something that I've been thinking about a lot.

I'm an attorney out here in LA that has been personally captivated by this case and following it very closely. I'm going to be flying to NYC for the upcoming Feb hearings.

Anyway, there is something about the back injury and back surgery angle that has bothered me for a while. Well, more than one thing. Many things. First, the fact that the media so quickly ran with the idea that LM must've developed a hatred for healthcare as a result of his severe back injury and experience with back surgery. Within hours of his name being known, they had doctors and back experts talking about how his condition was "hell on earth" and the negative mental effects of being in constant pain, not to mention the high costs and likelihood of medical debt.

This angle was run with almost immediately, yet it made very little sense to me at the time, and even less sense now. Before we knew what we know now, this narrative didn't make sense to me for the simple reason that- if we were to believe the official narrative and timeline in the criminal complaints-none of these actions could have been carried out by someone with a severe back injury. Traveling by bus, staying in a hostel with dorm-style twin beds, the planning, the execution, the escape by foot that involved riding a citibike and perfect timing--none of it can be done by someone with severe back pain.

Then, we learned everything we know now about him. His family is filthy rich, so there's no reason for him to worry about medical debt or out of pocket costs. We know he didn't have UnitedHealthcare, he likely has a much more expensive and comprehensive plan. From his reddit posts (which we cannot view, but are to trust that an accurate archive was provided by law enforcement to media), we know he posted in July of 2023 that he was getting the surgery in two weeks. He then posted in August 2023 after the surgery saying that by day seven after the surgery he no longer needed pain meds, and that the surgery was nowhere near as big a deal as he expected it to be. We are told his last Reddit post is dated May 17, presumably 2024, and that his posts and statements around this time suggest he wasn't experiencing any complications or renewed back pain. In fact, he was advocating for others to get the surgery in a subreddit about spondylolisthesis, telling them not to wait and not to be afraid. He posted pictures of his backpacking trip in Asia, showing how much he could carry on his back without discomfort.

The next thing as a lawyer that I was waiting to see was whether he disclosed a back injury or back condition at any of his arraignments. He did not. This is EXTREMELY strange to me, as there are a variety of reasons why it would be wise to disclose such a pre-existing back injury or back surgery. First, he may have been entitled to accommodations at the prison, such as adjustments to the bed or any number of things if they were needed to maintain his back. Second, just as a matter of caution and to put the court on notice, I always disclose any major prior injuries or surgeries like that, especially ones where there is metal in any part of the body, so that the prison is on notice of a pre-existing condition so they don't negligently exacerbate it and so that if there's any issue with a metal detector they are aware the client has metal in their body which could set a detector off. Third, you never know how something like that will end up playing into the prosecutor's narrative or story of the case or how you will want to include it or portray it as a part of the defense, so you would generally jump right for disclosing an injury or condition like that.

LM, as everyone knows, has KFA representing him on the NY and Federal charges so far, (a different attorney for PA charges, which have taken a backseat to the Federal an NY ones) both being handled out of Manhattan. KFA is an extremely talented defense attorney with decades of experience on the other side as a prosecutor and DA for Manhattan. That she has chosen not to go on the record with any health condition suggests two things to me: 1) She views the back injury as something that is not helpful to disclose at this point, and/or 2) The injury truly is not bothering LM at all, not even when he's in prison conditions and sleeping on a little bed with no support. Meaning, it is fully resolved due to what a smashing success the surgery was for him.

All of this makes me question the narrative regarding his back pain as being tied to his motive. However, in early April of 2024, we are told that LM advised another Reddit user with a back problem to “keep trying different surgeons” and, if necessary, convey an "inability to keep working." In late April, he supposedly followed this up by writing "We live in a capitalist society, I’ve found that the medical industry responds to these key words far more urgently than you describing unbearable pain and how it’s impacting your quality of life.”

If this was indeed him, he is saying that he has found using the keywords "inability to work" is more effective in getting the "medical industry" to respond to your needs than describing your pain level is. As I actually specialize in disability law, this is a whole other topic that I could go off about for hours. But the entire medical and disability system is essentially based on to what degree your condition or disability prevents you from working, rather than how debilitating pain is. Even Veterans disability ratings are based on by what percent your ability to earn an income is affected by the disability.

It's clear LM didn't personally have a bad experience with his own insurance or his surgery, he obviously had his claim approved and was extremely happy with the results. But based on these comments, I can tell that he had identified a particularly inhuman and capitalistic feature of the "medical industry" and perhaps he had interactions with many people online who were not as affluent or fortunate as him with their pursuit of the surgery. It still doesn't add up for me, though, that this was enough to form the motive for the crimes he stands accused of.

There is a big gap in logic needed to jump from the guy who wrote that in late April 2024 to the guy they are claiming planned out and executed a professional murder of a top Healthcare CEO.

Thoughts? Theories? I have many but will leave it there for now...