HLN’s Nancy Grace brought little Kim Hyunsu’s murder case into the national media limelight on Monday October 13th when she aired a segment providing an overview of the case and its current status (transcript here).

Grace began the segment with a theme she repeated throughout: Did Brian Patrick O’Callaghan receive preferential treatment in the adoption process or as a suspect in this case because of his status within NSA? She and Dan Morse of the Washington Post, who covers Montgomery County, Maryland for the Post and co-authored the initial Post article about the case, provided the introduction to O’Callaghan with which we are now familiar: decorated veteran of Kosovo and Iraq; fluent in Arabic; Chief of the NSA’s Korea division. The adoption of Madoc O'Callaghan, as he is known in much of the press, was agency-facilitated and appears unremarkable from a procedural perspective.

Nancy Grace and child welfare expert Maureen Flatley both noted the possibility of PTSD as a possible contributor in this case. Flatley noted that child homicide is escalating, and that the kind of violence perpetrated on Hyunsu doesn’t come out of the blue. She and psychologist Caryn Stark both noted the correlation between PTSD and child abuse. Flatley further questioned the pre-screening performed for Hyunsu’s adoption, asking if, in light of O’Callaghan’s multiple combat assignments, PTSD was addressed. (I would question if an adoption homestudy screens for PTSD or any mental health disorders.)

According to Morse, when interviewed by the police, O’Callaghan spoke of events of the day and night before he brought Hyunsu to the hospital for treatment, indicating that Hyunsu had slipped in the shower. He did not disclose anything consistent with the injuries Hyunsu presented at the hospital, although HLN staff blogger Stacey Newman noted late in the program that at some point during his interviews, O’Callaghan added that Hyunsu had fallen down the stairs, too.

Hyunsu' injuries are truly horrific:

• 86 degree body temperature upon arrival at the hospital
• Swelling and bleeding of the brain
• Injuries to front and back consistent with beating
• Impact or squeezing trauma to genitals
• Fractured skull
• Bruises to forehead
• Marks from a linear triangular object
• Other contusions
• Hemorrhaging

By the time he was brought to the hospital, he was brain dead.

Grace mentioned more than once her concern that O’Callaghan may be receiving preferential treatment given his position at NSA. NSA has made no comment about the case, nor has the adoption agency. (Although no reason has been given, Holt stopped placing children from Korea through Catholic Charities of Maryland, who facilitated Hyunsu’s adoption. Holt, however, has not placed blame on Catholic Charities, nor have they admitted any procedural culpability. Catholic Charities, for obvious reasons, is silent.)

Grace briefly discussed the legal aspects of the case with attorneys Peter Odom and David Benowitz. Odom noted that the more medical evidence suggests abuse, the more difficult it will be to prove that the injuries were caused by an accident. Benowitz described how such a defense would likely proceed: by reviewing every detail of the autopsy, carefully evaluating the house (especially the shower and stairs) as a potential crime scene for evidence of accident and determining O’Callaghan’s medical condition at the time of police interviews. Grace pointed out that at least one fact will be difficult for the defense to ignore: O’Callaghan’s own statement that the injuries were due to a slip in the shower. (O’Callaghan’s defense is being provided by the DC law firm of Mallon & McCool, LLC.)

Grace asked rhetorically what the role of Jennifer O’Callaghan is in this case. Pretty much everyone interested in this case is asking the same question. Ms. O’Callaghan is standing by her husband, but saying nothing else.

In closing, Grace and Morse discussed next steps in the case. Both the prosecution and defense are reviewing the evidence, in particular the autopsy report. Autopsy has been seriously hampered by the fact that the O’Callaghan’s donated Hyunsu’s organs immediately following his death, prior to Brian O’Callaghan’s arrest. Prosecutors are attempting to locate those organs, presumably to determine if they have in fact been donated, were unusable or have been destroyed.

(As of today, little Kim Hyunsu’s grave in the Damascus Methodist Church Cemetery remains without a stone, identifiexed only with a small paper marker. I sincerely hope the family, which given current adoption law in Korea and the U.S. has custody of his body, places a stone soon to honor his short life and death.)

Montgomery County Circuit Court case search website for correct docket info and court schedule for events in this trial. Car details follow. Note that changes occur frequently, and check the very bottom of the docket for recent court orders that may affect the schedule. Call the Montgomery County Circuit Court Adornment Assignment Office at 240-777-9000 to confirm the schedule. 

Circuit Court for Montgomery County - Criminal System