Man Accused of Infecting 14 with HIV Found Dead in Cell
A HIV positive New Zealand man accused of unprotected sexual contact with 14 individuals was found dead in his prison cell on Nov. 30, reported GayNZ.com that same day.
Glen Mills, an Auckland man, had been detained at Mt. Eden prison since charges were brought against him last May 28. His corpse was discovered at about 5:00 a.m. the morning of Nov. 30. He had been scheduled to appear in court later that same morning. The article said that there were no suspects in his death.
Another article posted Nov. 30 at The Press quoted corrections regional manager Grace Smit as saying that prison staffers had attempted to provide emergency care to Mills. "Staff provided medical assistance but were unable to revive the prisoner," said Smit. "He was pronounced dead when ambulance staff arrived a short time later." Added Smit, "The prisoner's death is not considered suspicious, However the Coroner will investigate and confirm the circumstances.''
The Press reported that half of the 14 alleged victims had tested positive for HIV. Mills had solicited sexual partners on several Web sites after his May, 2007 diagnosis.
Mills, 40, had come to the attention of health care workers even before police began to investigate him for allegedly exposing sexual partners to HIV. The health care workers, however, were constrained from warning the public or going to the authorities by privacy laws. The total tally of those claiming to have been exposed to the virus by Mills includes two women and several men under the age of 28.
The case is similar to that of a 49-year-old Australian man, Michael John Neal, who was convicted in 2008 of deliberately trying to transmit HIV to others. Evidence presented to the court over the course of Neal's month-and-a-half-long trial included the claim that the accused had convened sex parties where the intent was to infect HIV-negative people. The court was also told that as part of the attempt to spread the virus, Neal sported a piercing on his genitalia.
Several of those who testified told the court that they had had unprotected sex with Neal, and that he had not warned them in advance that he was HIV positive. The prosecutor, Mark Rochford, also claimed that Neal had boasted about "get[ting] off" by exposing HIV-negative partners to the virus; Rochford also said that Neal had made a claim to have infected 75 people.
But Neal's lawyer, George Georgiou, told the court that Neal had taken the proper precautions to protect others. The defense lawyer also claimed that because Neal's viral count was low, Neal thought the risk of transmitting the virus was not a concern.
The government's Department of Human Services began keeping tabs on Neal following a 2001 report from Neal's physician, who notified the department that Neal was sexually active. The department subsequently sent several letters to Neal over the course of the next five years, and his physician also counseled Neal about the need to be sexually responsible. Said Detective Sgt. Eric Harbis of the trial and the verdict, "It certainly sends a message that this sort of behavior was not tolerated," and added that investigators were satisfied with the outcome even though many of the total 39 charges were also dropped.
Last year, a Dutch court convicted two men, identified only as Peter M. and Hans J., of attempting to spread HIV by injecting their victims with tainted blood at sex parties. The men reportedly drugged their victims before injecting them with infected blood, although the court found that that allegation could not be proven. All fourteen victims tested positive for HIV, but the court also noted that it could not be conclusively proven that their infections stemmed from the injections. Nonetheless, Peter M.--who also was convicted on a rape charge--was sentenced to nine years, and Hans J. to five years. The judges wrote in their ruling that, "While [Peter M.] knew from his own experience what far-reaching consequences are tied to an infection with HIV, he repeatedly attempted to bring this same hurt to others."
In the United States, a 22-year-old drifter was among the first to be tried and sentenced for spreading HIV. The young man, Nushawn J. Williams, received a sentence in 1999 of 4 to 12 years after investigators learned that he had bartered sex for drugs, offering partners crack, despite knowing that he was HIV positive, the New York Times reported in an April 6, 1999 article. During a year spent in Jamestown, NY, Williams reportedly had sex with 48 young women, 13 of whom later tested positive for HIV. Authorities also learned that Williams had had sex with up to 75 more people in New York City.