BISMARCK, N.D. — A man acquitted of killing his infant daughter after taking a prescription drug that he says put him in a psychotic state is suing the drug's maker to recover medical, legal and funeral expenses.
Ryan Ehlis, 26, of Grand Forks, had been taking Adderall, designed to improve mental concentration, when he shot 5-day-old Tyra on Jan. 30, 1999.
Psychiatrists testified in court and the judge agreed that Ehlis lacked the capacity to understand what he was doing because of the drug.
Its label warns that in very rare circumstances, it can cause "psychotic episodes at recommended doses."
Ehlis said that through the lawsuit he hopes to bring more attention to the danger of some prescription drugs. "I think more needs to be known about these drugs in general," he said.
The lawsuit, filed Friday in federal court, asks drug maker Shire Richwood Inc., of Florence, Ky., for more than $100,000 in damages, said Ehlis' attorney, Andy Vickery.
Medical experts and the drug's manufacturer say Adderall remains a safe and effective drug for controlling attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD.
Ehlis, diagnosed with ADHD as a child, was a student at the University of North Dakota when he started taking Adderall in January 1999 to help him manage the disorder. Weeks later, he fatally wounded his newborn, then shot himself in the abdomen.
The drug is to be prescribed under close medical supervision. But Ehlis did not seek medical attention at the time of the killing, apparently because he did not realize he was having a psychotic event, Vickery said.