Physician's slaying could go unpunished

The son of slain physician David Cornbleet, MD, said he will continue to urge the French government to extradite a former patient sought in the killing.

Hans Peterson surrendered to French authorities on the island of St. Martin on Aug. 6 and allegedly confessed to the slaying of the Chicago dermatologist. The late doctor's family members and two U.S. senators asked the French government to extradite Peterson, but officials rejected the request in late August because Peterson is a French national, said Jon Cornbleet, the doctor's son.

Cornbleet said that doesn't mean the battle to extradite Peterson is over. "It's going to be a war for a long time. I don't give up easily."

Dr. Cornbleet was fatally stabbed in his downtown office on Oct. 24, 2006. He had treated Peterson for acne with Accutane (isotretinoin) in 2002. Cornbleet said that when Peterson later became impotent, he blamed the doctor.

After Dr. Cornbleet's death, Peterson traveled to St. Martin in the West Indies, officials said, and later obtained a French passport. Former roommates in the U.S. contacted Chicago police to report their suspicions that Peterson had been involved in the killing. In June, a warrant was issued in Cook County for his arrest.

U.S. Sens. Barack Obama (D, Ill.) and Dick Durbin (D, Ill.) sent a letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and the French Embassy in Washington, D.C., on Aug. 20, urging Peterson's extradition to the United States. The senators said Peterson apparently had sought to claim French citizenship to avoid prosecution in the U.S. After French officials denied an extradition request, the senators on Aug. 27 reiterated their request that Peterson be sent to the U.S.

Also last month, a relative of Peterson sent an e-mail to the media stating that Peterson was in a depressive psychosis in 2002 when he was prescribed Accutane.

The Cornbleet family has played an active role in the hunt for Dr. Cornbleet's killer, offering a $25,000 reward and setting up a page on MySpace.com. They have placed a petition online for supporters to sign and are hopeful that Peterson will be brought to the U.S.

"He's basically using the system to protect himself," Cornbleet said. "We're not going to go away."