New York Times, "Judge Denies Merck Request at Vioxx Trial"

          A state court judge ruled Thursday night that the coroner who conducted the autopsy of Robert Ernst, who died after taking the painkiller Vioxx, can testify in the lawsuit that Mr. Ernst's widow has brought against Merck, the maker of the drug.
          In a two-page ruling, the state district court judge, Ben Hardin, ruled against a request from Merck that the coroner, Dr. Maria Araneta, be prevented from testifying in the case, the first Vioxx-related personal injury lawsuit to reach trial.
          Merck had claimed that lawyers for Mr. Ernst's family had not given the company sufficient notice of their plans to call her and that her testimony might unfairly harm the defense.
          But Judge Hardin rejected both arguments.
          Dr. Araneta's autopsy found that Mr. Ernst died of an arrhythmia, or irregular heartbeat. While Vioxx has repeatedly been linked to heart attacks, lawyers for Merck say that Vioxx has never been shown to cause arrhythmias. So Dr. Araneta's autopsy proves that Vioxx is not connected to Mr. Ernst's death, Merck's lawyers say.