The Nation - News from Dec. 2, 1988

The ex-girlfriend of a lawyer accused of fatally beating his illegally adopted daughter testified that she did not seek emergency help for the 6-year-old because she thought her lover had healing powers. Hedda Nussbaum, fighting back sobs, got her first sight of Joel Steinberg since the two were arrested in New York in the November, 1987, death of Lisa Steinberg. Steinberg, 47, is charged with second-degree murder. Charges against Nussbaum have been dropped. Lisa’s death gained national attention when it became known that teachers and friends of the family had noticed symptoms of abuse but failed to notify anybody.