MEDICAL BOARD RECORD—MD.025275 LICENSE STATUS/DISCIPLINARY ACTIONS—License Active; Past Disciplinary Action
Metairie doctor accused of selling drugs, threatening law enforcement
A criminal complaint was unsealed Monday against a Metairie doctor accused of drug distribution and threatening to murder law enforcement agents, according to U.S. Attorney Kenneth Polite.
Shannon Christopher Ceasar, 43, who lives in New Orleans and practices with Gulf South Physicians Group on Houma Boulevard, was arrested Friday. According to court records, Ceasar illegally dispensed and conspired with others to illegally dispense controlled substances, including Oxycodone, a Schedule II controlled substance. In addition, based on recorded telephone calls secured by law enforcement, Ceasar was charged with threatening to assault and/or murder federal law enforcement officers with the intent to interfere with their investigation or retaliate against them.
Polite’s office released the following threats made against law enforcement officers and the medical board:
“God help them, I swear to god…I have a f*$&ing arsenal in there enough to supply a small militia, you know I collect guns, I swear to god if they come in there with a warrant I’m going to kill every single one of those sons of bitches.”
“I am very serious…they won’t even be able to have an open casket funeral. There will be nothing left above the adam’s apple.”
“And I’m not sure if the time comes if I’m going to do it right there in the clinic or if I’m going to somehow break into the DEA office in that building by the lake and just f*$&ing blow the place up but somehow a vast majority of the DEA agents in this area will lose their lives if they f*$& with me.”
“Same thing goes for the medical board, that’ll be even sweeter…they are downtown.”
“…New Orleans will be all over the national news again because of me.”
“What I’ll do is make Baton Rouge look like a f*$&ing kindergarten.”
Ceasar made his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Court Judge Daniel E. Knowles III on Friday. At a detention hearing held Monday before U.S. Magistrate Court Judge Karen Wells Roby, Ceasar.
“As alleged, rather than doing no harm as a physician, Shannon Ceasar illegally dispensed Oxycodone into a community struggling with an epidemic of opioid addiction,” Polite said in a news release. “Then, when the governing medical board and law enforcement dared to challenge his criminality, Ceasar threatened to kill them. This level of disregard for human life, particularly from a physician, is absolutely despicable.”
If convicted, Ceasar faces a maximum of 20 years in prison on the drug charges and 10 years in prison for threatening to murder a federal agent. He also faces a maximum fine of $250,000 and a term of supervised release for three years, following any term of imprisonment. (LINK) — 7/25/2016
Doctor Indicted on Charges of Prescribing Drugs, Threats
A Metairie doctor has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of illegally prescribing oxycodone and threatening to kill federal agents.
U.S. Attorney Kenneth Polite said in a news release Thursday that Dr. Shannon Ceasar, the former owner of Gulf South Physicians Group, was arrested July 22.
A criminal complaint unsealed three days later said he had unlawfully prescribed controlled substances to patients in and outside his clinic. The complaint said at least two people who obtained narcotics with his prescriptions later died of drug overdoses.
Polite said the 43-year-old Ceasar is accused of threatening to assault or kill federal law enforcement officers and members of the Louisiana State Medical Board. (LINK)—09/30/2016
MEDICAL BOARD RECORD—34308 LICENSE STATUS/DISCIPLINARY ACTIONS—License Active; no board actions as of 7/30/216
Florence doctor indicted on 42 felony counts
Dr. Harinder Kumar Takyar, a family doctor in Florence, has been indicted by a grand jury on 42 felony counts after he allegedly prescribed controlled substances without medical necessity.
The indictment charges Takyar, 56, with having unlawfully “obtained or procured the administration of “oxycodone, alprazolam and hydrocodone, all used to treat pain. He is also charged with offering as much as $600 as compensation for the referral of patients to his offices in Florence, Mesa and Coolidge.
According to a press release from Attorney General Mark Brnovich’s office, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration Phoenix Division special agents joined the Attorney General’s Office in the investigation into Takyar’s distribution of controlled substances, leading to the discovery of his writing prescriptions for the narcotics and his payments to medical professionals sending patients to his offices. The indictment shows instances of compensation spanning as far back as 2013 and illicit prescriptions as far back as 2014, when the state began its investigation into the doctor’s “rotten and malignant business model.”
As previously reported, Brnovich filed the initial complaint against Takyar and his wife, Raman, in Maricopa County under the Arizona Racketeering Act and the Arizona Forfeiture Reform Act.
The complaint came after investigators found Takyar’s “illegitimate prescription-writing was so rampant and pronounced” that it led a Walgreens pharmacy manager to refuse to fill one of the doctor’s prescriptions without supporting medical documentation, which he refused to provide.
Lawsuits filed in Pinal, Pima and Maricopa counties quickly followed the state complaint; they included employees as well as former patients.
One patient turned defendant, who cooperated with a DEA agent in September 2014, admitted to becoming addicted to oxycodone after Takyar prescribed the pain medication following the patient’s gall bladder operation without performing an examination; the individual later said he or she experienced extreme withdrawal after being arrested.
Through the course of the investigation, agents also allegedly found at least seven people reselling oxycodone.
Takyar faces five counts of fraudulent schemes and artifices, five counts of administration of a narcotic drug, three counts of administration of a dangerous drug, five counts of accomplice to obtaining a narcotic drug by fraud, four counts of forgery and 17 counts of consideration for referral of patient. (LINK)—7/28/2016
MEDICAL BOARD RECORD—MD60201014 LICENSE STATUS/DISCIPLINARY ACTIONS—License Suspended
Seattle doctor pleads guilty in slaying of partner and toddler son
A Seattle physician pleaded guilty Thursday to killing his partner and their 2½-year-old son in August 2011 at their First Hill penthouse apartment.
A plea agreement reached Thursday has spared Dr. Louis Chen from the possibility of never getting out of prison for brutally stabbing his partner and slashing their son’s throat in August 2011.
The real battle between the state and defense will be over how much time the now- 43-year-old Chen should serve behind bars during a sentencing hearing that could take four or five days to complete, instead of the usual one to two hours.
Chen’s mental state at the time he killed Eric Cooper, 29, and their 2½-year-old son, Cooper Chen, will be the main focus, with the defense expected to call a number of mental-health experts to testify.
“It’ll be like a little trial,” King County Senior Deputy Prosecutor Don Raz said of Chen’s sentencing hearing, which hasn’t yet been scheduled.
Twenty-five years separates the defense’s sentence recommendation and the state’s, which could mean the difference between Chen gaining his freedom late in life or serving a de facto life sentence.
Chen — who was to stand trial in April — was originally charged with two counts of aggravated first-degree murder. But early on in the case, Prosecutor Dan Satterberg decided not to seek the death penalty, leaving life in prison without the possibility of release as the only possible punishment, had Chen been convicted as charged.
Raz on Thursday told Judge Bill Bowman the state agreed to amend the charges to better reflect Chen’s conduct and because of the risks to the state’s case in having to prove Eric Cooper’s murder was premeditated, and that the two killings were part of a common scheme or plan.
Chen pleaded guilty to premeditated first-degree murder for the death of Cooper Chen and intentional second-degree murder for Eric Cooper’s killing. Each charge also carries a deadly weapon enhancement, adding a total of four years to Chen’s prospective sentence.
He faces a standard-range sentence of 34 to 49 years, with the state planning to recommend he serve a top-end sentence of 49 years, according to Raz. As part of the plea deal, the state agreed to not seek an exceptional sentence above the standard range.
Chen’s defense team, however, will try to convince Bowman that Chen’s significant mental-health issues are mitigating factors that warrant a sentence below the standard range. They will recommend Chen serve 24 years in prison, the lowest possible sentence allowed.
By law, Chen must serve a minimum of 20 years on the first-degree-murder charge, plus another four years for the two deadly weapon enhancements.
“Dr. Chen has accepted responsibility for his conduct,” defense attorney Todd Maybrown said.
In spring 2011, Chen, an endocrinologist, moved to Seattle with his family from North Carolina for a job at Virginia Mason. When he didn’t show up for his first day of work on Aug. 11, 2011, a hospital manager went to Chen’s apartment, court records say.
Chen was naked and covered in dried blood when he answered the door, according to the records. Police found the bodies of Cooper, who had been stabbed more than 100 times, and their son, whose neck had been repeatedly cut, the records say.
Search warrants filed in the case indicate Chen was in the midst of an acrimonious breakup with Cooper.
Inside the apartment, homicide detectives found blood-soaked notes written by Chen, which they say provided evidence of a possible dual motive: that Chen feared Cooper would report his prescription-drug abuse and the abuse of his prescribing powers as a doctor, or use that information against Chen in a future child-custody dispute.
As Chen’s trial date approached, court documents revealed that the defense may have been planning to argue that cough syrup-induced psychosis contributed to the murders. (LINK) — 02/25/2016
George Gowder III MEDICAL BOARD RECORD—25163 LICENSE STATUS/DISCIPLINARY ACTIONS—Document on file
Virginia Lou Gowder Harkins NURSING BOARD RECORD—RN051089 LICENSE STATUS/DISCIPLINARY ACTIONS—No actions as of 07/25/2016
Doctors, family members accused of prescription drug fraud
Six people, including doctors and family members of the doctors, were arrested Thursday in connection to prescription drug fraud.
Dr. [Michael] Gowder, the CEO of Union General Hospital in Blairsville, was arrested at his office and charged with two counts of fraudulently obtaining a controlled substance and a count of conspiracy to distribute, according to Lumpkin County District Attorney Jeff Langley.
Blairsville is about 100 miles north of Atlanta.
John Gowder’s brother, Dr. George Gowder III, was also arrested and charged with seven counts of unauthorized distribution of a controlled substance and 36 counts of fraudulently obtaining a controlled substance. George Gowder is a former board member and emergency room doctor at the hospital, according to the district attorney.
John Gowder’s wife, Gail Gowder, was also arrested and charged with two counts of fraudulently obtaining a controlled substance.
Virginia Harkins, the sister of the Gowder brothers and a nurse practitioner with Appalachian Home Health, was charged with two counts of fraudulently obtaining a controlled substance and one count of conspiracy to distribute.
Harkins’ daughter, Jamie Harkins, was charged with two counts of fraudulently obtaining a controlled substance and one count of conspiracy to distribute.
Dr. James Heaton, a board member and doctor, was also charged with 41 counts of unauthorized distribution of a controlled substance. (LINK) — 02/04/2016
MEDICAL BOARD RECORD—125052257 LICENSE STATUS/DISCIPLINARY ACTIONS—Licence Cancelled; deceased
A physician’s scary journey from Nepal to a death in county jail
KATHMANDU, Nepal – In this mountainous country bordered by India and China, doctors are considered to be godlike.
That makes the fall of Dr. Shiva Lal Acharya, who left a farming village to attend Nepal’s most prestigious medical school and then moved to Chicago for a residency program, even more shocking for his friends and family.
On Dec. 13, Dr. Acharya died after hanging himself in the Allegheny County Jail. He had been in custody since September, when he was charged with hitting and killing a motorcyclist on the Pennsylvania Turnpike and then running from the scene of the crash.
“I rued his wrong decision-making,” said Dr. Ranjan Sapkota, a friend and classmate of Dr. Acharya who lives in Kathmandu, Nepal’s capital. “As a doctor, he should have guarded the dead body.”
Both in Nepal and in the U.S., those who knew the 33-year-old Dr. Acharya described him as a brilliant student who came from humble roots to excel in his studies and his career.
But his path was filled with obstacles: bipolar disorder, alcohol abuse and a failed marriage.
“His message was that he had to struggle at every step in his life,” said James Joshi, an associate professor in the School of Information Sciences at the University of Pittsburgh, who visited Dr. Acharya at the jail.
Dr. Acharya grew up in the village of Padampur, a dusty backwater in Nepal’s southern plains, about a five-hour drive from Kathmandu. His family farmed rice, corn and other vegetables and lived in a cramped house with a tin roof.
In primary school, Dr. Acharya finished fourth in his class. In hopes of spurring him to greater success, his older brother, Krishna Acharya, promised to buy him a wristwatch if he could get top grades in secondary school.
The young Dr. Acharya accepted the challenge. He would study for hours at time, often putting a stone under his mattress to keep himself from falling asleep, his brother said.
“Since then, he was never second in his class,” Krishna Acharya said.
In 1991, Dr. Acharya headed to Kathmandu for a science program, but a bout of jaundice forced him to return home during the first semester.
He enrolled in a college near his village, and his teachers later encouraged him to take the entrance exam for Kathmandu’s Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital. Over a two-week period, he studied non-stop, eating only milk and bread, his brother said.
Dr. Acharya received a scholarship to attend the medical program, which accepts just 50 students a year. He moved back to the capital in 1996.
“He was hardworking, a better student than me,” said Dr. Sapkota, who comes from the same region of Nepal. “He was very friendly and amicable.”
But Dr. Acharya would turn combative when he drank too much alcohol, often fighting with friends after small disagreements.
Heavy drinking was a normal part of life for students who were away from home for the first time and were living in hostels, with two or three people sharing a single room.
Dr. Acharya also experienced a personal tragedy during his medical school years. His closest friend and fellow classmate suffered from a mental illness and committed suicide.
At some point, Dr. Acharya started experiencing his own problems with bipolar disorder and depression, illnesses that ran in the family, according to Mukesh Singh, president of the Association of Nepalese in Midwest America, who has been in touch with the doctor’s relatives.
Yet Dr. Acharya seemed to overcome his troubles. He scored high grades on his medical school exams, and he became involved with research projects, including one on smoking habits in Nepal.
And he focused on going to the U.S. to continue his studies, a favorite destination for many new Nepalese doctors from his medical school.
Dr. Acharya made his journey in 2005 and lived in New York for a while, but he struggled to get a spot in a residency program at an American hospital, Dr. Sapkota said.
In 2007, his prospects seemed to brighten. He returned to Nepal for an arranged marriage with 31-year-old Sumitra Gautam Sharma, who was also studying to be a doctor. The couple married within two weeks of their meeting, said Dr. Acharya’s nephew, Ramesh Lamichhane, who lives in Harrisburg.
Dr. Acharya then moved with his new wife to Chicago, where, in June of last year, he started a three-year residency in internal medicine at Saint Joseph Hospital.
He and his wife quickly had problems, Mr. Lamichhane said. She left within a few months and went back to Nepal, even though she was pregnant. Dr. Acharya would never see their son.
“He was totally depressed without her, and he was wondering about the baby,” Mr. Lamichhane said.
Dr. Acharya tried repeatedly to get his wife to come back. He traveled to Nepal to try to convince her. She refused.
At the hospital in Chicago, Dr. Acharya’s supervisor told him to seek support for his struggles with depression. A year into his residency, he began looking for other jobs.
On Sept. 4, Dr. Acharya was driving in a black BMW on an Ohio highway, headed to Easton, Northampton County, for an interview at another hospital, when police tried to pull him over for speeding.
A few days before, he had been stopped and arrested on drunken driving charges, and he feared a new arrest would prevent him from making the interview, he later told police and friends. So he tried to get away, hitting speeds of up to 130 miles per hour as he sped down the highway, according to police.
A Pennsylvania state police cruiser was waiting for Dr. Acharya when he crossed the Ohio border, but he still didn’t stop.
About 33 miles east of the border, near Warrendale on the Pennsylvania Turnpike, Dr. Acharya lost control of his car. He slammed on the brakes and hit a motorcycle hauling a small trailer.
Keith Brown, a Wisconsin man who was driving the motorcycle, was killed in the collision. The married father of one son had been on his way to visit a sister in Virginia.
According to testimony from his preliminary hearing, Dr. Acharya got out of the car before it had stopped moving and was dragged several feet along the berm. He told police he checked Mr. Brown and determined the man’s injuries weren’t fatal – but he later told friends that he didn’t know he had hit anyone.
“I think he was totally scared,” Mr. Joshi said.
Dr. Acharya ran, barefoot, into the woods. Police spent four hours searching for him, using infrared scanners, bloodhounds and a helicopter.
Dr. Acharya emerged from the woods about two miles east of the crash scene and surrendered to the first trooper he saw. He had injuries to his leg and a laceration above one of his eyes.
On Sept. 26, a judge ordered the doctor to stand trial on a range of charges, including involuntary manslaughter, homicide by vehicle, third-degree murder and fleeing and eluding police.
From Chicago to Pittsburgh, Nepalese immigrants banded together to raise money for Dr. Acharya’s legal defense, even though many were appalled by what had happened.
“There were a lot of people who felt what he had done was wrong, based on news accounts,” said Sharda Thapa, the founder of the Chicagoland Nepali Pariwar, a social and charitable organization. “All we were trying to do was make sure he got a fair trial.”
Mr. Joshi and Sushil Acharya, an assistant professor of software engineering at Robert Morris University, who is not related to Dr. Acharya, went to visit the doctor at the county jail on behalf of Pittsburgh’s small Nepalese community. His nephew, Mr. Lamichhane, also visited and kept in touch with relatives in Nepal.
Dr. Acharya told them that he wanted to hire a private lawyer. They agreed to help him.
About a week before his death, he met with defense attorney Sid Sokolsky, who was alarmed by his client’s mental health problems.
“I got the sense he thought everyone was against him,” Mr. Sokolsky said. He appeared “very paranoid.”
The attorney said he had planned to ask for a competency hearing for Dr. Acharya.
Mr. Lamichhane said his uncle was taking medication while he was in the jail and was housed in a special needs pod, where corrections officers check on each prisoner every 15 to 30 minutes.
Dr. Acharya was found hanged from a bedsheet in his cell, Warden Ramon Rustin said.
His body was cremated on Dec. 19. Sushil Acharya and Mr. Lamichhane are making arrangements to send his remains back to Nepal, so his family can spread the ashes in a river near his home, in keeping with Hindu traditions.
In addition to his brother, he is survived by his parents, two sisters and a son, Khem Acharya, who was born in June.
“He loved me so much,” said his father, Nanda Lal Acharya, 67.
His mother, 63-year-old Kharika Acharya, rarely speaks or eats since Dr. Acharya’s death, Mr. Lamichhane said.
She had asked him not to leave Nepal. (LINK) — 12/8/2008
MEDICAL BOARD RECORD—01064025A LICENSE STATUS/DISCIPLINARY ACTIONS—Emergency Suspension; litigation pending
South Bend doctor charged with child molesting
A South Bend physician has been arrested and charged with one count of child molesting, a class C felony.
The child was not a patient.
Jon Andrew Shull was arrested Tuesday afternoon by St. Joseph County Police.
According to the probable cause affidavit, between February 1 and March 1, 2014, Shull forced a girl under the age of 14 to touch his genitals.
Shull allegedly told someone with Cass County Child Protective Services that he had inappropriately touched the young girl while at a home in Granger, Indiana.
St. Joseph County Police then began an investigation.
In November 2015, the victim said Shull touched her buttocks and made her touch his genitals in February 2014, according to court documents.
Beacon Medical Group confirmed Shull was an employee, but he hasn’t worked for them since 2015.
He had worked at the Southeast Neighborhood Clinic in South Bend as a physician.
An employee told ABC57 they were informed of his arrest on Wednesday. (LINK) — 02/03/2016
South Bend doctor charged with child molestation will keep his medical license, has trial date set
A South Bend doctor will get to keep his medical license for now as he faces child molestation charges.
Jon Andrew Shull appeared in a St. Joseph County courtroom Thursday for his initial hearing on charges of Child Molesting. Shull, 36, stands accused of inappropriately touching a child under the age of 14.
Shull was a physician with Beacon Health System until 2015. Court documents say Shull admitted to molestation accusations related to an incident that occurred in 2014, but that his victim was not a patient. A motion filed by the prosecution to strip Shull of his state medical license was denied in court, and his bond was set at $3,000.
At last update, Shull is still listed as being in custody at the St. Joseph County Jail. He is scheduled to face trial on July 11. (LINK) — 02/04/2016
After molestation arrest, SB family doctor has license suspended
A South Bend family doctor has had his license suspended following his recent arrest for alleged molestation of a young family member.
Dr. Jon Shull, 36, was arrested on Jan. 29.
Shull used to work for Beacon Health Group at the Southeast Neighborhood Health Center as a family physician.
After Shull’s arrest, the Indiana Attorney General’s Office filed a petition for emergency suspension of his license, alleging the behavior prompting his arrest represents a threat to public health and safety.
The petition calls for a temporary suspension of his license while the criminal charges are pending and while the Attorney General’s Office completes its investigation against the license holder.
The Medical Licensing Board of Indiana unanimously approved the petition Thursday.
“The criminal allegations against this license holder demonstrate a risk to the public, particularly to the patients who placed their trust in this doctor to care for their families,” Attorney General Greg Zoeller said. “The Board’s action today upholds public health and safety while my office continues its investigation into these allegations.” (LINK) — 02/25/2016
MEDICAL BOARD RECORD—website not working LICENSE STATUS/DISCIPLINARY ACTIONS—
Clinic Owner Who Settled Wrongful Death Lawsuit Still Practicing Medicine
The owner of a methadone clinic in Brainerd who settled a wrongful death lawsuit last week is still practicing medicine at his facility, despite being disciplined by state regulators for over-prescribing controlled substances.
Dr. John Stroemer, who has a long history of medical mistakes dating back to 1989, owns Pinnacle Recovery Services. He acknowledged last week that his clinic likely would have been found negligent for its role in a 2012 deadly wreck.
One of Stroemer’s patients, Vanessa Brigan, caused the crash that killed two Carlton County employees after she received methadone. She injected a take-home dose of the powerful narcotic before driving impaired down Minnesota Highway 210.
“I think you have to go back to the methadone clinic and the fact that they were negligent in starting the whole series of events that caused the accident,” said David Lingren, whose son, Mitch, was killed in the crash.
Despite the settlement, which allows families of the victims to seek at least $5.7 million in damages from the clinic’s insurance companies, Stroemer denied any wrongdoing and maintained he provided appropriate treatment, according to his attorney.
“Unfortunately, the patient did not comply with what they directed,” lawyer John Degnan said in reference to Brigan’s actions prior to the crash.
In 2015, the Minnesota Board of Medical Practice found that Dr. Stroemer provided inappropriate treatment to other patients and had “routinely provided excessive quantities of controlled substances,” according to state records reviewed by 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS.
Those records show Stroemer has a long history of endangering patients. He was suspended twice from 1989-1991 for abandoning patients, providing substandard care, and failing to monitor his treatment for chemical dependency. In 1996, he delivered a breech baby with the smell of alcohol in his breath.
Yet, time after time, Stroemer was given second chance after second chance. Permanent suspension of a physician’s license is rare, according to the board.
“Revoking someone’s livelihood is not a decision that the board makes easily and does not frequently impose,” Executive Director Ruth Martinez said.
In 2004, the board reinstated Stroemer’s license with no conditions. He opened Pinnacle in 2011 and is still allowed to practice medicine at the clinic despite the most recent disciplinary action.
“His current restrictions don’t even allow him to practice controlled substances,” Martinez said. The restrictions on Stroemer’s medical license and his history of providing improper care does not affect his ability to own a licensed methadone clinic, according to the Minnesota Department of Human Services.
“They had removed any of that medication-related responsibility from him,” Inspector General Jerry Kerber said.
Kerber says a clinic’s license can only be revoked in certain situations like fraud or mistreatment of a vulnerable adult.
The Lingren family, who agreed to settle their wrongful death lawsuit against Stroemer to avoid a long and painful trial, wonder when the troubled doctor will run out of second chances.
“It’s just so frustrating for us,” Kathy Lingren said. (LINK) — 02/01/2016
MEDICAL BOARD RECORD—44317 LICENSE STATUS/DISCIPLINARY ACTIONS—License Revoked
Unprofessional, dishonorable or unethical conduct; conviction of a felony, conviction of any offense involving moral turpitude or conviction of any offense for which the person is required to register as a sexual offender or violent sexual offender pursuant to title 40, chapter 39, part 2
Former Chattanooga doctor will move back to India to avoid prison
A former Chattanooga doctor charged with trying to sleep with children will not go to prison.
In a deal worked out last month between defense attorneys and prosecutors, Vikul Vinobhai Patel agreed to move back to India. In exchange, Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit Assistant District Attorney Chris Arnt agreed not to prosecute Patel.
Patel was arrested in September 2012 on two counts of attempted aggravated child molestation, two counts of attempted child molestation and two counts of violating Georgia’s computer pornography law. According to a police report, Patel told investigators he drove from Chattanooga to Rossville because he thought he could have sex with an 11-year-old and a 14-year-old.
The lead investigator on Patel’s case, FBI Special Agent Ken Hillman, has been under scrutiny since early 2013. A task force member said Hillman had an affair with a woman and let her investigate “To Catch a Predator”-style cases like Patel’s even though the woman was not a trained officer.
Prosecutors with the U.S. Department of Justice said two years ago they were investigating Hillman for a potential criminal case.
Arnt said he could not prosecute Patel without putting Hillman on the stand, but the Department of Justice has “refused” to make him available as a witness. The Department of Justice has also not publicly disclosed the status of the Hillman investigation, making it difficult for Arnt to know when — if ever — the FBI agent can testify.
“This was better than the very real possibility that we might never be able to proceed with this case,” Arnt said in an email when asked about last month’s agreement.
“The prosecutors agreed to a reasonable resolution,” said Brian Steel, one of Patel’s attorneys.
According to the police report in September 2012, Patel chatted online with Hillman, who posed as a father offering his children for sex. The two men exchanged emails and talked on the phone. After communicating over a four-day period, Patel drove to a designated location in Rossville, where officers arrested him on Sept. 2, 2012.
Patel told investigators he thought he was going to have sex with children that night, according to the police report. The investigation was conducted by the Northwest Georgia Crimes Against Children Task Force, which was led by Hillman but staffed by local police officers.
Members of the task force posted ads on websites like Craigslist, offering sex with children. Like with the Patel case, investigators hoped to lure potential pedophiles by arranging a meeting at a specific location and place, where officers were waiting.
About seven weeks after Patel’s arrest, Ringgold police officer Tom Evans stopped Hillman and Angela Russell as they drove away from a Ringgold bar, allegedly drunk. Instead of testing the driver’s blood alcohol level, Evans drove them to a condo in East Ridge.
Russell has not mentioned working on Patel’s case, but defense attorneys began questioning the integrity of all of Hillman’s cases. In 2014, the FBI suspended Hillman, and prosecutors with the Department of Justice said they were looking into whether the agent broke the law.
The agreement Patel signed says if he returns to the U.S., the district attorney’s office can prosecute him.
Patel used to practice at Nephrology Associates, located on North Lyerly Street. Within days of his arrest, the practice’s board of directors suspended him. Last year, the Tennessee Board of Medical Examiners revoked his license. (LINK) — 07/23/2016
MEDICAL BOARD RECORD—6075 LICENSE STATUS/DISCIPLINARY ACTIONS—none listed as of 07/23/2016
Tulsa dentist accused in boy’s death lived double life, records show
A dentist who is accused of killing a toddler with a blow to the head, was leading a double life, according to court documents.
Bert Franklin, 35, lives with his wife and four children in a $1.3 million home in Tulsa.
He had a yearlong affair with the Oklahoma City woman whose 19-month-old boy was killed.
Oklahoma City police Detective Andrea Motley said in an arrest warrant for first-degree murder that neither woman knew of the other.
The girlfriend said she had been extremely concerned because Franklin had begun to exhibit “controlling behavior,” Motley said. The girlfriend also told the detective that Franklin hated the boy’s father and had threatened to kill the man, “skin him in Bricktown” and cut off a body part.
Franklin, who has practiced dentistry in Tulsa for eight years, is in the Tulsa County jail, without bail, awaiting transfer to Oklahoma County.
The doctor who treated 19-month-old Lincoln Von Henry Lewis at Mercy Hospital Oklahoma called police Sunday to report injuries consistent with abuse.
Lincoln’s head had pinpoints of blood in the skin near the right rear of his skull, likely the location of impact. He had hemorrhaging in both eyes and severe swelling and trauma to his brain, the warrant states.
The boy died Monday afternoon at a Tulsa hospital.
The “fracture demonstrated a high degree of force to cross multiple suture lines through multiple bones.” A second skull fracture on the side of the boy’s head was revealed during the autopsy, the warrant states.
The boy’s mother said Lincoln and Franklin were alone in the downstairs living room of her home in Oklahoma City when she heard a loud “thud.” Franklin said the noise was made by throwing a small ball to a puppy.
The detective said Franklin’s story is inconsistent with the noise the boy’s mother heard.
“He was the sole care provider for the time frame prior to the boy being symptomatic,” she said in the warrant.
The boy’s mother had surveillance equipment in the home. Police seized an external hard drive from that system. (LINK) — 07/21/2016
MEDICAL BOARD RECORD—95-162 LICENSE STATUS/DISCIPLINARY ACTIONS—License Suspended
Las Cruces doctor facing new criminal charges, civil suit
New criminal charges and a civil lawsuit have been filed against a neurologist accused of groping four male patients at his practice in Las Cruces.
On Monday, a detective with the Las Cruces Police Department filed two criminal complaints in Doña Ana County Magistrate Court against Dr. Robert Woody, who was indicted in March by Doña Ana County grand jury on charges of criminal sexual contact and kidnapping.
Woody, 63, of 600 block of Tumbleweed Road in Chaparral, is now facing a total of seven charges, including four counts of first-degree kidnapping and three misdemeanor counts of criminal sexual contact, according to court documents. However, the four latest charges have not been presented to a grand jury for indictment.
Meanwhile, one of the four accusers is seeking unspecified compensation for damages from Woody in a civil lawsuit filed last month in 3rd Judicial District Court in Las Cruces, court records show.
Court documents in the three criminal cases show similar patterns of alleged inappropriate behavior by Woody, whose license to practice medicine in New Mexico was revoked soon after he was indicted in March.
The first case involves two patients in separate incidents that were alleged to have occurred on June 12, 2013, and June 17, 2015. Both patients told police that Woody had asked them to undress before asking them a series of sexually charged questions about their sexual activity and preferences during appointments.
In both incidents, the patients alleged that Woody had caressed their chests and fondled their groin areas. In the 2013 incident, the patient said, “Woody approached him and placed himself between his legs and thrust himself toward him groin to groin,” according to court documents, and that Woody “began to rub (the patient) in an apparent attempt to arouse him.”
In the 2015 incident, the patient told police that Woody had also kissed him several times on the neck before he left the office. In both cases, the patients alleged that Woody had locked the door to the examination rooms — the basis for the kidnapping charges.
The latest cases also involve two male patients in incidents that allegedly took place between August 2014 to January 2016. In the criminal complaints filed Monday, the two men said their encounters with Woody also included inappropriate questions about their sexual activity, in addition to fondling and groping.
One patient, who was seeking treatment for a brain injury, said that during four examinations with Woody, he had been instructed to completely undress and that Woody had “conducted an exam” of his groin area while he groped himself, according to the complaint.
Both men reported their allegations to police on March 16, records show. In order to protect the identifies of the victims, the Sun-News is withholding their names.
By June 8, the patient in 2013 incident filed a civil complaint against Woody and five unnamed medical practices owned and operated by Woody. The lawsuit accuses Woody of battery and assault and inflicting emotional distress.
It alleges that the patient had only given contest for Woody to examine his skull, not his groin. “(Woody’s) behavior was not justified under any circumstance since the (patient) came to (Woody’s) office for an examination for headaches and skull malformations, and at no point did the examination necessitate the touching of (the patient’s) groin,” the complaint says.
The patient, who is being represented by Albuquerque attorney Ryan H. Harrigan and El Paso attorney Marco Aranda, is seeking “compensatory damages in an amount to be proven at trial,” in addition to court and prosecution costs, punitive damages, and pre- and post-judgement interest.
No trial has been set in the civil lawsuit, according to court records. But a jury trial in Woody’s first criminal case has been scheduled to begin on Oct. 5 before District Judge Douglas Driggers in 3rd Judicial District Court. If the new cases resulted in grand jury indictments, it is unclear what impact, if any, they would have on the current trial setting.
In the meantime, Woody is not allowed to practice medicine in New Mexico.
According to Amanda Quintana, spokeswoman for the New Mexico Medical Board, Woody’s medical license was “summarily suspended” on March 18.
In Woody’s notice of suspension, Dr. Steven M. Jenkusky, the chairman of medical board, wrote: “(T)he board finds and concludes that you pose a clear and immediate danger to the public health and safety if you continue to practice medicine in the State of New Mexico.”
Woody’s summary suspension will remain in effect until the medical board enters a further order, Quintana said on Wednesday. Filings by the medical board indicate that it will not enter any further orders until resolutions are reached in the criminal matters.
Woody, who had been a licensed doctor in New Mexico since 1995, is being represented by El Paso attorneys Jim and Jeep Darnell. He has never been arrested on the charges and remains free on bond. (LINK) — 07/21/2016
Las Cruces doctor accused of groping patients again indicted
LAS CRUCES - A Las Cruces neurologist accused of sexually assaulting several male patients at his practice has been indicted by Doña Ana County grand jury for the second time this year, court records show.
Dr. Robert Woody, 63, of the 600 block of Tumbleweed Road in Chaparral, is charged with two counts of first-degree kidnapping with intent to commit a sexual offense and two misdemeanor counts of criminal sexual contact, according to an indictment filed Aug. 18 in 3rd Judicial District Court in Las Cruces.
In March, Woody was indicted for the first time on two counts of first-degree kidnapping with intent to commit a sexual offense and one misdemeanor count of criminal sexual contact. His license to practice medicine in New Mexico was suspended on March 18, according to records from the New Mexico Medical Board.
In both cases, Woody is accused of making sexual advances toward four adult male patients between 2013 and 2015.
Court filings suggest that Woody had asked the patients a series of questions about their sexual activity and preferences during appointments. Some of the patients also reported that Woody had kissed them on their necks, caressed their chests and fondled their groin areas.
Woody is scheduled to be arraigned in the most recent case on Sept. 6 in 3rd Judicial District Court. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges in the first indictment. In that case, his trial is scheduled to begin on Oct. 5 before District Judge Douglas Driggers, court records show.
Woody, who was never arrested on the charges, remains free on a $20,000 secured bond.
Meanwhile, a civil lawsuit filed against Woody by one the four accusers is pending in 3rd Judicial District Court. This week, the patient and his attorney filed paperwork demanding a 12-person jury trial, records show. No trial has been scheduled. (LINK) — 08/25/2016
Jury delivers 3 different verdicts on groping charges against Las Cruces doctor
LAS CRUCES - A Doña County jury delivered a mixed verdict late Friday against a Las Cruces neurologist accused of sexually assaulting multiple patients.
The jury of 10 women and two men convicted Dr. Robert Woody, 65, of one misdemeanor count of criminal sexual contact and acquitted him of a second similar count. But jurors were deadlocked on the third count of criminal sexual contact and were unable to reach a unanimous verdict, forcing a mistrial on this charge.
The jury deliberated for more than seven hours before delivering the mixed verdict after 7 p.m. Friday, the fifth day of Woody’s trial in 3rd Judicial District Court in Las Cruces.
The jury foreman told the court that jurors were split “almost 50-50” on the third count. The District Attorney’s Office intents to retry Woody on the deadlocked charge in another trial at a later date, according to a spokesman.
Woody, who has been licensed to practice medicine in New Mexico since 1995, faces a maximum sentence of 364 days behind bars on the single misdemeanor conviction.
A request from prosecutors to keep Woody in custody without bond until sentencing was denied by District Judge Douglas Driggers, who presided over the trial. Driggers instead placed Woody on a set of strict conditions of release under a $10,000 unsecured appearance and ordered that he report to the probation office on Tuesday morning to begin a pre-sentence report.
“This defendant took advantage of patients who trusted him to provide care for their medical issues,” District Attorney Mark D’Antonio said Friday in a statement. “I genuinely hope that today’s outcome gives the victims in this case some closure. I applaud the courage of the victims who came forward and testified, helping to assure that Dr. Woody will be held accountable for his inappropriate and criminal behavior.”
Woody was charged with the crimes in 2016 after four male patients came forward with accusations that the doctor had sexually assaulted them during examinations at his Las Cruces office — which has since been closed. He was accused of fondling the patients, asking them sexually-charged questions and, in one case, kissing one of the men on his neck.
His medical license was summarily suspended by the New Mexico Medical Board in March 2016. A spokeswoman for the board did not immediately comment Friday on how any conviction or acquittal would impact the status of Woody’s medical license.
In addition to the criminal sexual contact charges, Woody had also been charged with multiple counts of first-degree kidnapping. But those charges were dismissed for a lack of sufficient evidence by Driggers after the fourth day of the trial, which got underway on Monday.
The directive verdict on the kidnapping charges significantly reduced Woody’s prison exposure.
Prosecutors on Friday argued that Woody had abused his power as a doctor and sought sexual gratification in his encounters with the accusing patients. But Woody’s defense team dismissed the charges as an attack on what they characterized as “good medicine” and a “good doctor.”
“Dr. Woody is a good doctor,” El Paso defense attorney Jim Darnell said during closing arguments. “He’s a grouch. He’s rude. He’s crude. He doesn’t always answer questions the way he should. But he’s a doctor — and he’s a good doctor.”
Darnell said Woody touched the patients on their groins and buttocks as part of routine examinations.
“Doctors have to fix patients and to do that you have to touch your patients,” he said.
But the men alleged Woody’s actions went beyond touching. One witness, a former patient, testified Friday that Woody caressed his buttocks in what he perceived as a sexual manner. Another former patient alleged that Woody had kissed him on his neck after groping his groin.
Senior trial attorney Heather Chavez, who prosecuted the case alongside Deputy District Attorney Daniel Sewell, urged the jury to hold Woody accountable for his actions.
“He used his position as a cloak, a shroud, to manipulate and take advantage of people who came to him for help. By letting him go home, you are sending the message that that’s OK,” Chavez said.
Darnell questioned the motives of the former patients, pointing out that they’ve all filed separate civil lawsuits against Woody seeking monetary settlements.
Court records show four civil suits have been filed against Woody since 2016, all of which are still pending. (LINK)—1/12/2018
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