Two NECC Defendants Seek Separate Trial

By Walter F. Roche Jr.

Two of the nine remaining defendants in a criminal case stemming from a deadly fungal meningitis outbreak are asking the presiding judge to either exclude major pieces of evidence or grant them a trial separate from the remaining defendants who are facing more serious charges.
In a nine-page filing today lawyers for Kathy Chin and Michelle Thomas, said the evidence prosecutors plan to present against the seven other defendants would be highly prejudicial.
The evidence in question relates to the deaths and injuries caused by fungus riddled steroid drugs produced by the New England Compounding Center, the now defunct company that employed Chin and Thomas.
The two were among 14 persons connected to NECC who were indicted in late 2014 following a two year probe of the 2012 fungal meningitis outbreak. Some 76 patients died among nearly 800 who were sickened after being injected with fungus laden methylprednisolone acetate shipped from NECC's facility in Framingham, Mass.
In their filing today, attorneys Michael Bourbeau and Joan Griffin, wrote that the evidence in question "has no relevance whatsoever" to the charges against" their respective clients.
Thomas and Chin, the filing states, had nothing to do with the clean room where the tainted drugs were produced.
The two face charges of misbranding drugs, while the others face racketeering and conspiracy among other charges.
"It will be difficult if not impossible for the jury to make a reliable judgment," the motion states, citing the prospect of confusion among the jurors.
Chin is the wife of Glenn Chin who was a supervising pharmacist at NECC. Chin was convicted on racketeering and conspiracy charges and is currently serving an eight sentence at a federal prison in Pennsylvania. He was in charge of the clean room where the tainted drugs were manufactured.
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