NECC Defendant Seeks to Limit Prosecutors

By Walter F. Roche Jr.

One of the remaining defendants in the criminal case stemming from a deadly outbreak is seeking to block federal prosecutors from holding her responsible for illegal acts of her co-workers at a drug compounding firm.
In a six-page motion filed in U.S. District Court in Boston, Mass. the lawyer for Kathy Chin said federal prosecutors have indicated they will make the argument that she should be held responsible for the acts of other because she was the only licensed pharmacist to check over pharmacy shipments from the New England Compounding Center.
"Ms. Chin's job was to check that drugs were being sent to the right facility,"the six-page motion filed by Joan M. Griffin states, adding she "had no responsibility for checking prescriptions or patient names."
Chin is the spouse of Glenn Chin who was a supervising pharmacist at NECC. He already is serving an eight year prison sentence following his conviction on racketeering and mail fraud charges.
Kathy Chin and seven other defendants are scheduled to go on trial Oct. 2. All were affiliated with NECC. She is charged with sending out prescription drugs without valid prescriptions, a requirement under Massachusetts law.
Charging that prosecutors are trying to make her responsible for the illegal acts of others because she was the only licensed pharmacist involved in shipping NECC's drug, the motion states, "Ms. Chin was a low level employee in the shipping department and had no supervisory role at the company.
"Kathy Chin cannot be held criminally responsible for alleged wrongdoing by her co-workers simply because she is a pharmacist," the motion concludes.
The 2012 fungal meningitis outbreak sickened 778 patients, killing 76 of them. Chin and her husband were among 14 indicted in 2014 following a two year federal probe of the outbreak.
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