By Walter F. Roche Jr.
Calling the 2012 fungal menngitis outbreak a "pharmaceutical accident is ludicrous," an assistant Michigan Attorney General has charged in court papers.
The statement was contained in a recent filing in Livingston Circuit Court in which Assistant Michigan Attorney General Gregory Townsend was responding to motions filed in Barry J. Cadden's behalf seeking a change in venue for the upcoming trial. Cadden is also seeking to have second degree murder charges dismissed claiming they amount to double jeopardy.
Cadden and Glenn Chin have been charged with 11 counts of second degree murder for their roles in the deadly outbreak.
Cadden was president and part owner of the New England Compounding Center, the company blamed for the outbreak which ultimately took the lives of more than 100 patients. Chin supervised the NECC clean room where the contaminated drugs were produced.
Gerald Gleeson, Cadden's lawyer, has charged that it would be impossible for his client to get a fair trial in Livingston County because of the number of outbreak victims and their survivors who live there.
"A substantial portion of prospective jurors are likely to personally know a patient who actually received a contaminated Methylprednisolone injection," the motion states.
Gleeson's motion also cites multiple news stories in which victims from the area were quoted.
Calling the case "uniquely notorious," the motion states that there was "no precedent in Michigan for bringing murder charges for harms arising from a pharmaceutical accident."
Responding to the motion, Townsend argued that a request for a change in venue to another Michigan County was premature and should only be considered after a jury has been selected.
Gleeson's motion to have second degree murder charges dismissed cited the fact that a federal jury in Massachuetts had declined to find the second degree murder charges to be part of a racketeering operation.
The motion states that both the Michigan and U.S. Constitutions bar someone from being charged twice for the same offense.
Townsend, in reply, noted that Cadden wasn't specifically charged with second degree murder in the federal case. The patient deaths were so-called predicate acts under the racketeering charges.
Both Cadden and Chin were convicted of racketeering and conspiracy charges in the federal case. Cadden was given a nine-year sentence while Chin was given an eight year sentence.
Contact: wfrochejr999@gmail.com
Wednesday, October 28, 2020
Tuesday, October 27, 2020
Prosecutor Seeks Convictions in Compounding Case
By Walter F. Roche Jr.
A federal prosecutor told an appeals court panel today that not only was it possible for officials of a drug company to defraud the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in fact they succeeded.
"The conspiracy was successful,"U.S. Justice Department attorney Ross Goldman argued in a nearly one hour hearing in federal court in Boston, Mass.
Goldman was asking a three judge panel to reverse the decision of U.S. District Court Judge Richard G. Stearns who overturned unanimous guilty jury verdicts and dismissed the conspiracy charges against Gregory Conigliaro and Sharon Carter.
Conigliaro was vice president and part owner of the now defunct New England Compounding Center, the company blamed for a deadly 2012 fungal meningitis outbreak. Carter was NECC's director of operations.
Daniel Rabinowitz, Conigliaro's lawyer, stated that it was a legal impossibility for his client to defraud the FDA because the agency had effectively abdicated its authority over drug compounding firms like NECC.
Citing trial testimony Rabinowitz said the FDA had gone years and years without taking action against drug compounders.
He noted that when Colorado regulators raised questiona about NECC shipping drugs without patient specific prescriptions, the FDA deferred the matter to Massachusetts regulators.
Michael Pinneault, representing Carter,said internal uncertainty within the FDA about the legal authority over drug compounders led agency officials to stand down.
"The FDA was well aware of what was going on," Pinneault stated, adding that there was no evidence Carter had any interaction with federal regulators.
She had involvement "in every aspect" of the operation, Goldman reponded. He noted two top FDA officials testified that the agency had the authority over NECC all along.
Judge Kermit Lipez, questioned Pinneault about an FDA guidance on the agency's authority over drug compounder which he said seemed "very clear."
Carter and Conigliaro were among 14 persons connected to NECC who were indicted in 2014 following a two year investigation of the 2012 fungal meningitis outbreak, which ultimately took the lives of more than 100 patients.
NECC shipped thousands of vials of fungus riddled steroids to health providers across the country.
Contact: wfrochejr999@gmail.com
A federal prosecutor told an appeals court panel today that not only was it possible for officials of a drug company to defraud the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in fact they succeeded.
"The conspiracy was successful,"U.S. Justice Department attorney Ross Goldman argued in a nearly one hour hearing in federal court in Boston, Mass.
Goldman was asking a three judge panel to reverse the decision of U.S. District Court Judge Richard G. Stearns who overturned unanimous guilty jury verdicts and dismissed the conspiracy charges against Gregory Conigliaro and Sharon Carter.
Conigliaro was vice president and part owner of the now defunct New England Compounding Center, the company blamed for a deadly 2012 fungal meningitis outbreak. Carter was NECC's director of operations.
Daniel Rabinowitz, Conigliaro's lawyer, stated that it was a legal impossibility for his client to defraud the FDA because the agency had effectively abdicated its authority over drug compounding firms like NECC.
Citing trial testimony Rabinowitz said the FDA had gone years and years without taking action against drug compounders.
He noted that when Colorado regulators raised questiona about NECC shipping drugs without patient specific prescriptions, the FDA deferred the matter to Massachusetts regulators.
Michael Pinneault, representing Carter,said internal uncertainty within the FDA about the legal authority over drug compounders led agency officials to stand down.
"The FDA was well aware of what was going on," Pinneault stated, adding that there was no evidence Carter had any interaction with federal regulators.
She had involvement "in every aspect" of the operation, Goldman reponded. He noted two top FDA officials testified that the agency had the authority over NECC all along.
Judge Kermit Lipez, questioned Pinneault about an FDA guidance on the agency's authority over drug compounder which he said seemed "very clear."
Carter and Conigliaro were among 14 persons connected to NECC who were indicted in 2014 following a two year investigation of the 2012 fungal meningitis outbreak, which ultimately took the lives of more than 100 patients.
NECC shipped thousands of vials of fungus riddled steroids to health providers across the country.
Contact: wfrochejr999@gmail.com
Monday, October 26, 2020
Cadden, Chin Michigan Hearing Set
By Walter F. Roche Jr.
A Michigan judge has scheduled a Nov. 12 hearing on two key motions filed by the attorneys for two former pharmacists facing 11 second degree murder charges.
The 8:30 a.m. hearing will give lawyers for Barry J. Cadden and Glenn Chin the opportunity to argue that their clients cannot get a fair trial in Livingston County because all of the victims lived in the county.
The second degree murder victims were among dozens of area residents injected with contaminated spinal steroids shipped from the Massachusetts drug compounding where Chin and Cadden worked.
The November hearing will also bring arguments from Cadden's lawyer charging that five of the charges must be dismissed because a jury in Massachusetts already has heard those charges and voted to reject them. The second degree murder charges were made by federal prosecutors as part of a racketeering conspiracy allegation.
The double jeopardy argument has been forwarded by attorney Gerald J. Gleeson.
The motion arguments will be heard by Livingston County Judge Michael P. Hatty. The hearing is expected to be held virtually, because the court house has been closed to the public due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The double jeopardy and change of venue motions are just two of a half dozen pre-trial motions Hatty must rule on.
Contact: wfrochejr999@gmail.com
A Michigan judge has scheduled a Nov. 12 hearing on two key motions filed by the attorneys for two former pharmacists facing 11 second degree murder charges.
The 8:30 a.m. hearing will give lawyers for Barry J. Cadden and Glenn Chin the opportunity to argue that their clients cannot get a fair trial in Livingston County because all of the victims lived in the county.
The second degree murder victims were among dozens of area residents injected with contaminated spinal steroids shipped from the Massachusetts drug compounding where Chin and Cadden worked.
The November hearing will also bring arguments from Cadden's lawyer charging that five of the charges must be dismissed because a jury in Massachusetts already has heard those charges and voted to reject them. The second degree murder charges were made by federal prosecutors as part of a racketeering conspiracy allegation.
The double jeopardy argument has been forwarded by attorney Gerald J. Gleeson.
The motion arguments will be heard by Livingston County Judge Michael P. Hatty. The hearing is expected to be held virtually, because the court house has been closed to the public due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The double jeopardy and change of venue motions are just two of a half dozen pre-trial motions Hatty must rule on.
Contact: wfrochejr999@gmail.com
Sunday, October 25, 2020
Conigliaro Appeal Set This Week
By Walter F. Roche Jr.
A three judge federal panel will hear arguments Tuesday on an appeal filed by federal prosecutors seeking to overturn a judge's dismissal order on a charge against a former drug company executive.
Federal prosecutors in Boston are arguing that the guilty charge on a conspiracy count against Gregory Conigliaro should be restored. A jury had returned a unanimous guilty verdict but U.S. District Judge Richard G. Stearns reversed the conviction on June 7 of last year.
The First Circuit Court of Appeals also will hear arguments from the attorney for Sharon Carter, who like Conigliaro worked at the New England Compounding Center, the company blamed for the deadly 2012 fungal meningitis outbreak. She held the title of director of operations.
Conigliaro was a vice president and part owner of NECC while Carter was employed as a pharmacist technician.
Due to the pandemic the court session set to begin at 9:30 a.m. will be held virtually since the courthouse is not open to the public.
Hearing the appeal will be Judges Sandra Lynch, Kermit Lipez and David J. Barron.
Conigliaro's lawyer, Daniel Rabinowitz, has argued that Conigliaro couldn't have conspired to defraud the U.S. Food and Drug Administration because agency officials were not even sure they had jurisdiction over NECC.
Carter's lawyer, Michael Pineault has made a similar argument.
Federal prosecutors have argued that the jury verdict should be upheld and that Conigliaro and Carter were motivated by greed.br /> Of the 14 NECC defendants indicted in late 2014, three are currently serving federal prison terms. One was acquitted of all charges.
Contact: wfrochejr999@gmail.com
A three judge federal panel will hear arguments Tuesday on an appeal filed by federal prosecutors seeking to overturn a judge's dismissal order on a charge against a former drug company executive.
Federal prosecutors in Boston are arguing that the guilty charge on a conspiracy count against Gregory Conigliaro should be restored. A jury had returned a unanimous guilty verdict but U.S. District Judge Richard G. Stearns reversed the conviction on June 7 of last year.
The First Circuit Court of Appeals also will hear arguments from the attorney for Sharon Carter, who like Conigliaro worked at the New England Compounding Center, the company blamed for the deadly 2012 fungal meningitis outbreak. She held the title of director of operations.
Conigliaro was a vice president and part owner of NECC while Carter was employed as a pharmacist technician.
Due to the pandemic the court session set to begin at 9:30 a.m. will be held virtually since the courthouse is not open to the public.
Hearing the appeal will be Judges Sandra Lynch, Kermit Lipez and David J. Barron.
Conigliaro's lawyer, Daniel Rabinowitz, has argued that Conigliaro couldn't have conspired to defraud the U.S. Food and Drug Administration because agency officials were not even sure they had jurisdiction over NECC.
Carter's lawyer, Michael Pineault has made a similar argument.
Federal prosecutors have argued that the jury verdict should be upheld and that Conigliaro and Carter were motivated by greed.br /> Of the 14 NECC defendants indicted in late 2014, three are currently serving federal prison terms. One was acquitted of all charges.
Contact: wfrochejr999@gmail.com
Monday, October 5, 2020
Michigan Judge Sets Schedule for Cadden/Chin
By Walter F. Roche Jr.
A Livingston County judge has set a schedule for a series of pre-trial motions in the trial of two former pharmacists charged with 11 counts of second degree murder.
The seven motions, which include an anticipated request to move the long awaited trial to another county, will be spread out well into 2021 with the final session scheduled for May 13 of next year.
Six of the motions are expected to come from the lawyers for defendants Barry Cadden and Glenn Chin and one from the Michigan Attorney General's office which is prosecuting the case.
The schedule issued by Livingston Circuit Court Judge Michael P. Hatty follows an initial pre-trial conference last month. Hatty also has scheduled three additional status conferences on Dec. 4 of this year and March 19 and June 11 of next year.
The charges against Cadden and Chin come from state and federal investigations of the 2012 fungal meningitis outbreak caused by contaminated drugs shipped from the the New England Compounding Center, where Cadden and Chin worked.
Under Hatty's schedule the motion to change the location of the trial will be heard on Oct. 15. At the same session Hatty also will consider a motion to dismiss some or all of the charges because of double jeopardy. Both Cadden and Chin were charged with second degree murder in federal court and they were cleared of those charges as part of a racketeering charge.
The Michigan case, however, includes six additional second degree murder charges that were not included in the federal charges.
Defense attorneys are expected to argue that their clients cannot get a fair trial in Livingston County because all the victims lived in that county.
Other hearings set by Hatty's order include a motion to overturn District Court Judge Shauna Murphy's July order binding the case against Cadden and Chin over to circuit court for trial. That hearing is set for Nov. 19.
A Dec. 17 hearing is set for a motion to suppress evidence seized by Michigan investigators on a search warrant.
Another motion to exclude expert testimony by prosecution witnesses is set for April 15 of next year while a motion to exclude testimony by another unnamed witness is set for May 13 of next year.
The lone prosecution motion, a motion for joinder of the charges against both defendants, to assure they are tried together, is set for Feb. 18 of next year.
Contact:wfrochejr999@gmail.com
A Livingston County judge has set a schedule for a series of pre-trial motions in the trial of two former pharmacists charged with 11 counts of second degree murder.
The seven motions, which include an anticipated request to move the long awaited trial to another county, will be spread out well into 2021 with the final session scheduled for May 13 of next year.
Six of the motions are expected to come from the lawyers for defendants Barry Cadden and Glenn Chin and one from the Michigan Attorney General's office which is prosecuting the case.
The schedule issued by Livingston Circuit Court Judge Michael P. Hatty follows an initial pre-trial conference last month. Hatty also has scheduled three additional status conferences on Dec. 4 of this year and March 19 and June 11 of next year.
The charges against Cadden and Chin come from state and federal investigations of the 2012 fungal meningitis outbreak caused by contaminated drugs shipped from the the New England Compounding Center, where Cadden and Chin worked.
Under Hatty's schedule the motion to change the location of the trial will be heard on Oct. 15. At the same session Hatty also will consider a motion to dismiss some or all of the charges because of double jeopardy. Both Cadden and Chin were charged with second degree murder in federal court and they were cleared of those charges as part of a racketeering charge.
The Michigan case, however, includes six additional second degree murder charges that were not included in the federal charges.
Defense attorneys are expected to argue that their clients cannot get a fair trial in Livingston County because all the victims lived in that county.
Other hearings set by Hatty's order include a motion to overturn District Court Judge Shauna Murphy's July order binding the case against Cadden and Chin over to circuit court for trial. That hearing is set for Nov. 19.
A Dec. 17 hearing is set for a motion to suppress evidence seized by Michigan investigators on a search warrant.
Another motion to exclude expert testimony by prosecution witnesses is set for April 15 of next year while a motion to exclude testimony by another unnamed witness is set for May 13 of next year.
The lone prosecution motion, a motion for joinder of the charges against both defendants, to assure they are tried together, is set for Feb. 18 of next year.
Contact:wfrochejr999@gmail.com
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