By Walter F. Roche Jr.
A federal judge has lifted the lien on the $1.2 million Dedham, Mass. home of two of the defendants in the criminal case stemming from the 2012 fungal meningitis outbreak.
In an order issued today, but dated tomorrow, U.S. District Judge Richard G. Stearns granted the request by Douglas and Carla Conigliaro to release the $250,000 lien placed on one of their residences. It was imposed following their 2014 indictment.
Lawyers for the Conigliaros petitioned for the release noting that their probation sentences - two years for Douglas and one year for Carla - had passed.
The two entered guilty pleas to vastly reduced charges that they made structured withdrawals from bank accounts in violation of federal reporting requirements. They were not charged for involvement in the deadly outbreak that resulted in the deaths of more than 100 patients across the country.
In addition to the Norfolk County home, the Conigliaros own a Beacon Hill condo. They purchased it for slightly less than $4.2 million.
Douglas Conigliaro headed Medical Sales Management, the sales arm for the New England Compounding Center, the company blamed for the 2012 outbreak.
Contact: wfrochejr999@gmail.com
Thursday, September 29, 2022
Monday, September 26, 2022
US Nitrogen Request Approved
By Walter F. Roche Jr.
Tennessee environmental officials have quickly concluded that a Greene County chemical firm does not have to seek permits to operate two temporary boilers while its' main boiler is idled for repairs.
In a decision issued today, Doug Wright of the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, told officials of US Nitrogen LLC that the agency agrees that the temporary boilers will produce insignificant emissions.
Citing state laws and regulations, Wright wrote that the two boilers are not capable of producing more than five tons a year of air contaminants and thus qualify for the permit exemption.
But Wright cautioned that the examption only applies if the company only utilizes the boilers for 14 days and at the specified rates.
Deviations from the details in the request, he wrote, could be considered as "circumvention of the requirements" of the company's permit.
US Nitrogen requested the "insignificant emissions" categorization, citing the specifications of the two temporary boilers.
US Nitrogen plant manager Dylan Charles told TDEC in a Sept. 15 letter that the boilers were needed so that work could be done on the main boiler, which has apparently suffered a leak, resulting in increases in the water the company uses in its manufacturing processes.
US Nitrogen's primary product is ammonium nitrate used in the production of explosives by its corporate parent, Ohio based Austin Powder.
Contact:wfrochejr999@gmail.com
Tennessee environmental officials have quickly concluded that a Greene County chemical firm does not have to seek permits to operate two temporary boilers while its' main boiler is idled for repairs.
In a decision issued today, Doug Wright of the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, told officials of US Nitrogen LLC that the agency agrees that the temporary boilers will produce insignificant emissions.
Citing state laws and regulations, Wright wrote that the two boilers are not capable of producing more than five tons a year of air contaminants and thus qualify for the permit exemption.
But Wright cautioned that the examption only applies if the company only utilizes the boilers for 14 days and at the specified rates.
Deviations from the details in the request, he wrote, could be considered as "circumvention of the requirements" of the company's permit.
US Nitrogen requested the "insignificant emissions" categorization, citing the specifications of the two temporary boilers.
US Nitrogen plant manager Dylan Charles told TDEC in a Sept. 15 letter that the boilers were needed so that work could be done on the main boiler, which has apparently suffered a leak, resulting in increases in the water the company uses in its manufacturing processes.
US Nitrogen's primary product is ammonium nitrate used in the production of explosives by its corporate parent, Ohio based Austin Powder.
Contact:wfrochejr999@gmail.com
Cadden, Chin Case: Key Dates Set
By Walter F. Roche Jr.
A Michigan judge has set a series of key dates in the trial of two rogue pharmacists who are facing 13 counts of second degree murder.
Livingston County Circuit Court Judge Michael Hatty issued orders setting the dates for a settlement conference and a hearing by one of the defendants for a so-called bill of particulars, a detailed listing of the evidence and likely witnesses on the specfic charges.
The hearing on a bill of particulars was set for Nov. 10 at 8:30 a.m. The settlement conference is set for Oct. 21 at 1:30 p.m. To this point none of the parties have given any indication of a willingness or desire to settle.
Hatty also set dates for future status conferences - Nov. 10, Nov.17 or Nov. 22- with the caveat that they could be changed if there are scheduling issues.
The orders follow two sessions last week as progress in the longstanding case appears to be speeding up.
Hatty, as a result of last week's session, denied a motion by prosecutors from the state Attorney General's office, for a single trial for both defendants.
The two were charged with second degree murder following state and federal probes of the 2012 fungal meningitis outbreak which took the lives of more than 100 people, including 13 in Livingson County.
Contact: wfrochejr999@gmail.com
A Michigan judge has set a series of key dates in the trial of two rogue pharmacists who are facing 13 counts of second degree murder.
Livingston County Circuit Court Judge Michael Hatty issued orders setting the dates for a settlement conference and a hearing by one of the defendants for a so-called bill of particulars, a detailed listing of the evidence and likely witnesses on the specfic charges.
The hearing on a bill of particulars was set for Nov. 10 at 8:30 a.m. The settlement conference is set for Oct. 21 at 1:30 p.m. To this point none of the parties have given any indication of a willingness or desire to settle.
Hatty also set dates for future status conferences - Nov. 10, Nov.17 or Nov. 22- with the caveat that they could be changed if there are scheduling issues.
The orders follow two sessions last week as progress in the longstanding case appears to be speeding up.
Hatty, as a result of last week's session, denied a motion by prosecutors from the state Attorney General's office, for a single trial for both defendants.
The two were charged with second degree murder following state and federal probes of the 2012 fungal meningitis outbreak which took the lives of more than 100 people, including 13 in Livingson County.
Contact: wfrochejr999@gmail.com
Sunday, September 25, 2022
Search Goes on for Judge's Remains
By Walter F. Roche Jr.
He was a famous jurist, known as the father of Tennessee jurisprudence, so it was no surprise when the bar association and prominent local lawyers recently sought to give him a more suitable burial site, away from a commercial strip alongside a gas station.
But there has been one serious problem with the effort to relocate the remains of the late Supreme Court Justice John Haywood. They can't find the body.
For years many had assumed his remains along with family members and associates were in close proximity to a monument to the judge off Nolensville Road, on land that had once belonged to his family.
Recently filed documents in Davidson Chancery Court provide extensive details on why it was widely believed his body was at or near the site where the monument is located. But an inch by inch search of the momument site turned up not a trace "of human remains or grave shafts."
A TRC Environment report describes the search effort including slowly scraping back the dirt with a backhoe, later even using human hands when nearing a suspected location. As detailed in the historic records of the Tennessee Supreme Court Haywood was a respected though sometimes controversial jurist.
Self taught, Haywood began teaching aspiring law students after moving to Tennessee where his family owned property. He was named to the Tennessee Supreme Court in 1816.
In the pending Chancery Court action, all known relatives were contacted and none raised any objections to the relocation.
One relative who did respond said she supported relocating John Haywood's body, along with his wife Martha and any enslaved remains found on the site.
Hal Hardin, who has played a leadership role in the re-interment effort says the search is not over. If the remains are recovered plans also call for them to be re-interred in the historic Nashville Cemetery.
"We are still on it. We dug and did not find him and are trying to get some radar equipment to assist in the hunt," he said.
Contact: wfrochejr999@gmail.com
He was a famous jurist, known as the father of Tennessee jurisprudence, so it was no surprise when the bar association and prominent local lawyers recently sought to give him a more suitable burial site, away from a commercial strip alongside a gas station.
But there has been one serious problem with the effort to relocate the remains of the late Supreme Court Justice John Haywood. They can't find the body.
For years many had assumed his remains along with family members and associates were in close proximity to a monument to the judge off Nolensville Road, on land that had once belonged to his family.
Recently filed documents in Davidson Chancery Court provide extensive details on why it was widely believed his body was at or near the site where the monument is located. But an inch by inch search of the momument site turned up not a trace "of human remains or grave shafts."
A TRC Environment report describes the search effort including slowly scraping back the dirt with a backhoe, later even using human hands when nearing a suspected location. As detailed in the historic records of the Tennessee Supreme Court Haywood was a respected though sometimes controversial jurist.
Self taught, Haywood began teaching aspiring law students after moving to Tennessee where his family owned property. He was named to the Tennessee Supreme Court in 1816.
In the pending Chancery Court action, all known relatives were contacted and none raised any objections to the relocation.
One relative who did respond said she supported relocating John Haywood's body, along with his wife Martha and any enslaved remains found on the site.
Hal Hardin, who has played a leadership role in the re-interment effort says the search is not over. If the remains are recovered plans also call for them to be re-interred in the historic Nashville Cemetery.
"We are still on it. We dug and did not find him and are trying to get some radar equipment to assist in the hunt," he said.
Contact: wfrochejr999@gmail.com
Friday, September 23, 2022
NECC Defendants Want Lien Lifted
By Walter F. Roche Jr.
Two of the defendants in the federal criminal case stemming from the 2012 fungal meningitis outbreak have completed probation and want the $250,000 lien lifted on their suburban Boston home.
In a petition filed Friday in U.S. District Court in Boston a lawyer for Douglas and Carla Conigliaro asked U.S. District Judge Richard G. Stearns to remove the lien since the two have successfully completed their probation.
Carla was given a one year probation sentence, while Douglas served a two year probation sentence. Both were convicted of violating a federal law restricting bank transfers in excess of $10,000.
The 13-room residence is currently assessed at a little over $2 milllion.
The Conigliaros were part owners of the New England Compounding Center, the company blamed for the 2012 fungal meningitis outbreak. They were among 14 persons connected to NECC who were indicted on Dec. 17, 2014 following a two-year probe of the outbreak.
In a related development today a status conference was held in Livingston County Michigan where two people connected to NECC have been charged with 13 counts of second degre murder for their roles in the outbreak. Barry Cadden was president and part owner of NECC while Glenn Chin was a supervising pharmacist.
The session with Circuit Court Judge Michael P. Hatty and lawyers for Cadden and Chin was focused on scheduling sessions and filing deadlines for pending motions in the case.
Those include a motion by Cadden's lawyer to bar the prosecution from using some evidence. That motion is expected to be decided in November with a trial possible in late 2022 or early 2023.
Hatty is expected to issue formal orders next week on those remaining issues.
Two of the defendants in the federal criminal case stemming from the 2012 fungal meningitis outbreak have completed probation and want the $250,000 lien lifted on their suburban Boston home.
In a petition filed Friday in U.S. District Court in Boston a lawyer for Douglas and Carla Conigliaro asked U.S. District Judge Richard G. Stearns to remove the lien since the two have successfully completed their probation.
Carla was given a one year probation sentence, while Douglas served a two year probation sentence. Both were convicted of violating a federal law restricting bank transfers in excess of $10,000.
The 13-room residence is currently assessed at a little over $2 milllion.
The Conigliaros were part owners of the New England Compounding Center, the company blamed for the 2012 fungal meningitis outbreak. They were among 14 persons connected to NECC who were indicted on Dec. 17, 2014 following a two-year probe of the outbreak.
In a related development today a status conference was held in Livingston County Michigan where two people connected to NECC have been charged with 13 counts of second degre murder for their roles in the outbreak. Barry Cadden was president and part owner of NECC while Glenn Chin was a supervising pharmacist.
The session with Circuit Court Judge Michael P. Hatty and lawyers for Cadden and Chin was focused on scheduling sessions and filing deadlines for pending motions in the case.
Those include a motion by Cadden's lawyer to bar the prosecution from using some evidence. That motion is expected to be decided in November with a trial possible in late 2022 or early 2023.
Hatty is expected to issue formal orders next week on those remaining issues.
Thursday, September 22, 2022
Cadden, Chin To Be Tried Separately
From Donna Borton
A Michigan judge has ruled that two former pharmacists will be tried separatly on multiple second degree murder charges.
Following a hearing today Livingston County Circuit Judge James P. Hatty denied a motion by the state Attorney General calling for Barry Cadden and Glenn Chin to be tried together. Lawyers for both defendants opposed the motion.
The two have been charged with second degree murder in the deaths of 13 Michigan patients who had been injected with a steroid highly contaminated with deadly fungus. Those steroids came from the New England Compounding Center where both were employed.
In fact Cadden was president and part owner of NECC. Chin was a supervising pharmacist in the clean room where the deadly steroids were prepared.
Chin and Cadden's lawyers argued that a federal judge had concluded that the two had to be tried separately.
The two were ultimately acquitted by two separate federal juries of murder charges but were found guilty of racketeering and fraud charges.
Prosecutors argued that a joint trial was appropriate because many of the witnesses and much of the evidence against both defendants were the same.
Contact: wallyroche@hotmail.com
A Michigan judge has ruled that two former pharmacists will be tried separatly on multiple second degree murder charges.
Following a hearing today Livingston County Circuit Judge James P. Hatty denied a motion by the state Attorney General calling for Barry Cadden and Glenn Chin to be tried together. Lawyers for both defendants opposed the motion.
The two have been charged with second degree murder in the deaths of 13 Michigan patients who had been injected with a steroid highly contaminated with deadly fungus. Those steroids came from the New England Compounding Center where both were employed.
In fact Cadden was president and part owner of NECC. Chin was a supervising pharmacist in the clean room where the deadly steroids were prepared.
Chin and Cadden's lawyers argued that a federal judge had concluded that the two had to be tried separately.
The two were ultimately acquitted by two separate federal juries of murder charges but were found guilty of racketeering and fraud charges.
Prosecutors argued that a joint trial was appropriate because many of the witnesses and much of the evidence against both defendants were the same.
Contact: wallyroche@hotmail.com
Tuesday, September 20, 2022
US Nitrogen Clarifies Boiler Request
By Walter F. Roche Jr.
Acting on a request from Tennessee regulators, a Greene County chemical firm has clarified its request to use two temporary boilers at its plant in Midway.
In a letter sent this week to the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, an official of US Nitrogen LLC wrote that the company plans to use the temporary boilers for 14 consecutive days.
During that two week period repairs will be made on the permanent boiler which has sprung a leak. The leak has apparently caused a sudden jump in the volume of water being pumped from the Nolichucky River.
"The intention is to use the temporary boilers on consecutive days while the permanent boiler is repaired," John Shipp of US Nitrogen wrote in the letter to TDEC.
Records filed with the state show the company used 26 million gallons of water in the month of August, an increase of 27 per cent over the prior month.
Shipp wrote in the letter that the TDEC's other request, for data on the specifications on the temporary pumps, already was included in data previously submitted.
Contact: wfrochejr999@gmail.com
Acting on a request from Tennessee regulators, a Greene County chemical firm has clarified its request to use two temporary boilers at its plant in Midway.
In a letter sent this week to the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, an official of US Nitrogen LLC wrote that the company plans to use the temporary boilers for 14 consecutive days.
During that two week period repairs will be made on the permanent boiler which has sprung a leak. The leak has apparently caused a sudden jump in the volume of water being pumped from the Nolichucky River.
"The intention is to use the temporary boilers on consecutive days while the permanent boiler is repaired," John Shipp of US Nitrogen wrote in the letter to TDEC.
Records filed with the state show the company used 26 million gallons of water in the month of August, an increase of 27 per cent over the prior month.
Shipp wrote in the letter that the TDEC's other request, for data on the specifications on the temporary pumps, already was included in data previously submitted.
Contact: wfrochejr999@gmail.com
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