By Walter F. Roche Jr.
A federal judge has granted the remaining defendants in the fungal meningitis outbreak additional peremptory challenges in their upcoming trial on racketeering, conspiracy and mail fraud charges.
U.S. District Judge Richard G. Stearns granted the motion filed jointly by the eight remaining defendants in a brief order Tuesday.
The action means the defendants will be able to disqualify up to 16 of the jurors when jury selection begins in October. Previously Stearns had limited the defendants to a total of 13 peremptory challenges.
His original order set the number of challenges for prosecutors at nine and that limit remains in place.
In their joint motion lawyers for the defendants had argued that additional challenges were justified because of the unique nature of the case.
The eight remaining defendants were among 14 indicted following a two year probe of the deadly 2012 fungal meningitis outbreak. All of the eight were affiliated with the New England Compounding Center, the company blamed for the outbreak.
Some 778 patients were sickened and 76 of them died after being injected with NECC steroids contaminated with a deadly fungus.
In addition to the eight set to go on trial, two of the 14 entered guilty pleas to reduced charges, one pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges but has yet to be sentenced. Another former NECC employee has pleaded guilty to charges stemming from the fact that he was acting as a pharmacy technician even though he had surrendered his license.
Glenn Chin, a supervising pharmacist and Barry Cadden, who was president and part owner, already are serving prison sentences following their convictions on racketeering, conspiracy and mail fraud charges.
The defendants motion seeking the additional challenges also cited the extensive publicity the case has received.
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