Doctors often have a rough job to do. When their loved ones need medications, it is sometimes difficult for the doctor not to oblige the request. One gynecologist is now facing a charge of drug possession and distribution in connection with drugs he asserts were for his girlfriend. He is expected to plead guilty to this charge.
The man, who practiced obstetrics and gynecology for 30 years around Baltimore, was investigated after a staff member took a picture of large bottles of prescription drugs in the doctor's office. In October, the man's license to practice medicine was suspended by the Maryland Board of Physicians. He surrendered it the following month.
The investigation into the doctor concluded that he was mailing the prescription drugs, including fentanyl, oxycodone and methadone, to female patients who weren't in Maryland. This activity had allegedly been going on for four years.
The man's home was raided by Drug Enforcement Administration agents. During the raid, they found several bottles of prescription painkillers. He says that the scheme he was involved in wasn't for monetary gain. Instead, he says that he was writing the scripts for three people, one of whom was his girlfriend, and all of whom were filling them for his girlfriend.
During the course of the raid on his home, the agents allegedly also found images of female genitalia on the doctor's cellphone. He asserts that the pictures were for a procedure he had pioneered and that they were medical in nature. He wasn't charged with a crime in connection with those images.
The doctor's plea agreement isn't yet finalized, so there isn't any word on what his sentence will be after his guilty plea. It is important for readers to note that this doctor opted to try to obtain a plea agreement instead of trying to go to a jury trial. For some people facing drug charges, but not all, this is a viable alternative to a jury trial.
Source: The Daily Record, "Lawyer: Md. doctor to plead guilty to drug charge" No author given, May. 19, 2014