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Agents Raid Pain Clinics, Arrest Owner, 3
Doctors
Michael Perlstein;
Times-Picayune; 2005-04-13. Posted: 2006-07-22.
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http://www.doctordeluca.com/Library/WOD/WPS13-NoPillMill/NoPillMill23Arrested05.htm]
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Related resources:
PAIN RELIEF NETWORK website
War on Doctors Academic and Legal archives ;
Drug War Journalism and Advocacy archives
See also:
The New Orleans 'Pill Mill' Case - Venal Pols and Prosecutors Conspire to Ban
Pain Management
WAR ON PAIN SUFFERERS
collection #13; compiled by Alexander DeLuca; 2006-07-15
War on Doctors and Pain Crisis Weekly -
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U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration officers, assisted by St. Tammany Parish authorities, raided a Slidell pain management clinic yesterday morning, part of a day long joint agency operation throughout the greater New Orleans area.
DEA officers and St. Tammany Parish Sheriff's Deputies invaded Scherer's Medical Center, 560 Oak Harbor Boulevard, at 5 a.m. Wednesday morning, detaining employees and confiscating boxes of company records and prescription drugs. Investigators also closed Mia's Pharmacy, located at the same address, taking boxes and pills from the facility and placing them into a nearby U-Haul truck.
Sheriff's deputies also arrested 23 pain clinic customers during a subsequent sting operation, Sheriff's Office spokesperson James Hartman said.
Across town at 4021 Pontchartrain Dr., Slidell Police assisted DEA officers in an investigation of The Medicine Shoppe, which allegedly filled several prescriptions from the pain management clinic in question. Owner Michael Hebert was not arrested, but DEA officials confiscated boxes of information and prescription drugs, officials said.
The St. Tammany raids were two of eight throughout the New Orleans metro area focusing on Cherlyn "Cookie" Armstrong, owner of Scherer's Medical Center. DEA officials yesterday arrested Armstrong, 45, of New Orleans along with three doctors; Suzette L. Cullens, M.D., 43, of New Orleans, Joseph F. Guenther, M.D., 71, of Metairie, and Betty R. De Loach, M.D. 66, of Kenner.
All four suspects are charged on conspiracy to illegally distribute controlled substances, Eastern District U.S. Attorney Jim Letten said. Armstrong also faces additional charges of distribution of controlled substances to underage persons and money laundering. Cullens is also charged with underage distribution.
Besides the Northshore properties, authorities also searched two Scherer's Medical Centers in Gretna and Metairie, a second Mia's Pharmacy in Metairie, and Michael's Pharmacy in Kenner. DEA agents also raided Armstrong's home and her husband's law office. Besides drugs and paperwork, investigators also seized $1.3 million in cash from the properties, Letten said
The eight properties, worth an estimated $5 million, are under a temporary restraining order and cannot be sold. Another $4 million spread over 17 bank accounts and seven corporations were also frozen, Letten said.
The foursome, Letten said, engaged in a "sham" pain clinic management operation, where individuals paid cash to obtain highly addictive prescription drugs under the guise of "pain management." They are also alleged to have allowed patients to receive overlapping prescriptions from each of the three management clinics, Letten said.
In one documented case, the same patient received twenty prescriptions over a one hundred day period, each for a twelve to fourteen day supply of Hydrocodone, Xanax and Soma, called the "holy trinity" by investigators. Nineteen of the twenty prescriptions were issued by Guenther, Cullins and De Loach and were often days apart, Letten said.
"The extreme danger and actual harm produced by these clinics, operators, and physicians as well as associates and others like them cannot be overstated," Letten said. "Today's land mark event...is only the beginning of what will be a long, continuing and aggressive investigation and campaign to bring individuals to just, and to deter others from illegally profiting at the expense of the health and safety of our citizens."
In Slidell yesterday, over a dozen Sheriff's deputies interviewed patients as they entered the clinic parking lot, making arrests for narcotics violations and other outstanding charges. Mississippi, Alabama and Texas license plates filled the lot, a typical site for the pain clinic, St. Tammany Parish Sheriff Jack Strain said.
"I don't know if that means the laws are more restrictive in those states or we are just that lenient over here, but we definitely need to look into this issue more," Strain said.
In the last month Strain has spearheaded a committee of parish government officials, law enforcement agencies, state heath care operators and state representatives to examine the growing problem of pain clinics in St. Tammany Parish Councilman Jerry Binder, who attended yesterday's raid, is among the committee members. Scherer's is located in Binder's district.
"It was great to see progress made today," Binder said. "This will greatly benefit our quality of life issues in our community."
Slidell Police Chief Freddy Drennan said the Medicine Shoppe has been a hot spot for drug related problems. Last week two women were arrested in a next door tanning salon after running naked through the parking lot, high on prescription drugs purchased at the drug store, Drennan said.
In recent years Slidell Police have seen an increase in car accidents, domestic violence and overdoses involving illegal prescription drugs, said Drennan.
"The tentacles that run off of pain management clinics effects all of us," Drennan said.
Susan Finch can be reached at sfinch@timespicayune.com or (504) 826-3340.
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Alexander DeLuca, M.D. |
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