A busy pain-management physician in the region may not be very busy for awhile. Federal prosecutors believe Eugene Gosy to be among the greediest. They backed up their claim by accusing the physician of running a criminal enterprise that gave out over 300,000 illicit prescripts over the last 48-months. The accusations against Gosy are just […]
READ MOREVioxx, ReNu and Ortho Evra: A Look at Three Responses to Problematic Drugs
The comment in the recent post about Johnson & Johnson’s approach to Ortho Evra litigation — specifically, the suggestion that the company was “the anti-Merck” in terms of its legal strategy because of its willingness to settle — got my wheels turning about the different ways that corporations respond to the legal fallout of drugs that […]
READ MOREBrian Nichols avoids the death penalty – what now?
Today Judgeithout parole, seven life sentences plus 485 years all running consecutive to one another. Brian Nichols will never see the outside world again. The Judge suggested that the Feds house him at the Federal Supermax prison in Colorado, although he has been convicted of State crimes. I don’t know if this is the last […]
READ MOREZimmerman was on the ground being punched when he shot Trayvon Martin
Trayvon Martin’s Parents Give Their Account in New Book: “Rest in Power” It was dark in a violent neighborhood the night of February 26, 2012. A black teenager was shot by a Hispanic man. That is the only thing on which everyone agrees. The other details are still discussed five years later. Trayvon Martin‘s parents […]
READ MOREThe Ambien Defense
A North Carolina woman charged in four arson blazes has suggested that Ambien may have caused her behavior: “Her lawyer said she has been taking the prescription sleep aid, Ambien, periodically for the past several years. He said that may have been a factor in the crime.” That defense seems unlikely to succeed because the […]
READ MORENew York City homicide rate for 2015 tops last year’s tally, data shows
In a week punctuated by the killing of a 2-month-old boy in the Bronx, New York City’s homicide rate has passed 2014’s record low tally, with 339 killings through Sunday, according to the latest NYPD data. For all of 2014, New York City reported 333 homicides — the lowest number since the modern era of […]
READ MOREConcealed Carry Weapon Permits Saves Two Lives in Detroit
It was a quiet morning along Warren Street as a 50-year-old resident pulled his black & silver Toyota into a parking spot at Detroit’s Citizen Bank. Double checking the deposit envelope, he was distracted and didn’t notice two teenagers watching him from the opposite side of the street in the parking lot of the Detroit […]
READ MORENew York City Settles Suit Over Abuses at Rikers Island
New York City has agreed to a settlement in the long-running legal battle over abuses at Rikers Island, the country’s second-largest jail system, federal and city officials said on Monday. The administration of Mayor Bill de Blasio committed to a host of far-reaching reforms in the deal, including the appointment of a federal monitor, an […]
READ MOREAssessing the Effect of Crack Sentencing Retroactivity
What difference has it made that the federal sentencing guideline on crack cocaine was retroactively reformed? Depends who you ask. At the Heritage Foundation, Charles Stimson has a piece up right now essentially arguing that it’s important to keep statistics about the effect of the sentencing change. Stimson also writes It is inevitable, though, that […]
READ MOREUnited States v. Rodriquez: Supreme Court on “Serious Drug Offense” under the Armed Career Criminal Act
The Supreme Court today handed down United States v. Rodriquez, a sentencing case involving the interaction between state and federal law for people with prior “serious drug offense” convictions. I’m too slammed to do a writeup, but here’s the link to the opinion. Prof. Berman has a little analysis at the Sentencing Law and Policy […]
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