Tennessee Federal Criminal Lawyer Blog

Johnson City, Tennessee doctor Michael Dube entered a guilty plea last week in Federal Court in Greeneville, Tennessee, for omitting material information from records required to be kept under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) and making a false statement in connection with the renewal of his registration with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee. Dube, who is already on probation with the Tennessee Board of Medical Examiners, faces up to nine years in prison and possible fines up to $500,000.

Per his plea agreement, Dube used his DEA registration to obtain prescription pain medication from drug suppliers which he then consumed himself. Further, he kept no records of the disposition of the drugs as required by the CSA and DEA regulations. Dube later confessed to DEA diversion investigators in March 2009 that he consumed the drugs himself and kept no records as to their distribution and disposition as required by statute and regulation, although he knew he was required to do so.

A medical practitioner must renew their DEA registration every three years, and Dube failed to answer his registration application accurately. In particular, one liability question on the application asks whether the applicant has ever surrendered (for cause) or had a state professional license or controlled substance registration revoked, suspended, denied, restricted, or placed on probation. Despite being placed on a 5-year probationary sentence in 2007, Dube answered "NO" to this question. The plea agreement states that at the time Dube made the representation, he knew that his state professional license had been placed on probation and that his answer to the question was false.

"This is a case where Dr. Dube had multiple opportunities to comply with state regulatory requirements and obey federal law. He has chosen not to do either . We will continue our efforts to help eradicate the illegal prescription pill distribution problem by focusing on the medical professionals and others who act outside of their licensed authority," said U.S. Atty. Bill Killian.

Federal Criminal Defense Lawyers rarely allow their clients to speak to government agents for a variety of reasons, most of which have to do with protecting clients from themselves. A great example of a person hurting themselves by talking to government agents is the case of Dr. Howard Goldstein.

Last week, Goldstein was sentenced to 5 months imprisonment, a $30,000.00 fine, and he agreed to an additional $100,000.00 forfeiture for making false statements to an agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, in violation of 18 U.S.C. Sec. 1001. In an April 2010 interview with the FBI, Goldstein was questioned about problems with his Medicare billing practices and he "minimized and mis-characterized concerns and problems" that had been raised by his former employer. Goldstein also previously paid $830,329 to the government in a related civil settlement agreement, and has been banned from participating in the Medicare program for five years.

18 U.S.C. Sec. 1001(a) provides:
Except as otherwise provided in this section, whoever, in any matter within the jurisdiction of the executive, legislative, or judicial branch of the Government of the United States, knowingly and willfully--
(1) falsifies, conceals, or covers up by any trick, scheme, or device a material fact;
(2) makes any materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or representation; or
(3) makes or uses any false writing or document knowing the same to contain any materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or entry;
shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 5 years or, if the offense involves international or domestic terrorism (as defined in section 2331), imprisoned not more than 8 years, or both. If the matter relates to an offense under chapter 109A, 109B, 110, or 117, or section 1591, then the term of imprisonment imposed under this section shall be not more than 8 years.

Some of the best advice I can ever give a client is to simply shut up. Talking to investigators, police, case workers, and other government officials rarely benefits a client's case. To make matters worse, many people choose to talk to government officials without an attorney present. I can only imagine that Dr. Goldstein's case would have worked out differently had he consulted with an attorney prior to an interview with FBI agents.

Additional Resources
18 U.S.C. Section 1001
"Doctor Sentenced For Making False Statements to FBI," St. Louis Globe-Democrat (Online Edition), January 5, 2011