Ask yourself: How many doctors has the expert’s testimony convicted?

I have the privilege of defending physicians, pharmacists and nurses before state licensing Boards and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). In one such case defending against the DEA, there was much discussion about which expert physician had the better qualifications – our expert, or the the government’s expert? Each was capable of qualifying as an “expert witness,” but I feared my client, the defendant-physician, took too much comfort in the better qualifications of his expert. I feared this nuanced discussion of which expert witness had the better qualifications was creating a false sense well-being mere weeks before trial. For me, perhaps the more important question is how many doctors has the expert’s testimony convicted?

Do not dismiss the DEA’s expert witness

One thing is certain, if the DEA’s expert witness has led a jury to convict another physician, that’s a dangerous witness, despite any perceived lack of qualifications. In my experience, it is not the expert witness’ qualifications so much as it is what the expert is willing to say to a jury.

And do not become complacent

I can tell many stories where the physician believed the risk of conviction, or the risk of a lengthy prison sentence, was low. In my experience, physicians and their families often rationalize why they won’t be convicted, or, if they are convicted, why they will receive a lenient sentence, perhaps probation, or time served, or one year, only to be sentenced to 5 years or more, and in one case, to 15 years. While I have obtained good results, and have even obtained the release from prison of two physicians, most often, it doesn’t happen that way. If you want to see for yourself, search the internet using some of these search terms: “physician convicted,” “doctor convicted,” “physician sentenced,” “doctor sentenced,” “physician acquitted,” and “doctor acquitted.” You will soon discover that good results for defendant-physicians facing DEA prosecutions are few and far between. Prepare accordingly.