Tampa Bay Criminal Defense Lawyer - doctor bust

By Nick Dorsten, Esq.

Nobody is immune to the scourge of drugs, as this article from the St. Pete Times website shows...

TAMPA — An emergency room doctor is facing charges that he tried to smuggle drugs onto a plane headed to Salt Lake City last week, authorities said.

Police at Tampa International Airport arrested the doctor, 51, of St. Pete Beach on Feb. 4 on charges of heroin possession with intent to sell, trafficking in illegal drugs, possessing a controlled substance and possessing drug paraphernalia.

On that morning, Transportation Security Administration screeners noticed the doctor "acting extremely anxious and nervous," according to an incident report.

A search of his carry-on bag revealed a small, white container with various pills, later identified as 37 10-mg doses of methadone and three 2-mg doses of Xanax.

He then told screeners he was a doctor at Palms of Pasadena Hospital in St. Petersburg, the report said. He told police he took two Vicodin before coming to the airport, and had methadone and other pain pills in his bag that belonged to his wife. "He admitted he did not have a prescription for any of the medication found in his bag," a detective wrote in the report.

Officials took him into custody and found more drugs and paraphernalia on him: a small bag containing 34 individual packets of heroin in his right front pants pocket and 12 syringes in a pair of snow boots in his checked luggage.

He was booked into a Hillsborough County jail. Records show he was released on a surety bond Monday night.

According to a newspaper wedding announcement, he has been a doctor at Palms of Pasadena since at least 1999. Officials there could not be reached for comment Thursday. His medical license is currently clear and active, according to the Florida Department of Health's website.

The "good" doctor faced other drug charges eight years ago. Records show Tampa police arrested him on charges of possessing heroin and drug equipment and driving under the influence in February 2003. He was not prosecuted.

In 2006, the state Board of Medicine formally disciplined him after ruling he had overprescribed pain pills for a 26-year-old woman with whom he was romantically involved. According to an administrative complaint, the woman sustained a neck injury in 1998. She re-injured her neck in 2004 and was treated by the doctor. Over the next several months, the complaint said, he prescribed increasing dosages of OxyContin, a drug noted for its high potential of abuse. He did not, however, physically examine the woman, order diagnostic or lab tests, diagnose a medical condition or keep a medical record to justify his course of treatment, the complaint said.

Have you or a loved one been arrested for a possession of controlled substance or drug trafficking? Then contact the St. Petersburg criminal defense attorneys of Blake & Dorsten, P.A. for a free consultation!

For more information, or to speak directly with experienced St. Petersburg criminal defense lawyers please contact BLAKE & DORSTEN, P.A. at 727.286.6141 or email the lawyers your questions at: info@blakedorstenlaw.com. We are located at 4707 140th Ave N, Suite 104 in Clearwater, across from the criminal courthouse in the airport business center, minutes from Tampa and St. Petersburg.