Lawyer charged in $400G theft from clients faces competency hearing

Gregory G. Stagliano

MEDIA COURTHOUSE — A Delaware County personal-injury attorney accused of stealing more than $400,000 in settlement funds that were supposed to go to his clients will have a competency hearing next month.

Gregory G. Stagliano, 61, of the 500 block of Chaumont Drive in Radnor, is charged with theft by unlawful taking, theft of services, theft by deception and receiving stolen property, all felonies of the third degree, as well as a misdemeanor count of unauthorized practice of law. He is additionally charged in a separate but related case involving insurance.

Stagliano has been declared incompetent, however, on the basis that he cannot remember the entire period where he allegedly pocketed money that was supposed to go to nine different victims he represented in personal-injury cases.

Former District Attorney Jack Whelan said when announcing the charges in May 2017 that investigators led by county Detective Michele Deery began looking at Stagliano in July 2016, based on a tip from the Disciplinary Board of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.

Investigators found a similar pattern of theft in each of the nine cases, with Stagliano allegedly depositing funds meant for clients into his own Santander Interest on Lawyers Trust Account for personal use.

Stagliano has been represented by three attorneys in the case and previously appeared before Delaware County Common Pleas Court Judge Mary Alice Brennan, but the case is now before Senior Judge Michael Coll, who handles competency cases.

Stagliano’s current attorney, John Hickey, filed the competency motion on the basis that without his memory, Stagliano cannot assist in his defense. Hickey and Assistant District Attorney William Judge appeared before Coll at the end of January on that issue.

Coll signed an order Feb. 7 directing Stagliano to seek treatment for restoration of competency, but has since been suspicious of the memory loss claims in subsequent court appearances.

“What a convenient lapse of memory, huh?” the judge asked Hickey at a prior hearing. “It looks like we’re in this position – as long as says he doesn’t remember, he’s going to be deemed to be not competent? That’s unacceptable. That’s unacceptable. How could you tell whether he’s faking it or not?”

Hickey has noted that a court-appointed psychologist, a neuropsychologist and Stagliano’s current treating psychiatrist all back up his claims of memory loss due to a combination of opioids and nerve pain medications he was taking at the time. Hickey added that a brain scan showed Stagliano has a lesion on the part of his brain that controls memory and cognition, which would lend his story some credibility.

Hickey requested a full hearing to litigate the competency issue during a status hearing Wednesday and Coll set a July 15 date. Judge said the attorneys would try to work out any stipulations and discovery issues before that date.

Coll also advised Hickey that he would revoke Stagliano’s bail if he attempted to “alienate” his assets, and that any such assets would be subject to clawbacks, similar to a bankruptcy. Hickey said his client has not attempted to do so.

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Lawyer charged in $400G theft from clients faces competency hearing

See Also:
Lawyer accused of ripping off clients claims no memory

Lawyer heads to trial for $400G theft from clients

Syracuse doc arrested at hospital was cited for poor care in another state

Dr. Andrew Rudin, who was part of St. Joseph's cardiology department, has been accused in a federal indictment of being the supervising physician at a medical group in Tennessee that improperly prescribed opioids and other drugs.

By James T. Mulder 

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – St. Joseph’s Health is reviewing the vetting process it used to hire a doctor arrested last week who had previously been cited for providing poor care in another state.

Dr. Andrew S. Rudin, a cardiologist, was charged last week in a national roundup of medical professionals accused of illegally distributing prescription pain pills.

Drug Enforcement Agents escorted Rudin out of St. Joe’s Wednesday, less than three months after the hospital publicly welcomed him to its staff in a news release touting Rudin’s expertise in treating atrial fibrillation, a type of irregular heart beat.

Tennessee health department records show Rudin voluntarily gave up his clinical privileges at a hospital after being cited for “substandard or inadequate care.” The records say Rudin voluntarily surrendered his privileges at Jackson-Madison County General Hospital in Tennessee to avoid an investigation “relating to professional competence or conduct.”

A federal judge issued a default judgment of $1.6 million against Rudin in 2012 to settle a malpractice lawsuit by a patient operated on in 2010 at Jackson-Madison Hospital. Rudin performed an “ablation” procedure on the patient, Joe D. Williams, to stop atrial fibrillation, according to court records.

Ablation involves threading narrow tubes into the heart to burn heart tissue to stop abnormal electrical signals from causing atrial fibrillation.

Sandra Williams, the patient’s wife, testified Rudin burned a hole through her husband’s esophagus during the procedure that nearly killed him and left him disabled. She said Rudin never responded to the lawsuit or paid the judgment. Neither Rudin nor his attorney could be reached for comment.

When The Post-Standard/Syracuse.com asked St. Joe’s if it was aware of the malpractice case and Rudin’s surrender of his hospital privileges in Tennessee, the hospital said, “The circumstances surrounding Dr. Rudin’s credentialing at St. Joseph’s Hospital are presently under review.”

St. Joe’s initially put Rudin on administrative leave, but said today it fired him after reviewing the criminal allegations.

Federal prosecutors accused Rudin, another doctor and a nurse practitioner of participating in a scheme to improperly prescribe opioids and other drugs in Jackson, Tennessee. Rudin pleaded not guilty last week in federal court.

“ … the criminal matter involving Dr. Rudin is not connected to St. Joseph’s Health in any way but to activities connected to his practice in Tennessee more than two years prior to his affiliation to St. Joseph’s Health,” Dr. Joseph Spinale, St. Joe’s chief medical officer, said in a prepared statement.

From August 2016 to January 2017 Rudin supervised a nurse practitioner in Tennessee who prescribed drugs to patients who didn’t need them in exchange for money, notoriety and sexual favors, according to the indictment.

Jeffrey W. Young, the nurse practitioner, once branded himself as “Rock Doc” as part of an effort to start a reality TV show. Rudin gave Young’s practice the appearance of legitimacy by allowing his name to appear on Young’s prescriptions and was paid for supervising the practice, the indictment says. The indictment does not say how much Rudin was paid.

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Syracuse doc arrested at hospital was cited for poor care in another state

Lawyer accused of ripping off clients claims no memory

MEDIA COURTHOUSE — A Delaware County personal injury attorney accused of stealing more than $400,000 in settlement funds that were supposed to go to his clients now claims he has no memory of his alleged actions.

Gregory G. Stagliano, 61, of the 500 block of Chaumont Drive in Radnor, is charged with theft by unlawful taking, theft of services, theft by deception and receiving stolen property, all felonies of the third degree, as well as a misdemeanor count of unauthorized practice of law. He is additionally charged in a separate but related case involving insurance.

Stagliano has been declared incompetent, however, on the basis that he cannot remember the entire period when he allegedly was pocketing money that was supposed to go to nine different victims he represented in personal injury cases.

Former District Attorney Jack Whelan said when announcing the charges in May 2017 that investigators led by county Detective Michele Deery began looking at Stagliano in July 2016, based on a tip from the Disciplinary Board of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.

Investigators found a similar pattern of theft in each of the nine cases, with Stagliano allegedly depositing funds meant for clients into his own Santander Interest on Lawyers Trust Account for personal use.

Stagliano has been represented by three attorneys in the case and previously appeared before Delaware County Court of Common Pleas Judge Mary Alice Brennan, but the case is now before Senior Judge Michael Coll, who handles competency cases.

Stagliano’s current attorney, John Hickey, filed the competency motion on the basis that without his memory, Stagliano cannot assist in his defense. Hickey and Assistant District Attorney William Judge appeared before Coll at the end of January on that issue.

Coll signed the order Feb. 7 directing Stagliano to seek treatment for restoration of competency, but seemed incredulous of Stagliano’s claims during a hearing Tuesday.

“What a convenient lapse of memory, huh?” the judge asked Hickey. “It looks like we’re in this position – as long as he says he doesn’t remember, he’s going to be deemed to be not competent? That’s unacceptable. That’s unacceptable. How could you tell whether he’s faking it or not?”

But Hickey noted that a court-appointed psychologist, a neuropsychologist and Stagliano’s current treating psychiatrist all back up his claims of memory loss due to a combination of opioids and nerve pain medications he was taking at the time. Hickey added that a brain scan showed Stagliano has a lesion on the part of his brain that controls memory and cognition, which would lend his story some credibility.

“The fact that there’s a lesion on his brain doesn’t lead to the conclusion that he’s lost his memory,” the judge said.

“If someone says their foot hurts, you can say, ‘Anyone can say their foot hurts,’” said Hickey. “If you take an x-ray and you happen to see a broken bone, you say, ‘Oh, there’s something objective to verify what they’re saying.’”

Hickey said he was unable to get a complete update on Stagliano’s treatment before the hearing Tuesday, but Coll has ordered that a report be delivered within two weeks recounting precisely what is being done to restore his memory.

Hickey later said the record indicates that the combination of medications his client was taking actually precluded him from forming those memories in the first place, so it would be very difficult for him to regain them.

The next scheduled hearing is March 5.

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Lawyer accused of ripping off clients claims no memory

Opioids and Elder Abuse: A Disquieting Connection

By Pamela B. Teaster, Ph.D. and Karen A. Roberto, Ph.D., Center for Gerontology, Virginia Tech Robert Blancato, M.P.A, Brian W. Lindberg, MMHS, and Meredith Whitmire, J.D., Elder Justice Coalition

March 04, 2019

Older adults are an important but frequently forgotten generation that is affected by the opioid crisis in America.  As a group, older adults often have multiple chronic conditions and endure high rates of chronic pain. Opioids and related prescription and non-prescription drugs are frequently the treatment of choice for these individuals.

Further, the opioid crisis has harmed older adults through the addiction of their children, grandchildren, and others who rely on them for money, child care, food, shelter, and the like. Directly or inadvertently, older adults may be stripped of their resources and quality of life because of the struggles of those around them—and may be highly susceptible to elder abuse.

In late 2017, researchers from Virginia Tech (Pamela B. Teaster and Karen A. Roberto) and the Elder Justice Coalition (Brian W. Lindberg and Robert Blancato) conducted 4 one-hour focus group interviews with 20 selected representatives from involved stakeholders in four states and counties where deaths from opioids were the highest (Kentucky, Ohio, Virginia, West Virginia). The goal of the project was to investigate whether the relationship between increasing high rates of opioid use and elder abuse was a real problem “on the ground,” its scope, and available data.

Overall, focus group participants reported that the problem is escalating in scope and severity. Elder financial exploitation was the predominant form of abuse.

For example, in Kentucky, a grandson who had a heroin addiction went to live with his elderly grandfather.  The grandfather had a diagnosis of dementia, and the grandson exploited the grandfather for money ($85,000) to support his heroin addiction. The grandson was taking money out of the grandfather’s debit card, writing checks to his friends, and opening credit cards in his grandfather’s name–all in an effort to support his addiction.

Participants also indicated that when desperate perpetrators had gone through the money, the drugs, or both, older adults were psychologically and physically abused.  Their abusers isolated the older adults in their own homes so that they could not reach out to others to help them.

The focus group findings revealed that the problem is not just limited to home settings. Participants also reported that older adults are being exploited in facility settings, including hospice and nursing homes.

In brief, focus group participants strongly believed that the opioid crisis is contributing to cases of elder abuse.  Across the four groups, participants:

• Stated that the problem is increasing in severity;
• Estimated a 25-35% increase in drug-related exploitation cases;
• Stressed that there is a dangerous lack of resources to help with drug-related cases of elder abuse;
• Confirmed that there is no reliable, retrievable data to document the scope of the problem across states.

In other words, the time is now to enhance our understanding of the connection between opioids and elder abuse. Ultimately, this information will assist in designing effective prevention and intervention efforts to address this escalating and highly dangerous problem.

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Opioids and Elder Abuse: A Disquieting Connection