Federal trial underway for doctor accused of illegally dealing drugs
A federal prosecutor said Wednesday that a local doctor had betrayed “a legal and sacred trust” by illegally dealing drugs out of a fake clinic.
The accusation came from Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter Levitt during opening statements in the trial of Dr. Chad G. Hall.
Hall is charged with conspiracy and illegal drug distribution stemming from his position as medical director of a now-defunct Henderson clinic that was known as Detoxification Solutions.
The clinic purported to treat opioid addicts, in part with a controlled substance known as buprenorphine. Buprenorphine is also an opioid but can help abusers recover in the same way methadone is used to treat heroin addicts.
Levitt said evidence in the trial would show that Hall was the only person authorized to write prescriptions for the clinic and that 13 bogus prescriptions had been submitted to a compounding pharmacy for buprenorphine from Hall’s prescription pad.
On one occasion, Levitt said, an undercover source for the FBI went to the clinic posing as an addict and was given a controlled substance by the receptionist.
“Chad Hall had no problem with an unlicensed employee giving them dope in the waiting room,” the prosecutor said.
But Hall’s defense lawyer, Michael Sanft, indicated the evidence would prove Hall’s innocence.
Sanft said the FBI’s investigation was incomplete, and the case was based on testimony from former co-defendants, including another doctor and an unlicensed nurse, who had made plea deals with the government.
“They’re going to call witnesses who have a reason to make the government happy,” Sanft said.
The attorney also suggested that the FBI had no handwriting expert examine the bogus prescriptions to determine who had actually signed them.
Hall has been licensed with the Nevada State Board of Osteopathic Medicine since 2012.
His license is active, and he has no disciplinary actions listed on the board’s website.
This story has been updated to correct the spelling of Peter Levitt’s name.
Contact Glen A. Meek at gmeek@reviewjournal.com or 602-380-8951. Follow @GlenMeekLV on Twitter.
