Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney Blog

Published on: October 18, 2010

Southern California Medical Fraud Experts Flabbergasted by Allegations against Fugitive Doctor

Last week, a fugitive former doctor — Steven G. Moos — pled “not guilty” to a battery of charges, including government medical fraud. His bizarre circumstances have Los Angeles medical fraud experts talking. Particularly in light of last week’s massive bust of an alleged Armenian gang-centered Medicare fraud ring — which sprawled across 25 states — Moos’ saga hints at a potentially deeper and more systemic problem within the medical community.

The long and weird allegations against Steven G. Moos
Over a decade ago, the then Dr. Moos got in trouble with the Oregon Board of Medical Examiners for prescribing hair loss drugs and Viagra to web customers anonymously. A few years, later authorities in Washington County, Oregon got a warrant to search Moos’ home on Bull Mountain and found illegal drugs and cocaine. He was charged with endangering child welfare and possessing controlled substances.

In early 2003, the OR State’s Medical Board suspended his license to practice medicine. In 2004, federal prosecutors charged Moos with trying to import controlled substances (in this case, growth hormone) from China. In 2004, Moos was indicted by Federal Grand Jury for a variety of charges, and Oregon State’s Attorney General won a judgment against him, which included a $400,000 civil penalty and mandatory reimbursement for customers he had scammed with a cream that he sold to enhance vaginal stimulation.

After getting hit with all these charges, Moos fled the country to the United Arab Emirates. In the UAE, he allegedly impersonated a respectable US physician (Dr. Steven Hopping) and performed surgery on people in his kitchen table. In some cases, he injured these patients so badly that they were left with deformities. Finally, the 41-year-old got caught at Dallas International Airport after flying home from the UAE.

Charges of California insurance fraud, Los Angeles medical fraud, or any other kind of Los Angeles white collar crime can lead to a vast and frightening array of penalties, including jail time, suspension of your license to practice, massive fines and court costs, damage to your reputation, mandatory restitution to people (or institutions) you’ve harmed financially, and more.

If you’ve been charged with a Southern California white collar crime (such as insurance fraud in Los Angeles or elsewhere in the Southland), your choice of representation can make an enormous difference.

Published on: October 13, 2010

Massive Los Angeles Health Care Fraud Arrest — Part of the Biggest Bust in US History

by Michael Kraut

This morning, federal prosecutors launched a multistate series of raids, arresting 73 people in conjunction with what may turn out to be the largest medical care fraud scheme in history of the United States — including many arrests here for health care fraud and insurance fraud in Los Angeles and throughout the Southland for Los Angeles health care fraud.

Before we dive into this story–which will surely occupy media outlets for some time–let’s first review some examples of state insurance fraud and medical insurance fraud so you can understand Los Angeles white collar crime better:

* Chiropractor in Glendale bills an insurer for work he never did.
* Dentist in Pasadena orders completely unnecessary tests for a patient for the explicit purpose of pocketing insurance money.
* Family doctor in Beverly Hills works with associates to falsify medical records of patients to get extra money from an insurer.

Anyone who is in the pre-filing stage for Los Angeles medical insurance fraud can be at serious risk for massive fines, a prison sentence, and other serious penalties.

Now that you have some background in state insurance fraud law, let’s turn our attention to the details of this massive bust.

United States Attorney Preet Bharara revealed that a veritable army of Armenian gangsters allegedly bilked Medicare out of $163 million — a coordinated criminal effort that “put the traditional Mafia to shame.”

The scope of the alleged insurance fraud is breathtaking. Federal authorities initiated an investigation after thousands of Medicare patient and doctor records were reported stolen — these records included patients’ dates of birth and Social Security numbers. The medical billing fraud network (and associates) set up fake clinics in 25 states — 118 fake clinics, all told — to bill Medicare for providing (non-existent) services.

The FBI described these clinics as “completely notional” — that is, they didn’t actually exist. The doctor-patient interactions at these clinics were apparently a “mirage.” Prosecutors highlighted some examples:

* eye doctors supposedly billing for bladder tests
* delivery room doctors ordering up skin allergy tests
According to the US attorney, the Los Angeles health care fraud network had been operating under the guidance of Armen Kazarian, the Armenian equivalent of a Mafia godfather. Kazarian — as of this writing — is being held at a Los Angeles jail.

In addition to the Southern California medical billing fraud arrests, police have detained people in New York, Mexico, Georgia, and Ohio. Kazarian and the 72 others are scheduled to be arraigned this afternoon on these charges, which will include: identity theft, money laundering, racketeering conspiracy, and bank fraud.

Insurance fraud in Southern California is a serious crime — whether you’re a chiropractor, dentist, doctor, or other caregiver. If you’re in the pre-filing stages, you should be aware of the potential ramifications of conviction, which can include:

* the loss of your professional license
* a lengthy prison sentence
* serious court costs and fines
* mandatory restitution to insurance agencies
* loss of ability to provide Medicare or Medi-Cal services in the future
Doctor, dentist, and chiropractor insurance fraud in Los Angeles can be charged pursuant to a variety of laws, depending on what prosecutors allege you did. These laws include Insurance Code Section 1871.4, Penal Code Section 550, Penal Code Section 118, and Labor Code Section 3700.

What specifically constitutes Southern California health care fraud? Here are some examples:

* creating false medical records
* billing twice for chiropractic, dental, or other medical work
* ordering unnecessary medications
* billing Medicare or another program for work not provided
* requesting unnecessary tests for patients
If you are in the pre-filing stage of a federal or Southern California medical billing fraud case, it’s essential to discuss your situation with a credentialed Southern California health care fraud lawyer. Whether you’ve been hit with insurance fraud in Glendale or chiropractic fraud in Pasadena, you need to understand your rights and responsibilities under the law.

Published on: October 11, 2010

Bribing an Officer with a Grilled Cheese? Would It Work for a Los Angeles DUI Suspect?

by Michael Kraut

People pulled over for Los Angeles DUI often do absurd things – sometimes comically absurd.

A breaking report out of Marion County, Florida illustrates just the lengths to which certain people will go to try to stay out of trouble. A 65-year-old grandmother, Elsie Wright O’Conner, got pulled over in town for DUI, after an officer noticed that she had been driving erratically. The officer found an empty bottle of vodka in her car… along with a second half empty bottle of vodka. He tested O’Conner and found that she had a BAC over three times Florida’s legal limit. This did not dissuade the suspect from begging for clemency.
She allegedly told the deputy: “Come on now, I’m a grandma. Can you do something for me since I am not that bad? I could have brought you back to my house and made you a grilled cheese sandwich.”

Unfortunately for the 65-year-old, the deputy did not take her up on the offer. Instead, he arrested her and charged her with DUI. According to records from the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, the grandma had been convicted of a DUI count back in 2007. It’s understandable that she would do anything in her power – including offering up a fresh grilled cheese sandwich – to avoid getting charged with DUI a second time. Indeed, if you are hit with multiple counts of driving under the influence in Pasadena (or elsewhere in Southern California), your penalties can go up – way up.

Let’s take a closer look at how California law treats recidivist (repeat) Los Angeles DUI offenders.

If you are arrested for a Pasadena DUI, you will generally be charged with a misdemeanor. The court can impose punishments like: a fine of $1,000 on top of court costs, a one year CA driver’s license suspension with no restricted license option, formal probation, six weeks minimum of California DUI alcohol school, a mandatory installation of an interlock ignition device (IID), and 48 hours in custody minimum – with a maximum of full six months behind bars.

And that’s just for your first offense!

If, within 10 years, you get convicted twice for DUI in Southern California, you can face increased jail time, increased alcohol school, a longer license suspension, stricter probation terms, more fines and steeper court costs. If you are pulled over for three or more DUIs within a 10-year time period, the court can ratchet up your punishments again and even charge you with a felony for what ordinarily might be a misdemeanor. A felony charge is significantly more devastating – convicted felons often face longer prison sentences as well as chronic problems, such as difficulty getting loans and finding gainful employment.

So what should you do if you have been pulled over for driving under the influence in Los Angeles for second, third, or fourth time? Your choice of lawyer can make a huge difference for your outcome. Many defendants have found that being represented by an attorney who used to be a prosecutor can be a big plus.

Published on: October 4, 2010

Highway Loss Data Institute Study on Texting-While-Driving Bans Indirectly Shows Flaws in Los Angeles DUI Policies

by Michael Kraut

An exclusive report issued last week by the Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI) about the efficacy of bans on texting-while-driving may have powerful implications for Los Angeles DUI policy.

The HLDI study examined rates of accidents in Louisiana, Washington, Minnesota, and California both prior to and after the implementation of laws banning driving while texting. Although studies by places like Virginia Tech and the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration have pretty convincingly shown that texting while driving radically increases the risk of accidents, the HLDI data counter-intuitively revealed that the laws banning texting while driving had no effect — or maybe even had a negative effect — on safety.

Ray LaHood, the US Secretary of Transportation, issued a scathing response to the study, pointing out that pilot programs in Hartford, Connecticut and Syracuse, New York both showed that driving while texting bans combined with active enforcement can work to get accident rates down.

An article in Discover Magazine, “Texting While Driving Bans Increase Crashes, Study Says; Rumpus Erupts,” tried to square the circle by suggesting that the pilot programs were fundamentally different from the across-the-board state bans. The article said: “the problem is that we are talking about apples and oranges… it’s not hard to imagine a small pilot program… achieving those reductions in texting while driving. Neither is it hard to imagine that across the country, where officers have many other simultaneous priorities… the effect [of the bans] could be mixed or negligible.”

So bringing this back to questions about Los Angeles DUI process and policy… one implication here is that policymakers need to be very careful — more careful than they usually are — to make sure that their policies yield intended results. Obviously, everyone wants to reduce incidences of driving under the influence in Burbank, Beverly Hills and elsewhere in the Southland. The question is: how do you do that? How do you respect the rights of both drivers who might be subject to risk as well as the rights of people accused of Burbank DUI?

This brouhaha over the efficacy of texting while driving bans suggests that we collectively need a more creative and data-driven approach to solving our freeway problems. So many different factors cause problems on the road, some of which we can control (such as whether we consume drugs or alcohol or not or whether we text in the phone or not) and some of which we can’t (such as the incredibly knotty Southern California traffic).

To bring this back to a practical discussion… if you or somebody you care about has been arrested for driving under the influence in Los Angeles, you need someone who understands Los Angeles DUI law on both a practical and a theoretical level.

Published on: September 27, 2010

Another Charge for Raven’s Coach Moeller has Los Angeles DUI Sports Analysts Talking

by Michael Kraut

While celebrity Los Angeles DUI cases get the lion’s share of the headlines (for examples see: Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, Mel Gibson, Chris Klien, etc), sports stars who drive DUI have been making the news a lot recently.

The Baltimore Ravens’ Assistant Coach, Andy Moeller, is one of the latest sports celebs to get charged with a serious DUI offense. His September 21 bust came just a few days before Jets wide receiver Braylon Edwards’ DUI arrest. According to news reports, the 46-year-old coach got pulled over on the Baltimore Beltway early morning Saturday. The police charged him with seven different violations, including DUI. Moeller is no stranger to road related arrests. In December 2007, when he was an offensive line coach at Michigan, Moeller got arrested for DUI. He also still continues to deal with the legal fallout from a May 2010 arrest for DUI and negligent driving. Although he got acquitted of charges stemming from that arrest, Moeller has faced more intense scrutiny from colleagues, fans, and reporters in the Los Angeles DUI celebrity blogging community.

When someone like Moeller gets pulled over for driving under the influence in Pasadena (or wherever) the police will often look for “symptoms” of DUI. These may include (but will not be limited to) the following:

• Bloodshot/bleary looking eyes
• Slurred speech
• Lack of coordination, stumbling
• Incoherent story telling
• Aggressive behavior
• Inappropriate emotional reactions to police questions
• Odor of alcohol on the person or in the car/vehicle
• Admission to having consumed alcohol
• Lack of balance
• Acute symptoms, such as vomiting or losing consciousness
Just because you demonstrate symptoms that you have been DUI in Pasadena (or wherever), however, doesn’t mean that you actually were – or that you should suffer the consequences, which can include jail time, fines, probation, license suspension and much more.

Indeed, a Los Angeles DUI attorney may analyze your case and find that the so-called DUI symptoms actually stemmed from fatigue, from improper police observation of your behavior, or even from an undiagnosed disease or condition. For instance, it’s well known that diabetics can blow “false positives” into breathalyzer machines because ketones and other chemicals in their breath can register as alcohol. All this is to say that, if you stand accused of a crime like Glendale DUI or Pasadena DUI, you should talk over your options with a qualified and resourceful Southern California lawyer.

Published on: September 19, 2010

Los Angeles Man Could be Charged with Southern California DUI Murder

by Michael Kraut

Last Tuesday, an emotionally charged Southern California DUI trial got underway in Fullerton. The defendant, Angel Herrera Leal, stands accused of perpetrating a horrific fatal DUI accident on an Anaheim freeway.

According to news and police reports, in the early morning hours of December 27, 2008, Leal – who had been twice convicted for driving under the influence in Southern California (2005 + 2007) – drive several miles in the wrong way on the southbound lane of an Anaheim freeway. He eventually collided head on with a car driving the correct direction. The collision resulted in the death of one of the passengers in the southbound car – Rebecca Moon – as well as injuries to the driver, Jisun Park. (Park allegedly had also been driving under the influence that evening, and she was cited accordingly).

Prosecutors apparently will seek a Southern California DUI murder charge against Leal. The Deputy DA, Howard Gundy, claims that Leal had a BAC of 0.29%. (By comparison, the Southern California DUI legal limit is 0.08%). According to news reports, Leal had spent time in alcohol education classes — he was aware that driving while intoxicated could lead to someone’s death or serious injury. He was also operating on a suspended license.

Prosecutors seeking serious charges — such as Glendale DUI murder — must meet a serious burden of proof. Typically, if a driver kills someone while DUI, he or she can be charged with vehicular manslaughter or maybe vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, depending on circumstances. The charge of DUI murder is even more serious than the vehicular manslaughter counts. In this case, the defendant had two priors and had completed an alcohol education course, so he should have deeply understood how dangerous driving DUI could be.

Designing a potent defense to charges of driving under the influence in Pasadena or Glendale (or wherever) can be tricky, even if the charges are far less serious and the police employed less than stellar technique. A smart, credentialed and experienced lawyer can make all the difference.

Published on: September 13, 2010

Another Los Angeles DUI Bust for Paris Hilton? Not Quite – This Time It’s Cocaine in Vegas

by Michael Kraut

Celebutante Paris Hilton’s 2006 Los Angeles DUI made headlines around the globe. The billionaire heiress was sentenced to 45 days behind bars for violating her probation, and she served her jail time on June 3, 2007 – just after she finished attending the MTV Movie Awards. Her subsequent release on June 26, 2007 attracted hoards of paparazzi and other star watchers and turned her Los Angeles DUI event into one of the stories of the year.

Although Ms. Hilton attempted rehabilitation, this summer has been pretty rough for her. During the World Cup in South Africa, Hilton got detained by local authorities for allegedly possessing marijuana – she was later exculpated when authorities discovered that another person in her coterie had been smoking. More recently – on August 27th – Hilton got busted for cocaine possession in Las Vegas near the Wynn Casino. Paris had been a passenger in a Cadillac Escalade driven by her boyfriend, Cy Waits, who got pulled over by the police. As Hilton waited, she removed lip balm from her purse, revealing a small but not insignificant amount of cocaine right in front of the officer. Hilton was booked for cocaine possession at the Clark County Detention Center and released the next day. Her boyfriend, Waits, got charged with driving under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol (allegedly marijuana).

According to California Vehicle Code section 23152 (a), if you drive under the influence of drugs or alcohol in Burbank (or wherever in California), you can be charged with a significant crime. The drugs can be illegal – e.g. cocaine or marijuana – or even over-the-counter prescription drugs. Although an officer will not likely give you a breathalyzer test for a Burbank DUI drug case, you may be asked to submit a urine or blood sample to be chemically analyzed.

Although all Los Angeles DUI drug cases are serious – and penalties can include everything from jail time to mandatory drug and alcohol classes to suspension of driving privileges – a qualified and experienced Southern California DUI attorney can often break down the prosecution’s case against you. For instance, the so-called science used to identify someone as under the influence of drugs can be attacked using a number of different strategies and tactics.

Published on: September 6, 2010

What to Do After Being Arrested for Los Angeles DUI

by Michael Kraut

Many articles about Los Angeles DUI tell you how to avoid getting into dangerous driving situations, how to handle the police at the scene, and even how to draft an effective legal contest to your charges. But very few resources out there tell you what to do — how to handle the stress, agita, confusion, and overwhelm that you feel — in the hours and days after your arrest. This blog post aims to help defendants take smart, active and resourceful steps to help with damage control.

1. Record what happened
The human memory is notoriously fluid and malleable. Although you may feel like that your Glendale DUI arrest will forever being burned in your mind, your memory has a way of warping events. If you cannot clearly and articulately recall what happened, you may not be able to put up your stiffest defense. To that end, write down precisely what happened as soon as you get home and get cleaned up. If you remember any officer quotes – things that might be helpful in constructing a defense – be sure to note those. Note time lines. If you were given a breathalyzer or blood test, note how that went. Write down the names of officers who arrested you, and so on and so forth. The more information you can get out of your head and onto paper right now, the easier it will be for your Pasadena DUI lawyer to help you strategize your defense.

2. Don’t delay taking action
For one thing, your California driver’s license could be suspended if you don’t try to contest your charges. Also, if you miss court dates or other key deadlines, you could face penalties above and beyond those stemming from your Southern California DUI.

3. Find an attorney ASAP
True, you can handle your own defense. But if you fail to put up the stiffest resistance to the charges against you, the consequences could be dire. Not only could you face jail time – sometimes much more jail time than the minimum 48 hours behind bars – but you could also face heightened court costs, stricter probation terms, a lengthier license suspension, and more mandatory alcohol school.

4. Steel yourself.

In the weeks and months ahead, you may have to go through difficult times as you relive your arrest and explain to family and friends what’s going on. Do your best to get perspective on what happened, and count your blessings that you are still alive. It is possible to recover from a DUI arrest and rebuild your life, become a safer, more mindful driver. It is going to take work and soul searching to figure out how you got to where you are now – and how to make improvements in your life.

As part of your battle strategy, you almost certainly want to get the help of an experienced Los Angeles DUI lawyer.

Published on: August 29, 2010

Disturbing Southern California DUI Charge – Suspect Beat His Girlfriend While on DUI Rampage

by Michael Kraut

Driving under the influence in Southern California is — in and of itself — an extremely dangerous and perhaps even deadly thing to do. But a Mill Valley man by the name of Scott Lindner has been arrested not only for Southern California DUI but also for allegedly assaulting a female passenger while smashing his 2010 Honda Accord into a variety of objects during what can only be described as a DUI rampage.

The couple had been arguing at Marin County’s Olema Campground, when they got into Lindner’s 2010 Accord. The 22-year-old Lindner crashed his car into a parked truck and then slammed into a metal pole (part of a propane tank enclosure), causing his 20-year-old female passenger to get thrown from the car and suffer injuries. For whatever reason, the woman got back into the car with Lindner, and they peeled off down Highway 1. Throughout an 8-mile drive, Lindner continued to hit his passenger, hurting her more. His rampage finished at Sir Francis Drake Boulevard, when the Accord plowed into a curb and came to a stop blocking the eastbound lane of traffic. CHP officers quickly arrived and arrested Lindner for felony traffic charges. Lindner’s passenger was taken to a nearby hospital. Investigating officers found that Lindner had been on parole with the State’s Department of Corrections, and the CHP released a statement that said the Lindner was back on parole hold.

This disturbing case gives us an opportunity to discuss the difference between a “standard” non-injury Los Angeles DUI and an injury DUI. A non-injury charge might be prosecuted pursuant to California Vehicle Code Sections 23152(a) and 23152(b); but an injury Pasadena DUI will be charged according to two different sections, California Vehicle Code Sections 23153(a) and 23153(b).

Essentially, the injury subsections of the CVC stipulate that an ordinary misdemeanor DUI charge can be elevated to a felony if the driver hurts another person in the course of operating a vehicle while DUI. A felony is a much more serious charge than a misdemeanor. It carries stricter penalties. Convicted felons lose the right to vote and face a much more difficult road back to normalcy. Felons have a harder time securing loans, leasing cars and apartments, getting jobs and generally readapting to life after the conviction.

So if you have been charged with an injury DUI in Glendale or elsewhere throughout the Southland, it’s in your interest to explore your options for best legal defense.

Published on: August 23, 2010

Another Mel Gibson Los Angeles DUI? Not Quite, But Still – More Bad Press for the Braveheart Star

by Michael Kraut

Actor Mel Gibson’s 2006 Los Angeles DUI arrest may have been the most notorious celebrity DUI arrest in history. The Australian actor allegedly went off on an anti-Semitic rant at the Malibu police station when he was brought in, and this tirade fueled weeks of media coverage. On August 16, Gibson made headlines once again for getting into motor vehicle related trouble in Malibu – this time, he drove his Maserati Quattroporte off a hillside in Malibu and dinged up his car. The police called to the scene found that the actor was not DUI in Southern California this time.

Gibson may face allegations that he hit and abused his ex-girlfriend (and mother of his child) Oksana Grigorieva. A series of taped conversations between Grigorieva and Gibson released on the website RadarOnline.com revealed the actor to sound like a deranged lunatic, in which he apparently admitted to hitting his girlfriend, and he threatened to burn her house down (among other unsavory things). Clearly, in the wake of the release of these obscenity laced tapes and this fresh reminder of his 2006 Los Angeles DUI, Gibson is not exactly having a blockbuster summer.

But his story does lead us to an intriguing question: what happens to a driver who is pulled over multiple times for driving under the influence in Southern California? Obviously, your penalties likely go up. But what influences those penalties, and what should a second or third time Los Angeles DUI offender expect?

First of all, you have to remember that if you are pulled over for driving under the influence in Glendale (for instance) several times, the court will take a slate of factors under consideration, including how and whether you cooperated with the police, how much over the legal limit of 0.08% your BAC was, and whether you hurt anyone or did any property damage – and if you did, whether you took responsibility or fled the scene (hit and run). Beyond that, a typical second time Southern California DUI offender will get jail time of between 4 and 10 days (first timers will get a mandatory 48 hours in custody), 18 months minimum DUI alcohol school (first timers will get maybe six weeks), a two-year driver’s license suspension (first timers will get a one year suspension), and an increase in court costs and fines – among other heightened penalties.

A third time offender will get a mandatory minimum of 120 days custody – that’s around four months. He or she will face a three-year license suspension and see even more significant hikes in court costs and fines. And again, this is really just scratching the surface – the circumstances of your Pasadena DUI will almost certainly inform your punishment. Another important factor will be the nature and strength of your defense. And since you can’t really control the court – or what happened with your DUI arrest – your best strategy is to work with an experienced DUI lawyer to cultivate and execute your best possible legal defense.