Federal prosecutors have alleged that executives for the New England Compounding Center engaged in a criminal conspiracy that resulted in multiple deaths after NECC produced tainted steroid drugs, The Boston Globe reported in late December.
The charges stem from allegations claiming the NECC marketed and distributed tainted steroids, which require complicated “compounding” to sterilize non-sterile materials and chemicals. The government says that NECC knowingly lied about their tainted drugs and sold them to doctors and hospitals, resulting in a meningitis outbreak that killed dozens of patients.
Racketeering charges require prosecutors to prove that the executives were knowingly operating the business as a crime ring and that they worked together to further the goals of the criminal organization. The NECC owner and a pharmacist face 2nd-degree murder charges for their role in the outbreak.
At Goldenberg Lauricella, our Minnesota drug injury attorneys understand the obligations faced by companies that produce lifesaving drugs. While many defective drug cases come down to issues of negligence or corner-cutting, these charges allege something unique: a knowing, premeditated decision to put innocent patients at risk in order to increase an organization’s profits.
Our personal injury lawyers are currently representing victims of this meningitis outbreak in litigation against the NECC. Goldenberg Lauricella will continue to monitor the federal NECC case as part of our commitment to fighting for innocent victims in Minnesota.
If you’ve been victimized by defective drugs of medical devices, you should speak to our drug injury attorneys as soon as possible. Please contact Goldenberg Lauricella today for a free consultation.