Fla. Doctor Guilty in Pain Pill Case
Feb 6, 2006
By: Melissa Nelson
The Washington Post
A former Air Force doctor was convicted Monday of causing the deaths of five patients by overprescribing highly potent painkillers, including morphine and OxyContin.
Dr. Thomas G. Merrill, 70, was convicted on 98 of 100 counts, including illegally dispensing controlled substances and health care fraud. He faces up to life in prison.
Prosecutor Stephen Kunz called Merrill “a drug dealer with an osteopathic license.” He said Merrill’s practice became a destination for drug seekers throughout Florida.
Kunz said Merrill wrote 33,000 prescriptions from January 2001 to May 2004 and 81 percent were for controlled substances.
Merrill was taken into custody after verdict. His attorney, Jim Appleman, planned to appeal.
Appleman said Merrill tried to help patients manage their pain, but he was “conned” by those who exaggerated their suffering to obtain drugs and then mixed their prescriptions with cocaine, marijuana and other illegal substances.
Since 1994, Merrill had worked at the Magnolia Clinic in Apalachicola, 80 miles southwest of Tallahassee. The state began investigating the clinic in early 2003. In May 2004, authorities suspended his license.
