Oct 30, 2006 Press Release US Newswire

To: National Desk, Health Reporter

Contact: Siobhan Reynolds of the Pain Relief Network, 505-603-8875, John P. Flannery (Dr. Nucklos’ Appellate Counsel), 202-365-5060

SPRINGFIELD, Ohio, Oct. 30 /U.S. Newswire/ — The following was released today by the Pain Relief Network (PRN):

– The Pain Relief Network (PRN) charges that the prosecution did not prove Dr. Nucklos guilty of malpractice, nor drug dealing, and instead wrongly tried to make Dr. Nucklos prove he was innocent; PRN urges the Ohio Court of Appeal to dismiss the charges.

Siobhan Reynolds, president of the Pain Relief Network (PRN), attacked the recent conviction of Dr. William Nucklos, an African American pain physician from Ohio, “The prosecution set out to prove a malpractice case against Dr. Nucklos, when they were required by law to prove a crime, and the state then failed to prove even malpractice.” According to Reynolds, “the state unfairly convicted and sentenced Dr. Nucklos to twenty years in prison for treating his chronic pain patients — and for nothing else.” Reynolds said, “I’m grateful that the Court of Appeals released Dr. Nucklos pending appeal because what is happening in Clark County is unfair from beginning to end.”

Reynolds continued, “More and more, we see prosecutors who have no background in medicine prosecuting physicians for no other reason than that they are helping chronic pain patients. This case fits that regrettable pattern. The prosecutors here showed they had no understanding of the pain that 75 million Americans suffer daily in this nation, nor an understanding of the standard medical procedure of increasing the congressionally approved controlled substance dose until relief is achieved.”

Reynolds explained, “Without this medicine, these patients would suffer unbearable pain, and some would be driven to commit suicide — there is no other exit from this nightmare.”

Reynolds said, “I don’t know what the government is doing prosecuting a doctor that they admit, by the testimony of their own witnesses, has been duped by his patients. The prosecution themselves put witnesses on the stand who confessed to having convincingly lied to Dr. Nucklos. And here’s the killer, we only find out after the trial that the prosecution had previously decided not to charge four other physicians on the grounds that they had been conned, fooled, by their patients.”

Reynolds said, “In America, we expect a level playing field, and we expect fair and equal treatment. Dr. Nucklos is a well educated prominent African American physician, and on top of everything else, we have sufficient evidence that the jury selection process in this case was racially discriminatory. These doctor prosecutions are always shockingly unfair, but here, there appears to be an official effort to keep blacks off of this black doctor’s jury. We are seeing what — I believe — is a new low in prosecutorial misconduct, denying a defendant a fair jury of his peers.” Dr. John Miller’s statistical report, demonstrating that jury selection is racially discriminatory, and prepared in connection with the Ohio appeal, is available electronically, in the form of PDF, by contacting Reynolds.

Reynolds said, “Dr. Nucklos has a terrific appellate counsel, a former federal prosecutor, named John P. Flannery, and we’re hopeful that he can inform the court’s discretion as to how this case went wrong. The matter is scheduled for oral argument in Springfield, Ohio, on Nov. 27, and it will be worth attending.”

Flannery, in private practice in Virginia with Campbell Miller Zimmerman, PC, said: “We have raised these crucial issues before the Ohio Court of Appeals, and we are hoping that they will agree to dismiss the charges entirely or, at least, grant Dr. Nucklos a new trial. The state has already admitted that the court’s sentencing was illegal. They just haven’t gone far enough to admit to the corrupt nature of the process. We have submitted our briefs and we are waiting to make our oral arguments to the court. After that, we shall wait upon the court’s decision.”

Reynolds concluded, “The government cannot continue to prosecute pain doctors without evidence of drug-dealing. Dr. Nucklos traveled from Columbus to Springfield, Ohio, to help working men and women who are financially less fortunate deal with their chronic pain. We should be praising such a physician, not prosecuting him.”

The Pain Relief Network - http://www.painreliefnetwork.org — founded by Reynolds, is a network of pain patients, family members of people in pain, physicians, attorneys and activists who are “working toward a day when people in pain will be afforded the simple dignity and compassion due all ill Americans.”

http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=75347