On April 15, one week after Matthew Kacsmaryk suspended approval of the abortion pill mifepristone, the Washington Post published what it framed as a scandalous story about the Texas judge.
The United States Supreme Court granted certiorari in a pair of cases out of the Seventh Circuit that will finally resolve a longstanding circuit split on the question of “scienter” under the False Claims Act (FCA) namely, whether a defendant can “knowingly” violate the FCA if the relevant legal requirement is ambiguous and the defendant’s conduct is otherwise “objectively reasonable.” By Jennifer Freel, Laura M. Kidd Cordova, & Bethany Pickett Shah
Fraudster who stole protected health information to fund spending spree sentenced to prison
Eastern District of Texas
A McKinney man has been sentenced to prison for federal violations in the Eastern District of Texas.
Demetrius Cervantes, 46, pleaded guilty on Dec. 4, 2020, to conspiracy to obtain information from a protected computer and was sentenced to 48 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Sean D. Jordan.
“Today’s sentence sends the message that the theft of protected health information, the fabrication of physicians’ orders, and the sale of prescriptions will not be tolerated in the Eastern District of Texas,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei. “This office will continue to pursue those who place profits over patients and manipulate the healthcare system for their personal gain.”