In Unusual Twist, Opioid Companies Try To Disqualify Judge Overseeing Nationwide Trial With Claims Of Bias
In a 39-page brief filed with the motion, the attorneys for the defendants cite Judge Dan A. Polster's “unusual level of commitment” to a settlement that they believe has affected his decision-making in the landmark lawsuits. They cited a remark made during the first court hearing in January 2018 for the multidistrict litigation when Polster said, "My objective is to do something meaningful to abate the crisis and to do it in 2018."
The New York Times:
Opioid Defendants Seek To Disqualify Judge Overseeing 2,300 Cases
Scarcely five weeks before a landmark federal civil trial in the opioid epidemic, the giant retail pharmacy chains and drug distributors that are defendants in the bellwether Ohio case are seeking to disqualify the judge from overseeing it and nearly 2,300 other opioid-related lawsuits before him. In a brief filed in federal court at 1:24 a.m. on Saturday, the defendants’ lawyers claimed that over the past 21 months, Judge Dan A. Polster has shown his bias against the defendants by making extensive comments about his intention to settle the sprawling case and bring relief as quickly as possible to local governments and individuals hit hard by crisis. (Hoffman, 9/14)
The Associated Press:
Drug Company Attorneys Seek To Disqualify Federal Judge
Attorneys for eight drug distributors, pharmacies and retailers facing trial next month for their roles in the opioid crisis want to disqualify the federal judge overseeing their cases, saying he has shown bias in his effort to obtain a multibillion-dollar global settlement. According to the motion filed late Friday in U.S. District Court in Cleveland, where Judge Dan Polster presides over most of the 2,000 lawsuits filed by state, local and tribal governments, the judicial code requires judges to recuse themselves when there is an appearance of prejudice or bias. (Gillispie, 9/14)
The Washington Post:
Judge At The Center Of Landmark Opioid Trial Under Attack
In seeking to remove Polster, the defendants pointed to comments he made in early 2018, before any of the parties had begun producing evidence or marshaling their arguments. Polster said, for example, “150 Americans are going to die today, just today, while we’re meeting.” He also argued that everyone “shares some of the responsibility” for the epidemic, and that he hoped to “do something meaningful to abate this crisis,” including reducing the number of opioids being manufactured and distributed, according to the companies. (Achenbach and Bernstein, 9/15)
The Hill:
Drug Companies Back Effort To Remove Judge From Federal Lawsuit
Lead attorneys for the plaintiffs on Saturday slammed the defense memorandum in a statement obtained by The Hill while defending Polster's tenure as a federal judge. Polster "has been held in the highest regard for decades on the Federal bench as a judge with great integrity, intelligence, and impartiality," attorneys Paul Hanly Jr., Paul Farrell Jr. and Joe Rice said in the statement. (Frazin, 9/14)
Cleveland Plain Dealer:
Attorneys For Drug Companies Want Federal Judge In Cleveland Booted From Massive Opioid Litigation
The motion comes at a pivotal time in the more than 2,000 federal lawsuits being heard by Polster in Cleveland. A trial for lawsuits filed by Cuyahoga and Summit counties is set to begin next month. The judge recently denied attempts by drug companies to dismiss the lawsuits, ruling a jury should decide whether they are culpable. (Heisig, 9/14)
The Associated Press:
Amid Settlement Talks, Opioids Keep Taking A Grim Toll
As the nation’s attorneys general debate a legal settlement with Purdue Pharma, the opioid epidemic associated with its blockbuster painkiller OxyContin rages on in state after state, community after community, killing tens of thousands of people each year with no end in sight. In Pennsylvania’s York County, the coroner investigated eight suspected overdose deaths in a single week of August — four in 24 hours. “This is a battle that’s not going to end easily, and it will be something we are fighting for a while,” Coroner Pam Gay said. “It’s going to take a while to see a significant decline.” (Rubinkam, 9/16)
In other news on the crisis —
USA Today:
When Opioid Treatment Isn't Enough: Man Still Injected Cocaine To 'Feel Something'
More than eight years into his opioid-addiction treatment, Paul Moore was shooting cocaine into his arms and legs up to 20 times a day so he could “feel something. ”The buprenorphine he took to quell cravings for opioids couldn’t satisfy his need to get high. Moore said he treated himself like a "garbage can," ingesting any drug and drink he could get, but soon enough, alcohol and weed had almost no effect unless he vaped the highest-THC medical marijuana available. (O'Donnell and DeMio, 9/15)
The Baltimore Sun:
Annual Cocaine Overdose Deaths On Rise In Maryland
Cocaine hasn’t received as much attention in recent years, but it is increasingly playing a role in the opioid epidemic, state data show. Despite some good news from the first quarter of this year, cocaine-related deaths have skyrocketed annually in Maryland since 2015, with nearly half of those occurring in Baltimore. The vast majority of those deaths — 82%, according to the Maryland Department of Health — involved fentanyl, a powerful and dangerous synthetic opioid. (Round, 9/15)
