DOJ Eyes Complaint vs. Fed. Prosecutor Treadway

DOJ Eyes Kan. Complaint Against Federal Prosecutor; Roxana Hegeman; AP, Witchita Eagle; 2009-07-10. Source

Permalink: http://doctordeluca.com/wordpress/archive/doj-eyes-complaint/

See also:
ACLU Backs Reynold’s Motion to Quash – DeLuca; 2009-05-09
Drug Control? No, Citizen Control – Reynolds, 2009-04-20

WICHITA, Kan. – A political activist targeted in a federal obstruction investigation in Kansas said she has filed a complaint with the Justice Department alleging prosecutorial misconduct in a grand jury investigation of her role in the case of a doctor whose clinic has been linked by prosecutors to 59 overdose deaths.

Siobhan Reynolds, president of the Santa Fe, N.M.-based Pain Relief Network, said Friday that her complaint against Assistant U.S. Attorney Tanya Treadway was referred to the Justice Department’s Office of Professional Responsibility. The office examines possible ethics violations by Justice Department employees.

The Justice Department in Washington, D.C., and the U.S. attorney’s office in Kansas declined Friday to confirm whether the complaint was filed.

“Our attorneys are dedicated to performing their duties in accordance with the highest professional standards,” said Jim Cross, spokesman for the U.S. attorney’s office. “I think we welcome any questions, direction or assistance from the Office of Professional Responsibility.”

Reynolds’ group has supported Dr. Stephen Schneider and his wife, Linda, who were indicted in December 2007 on 34 counts accusing them of unlawfully prescribing painkillers and overbilling for services at their clinic in the Wichita suburb of Haysville.

The Pain Relief Network, which opposes what it sees as federal efforts to crack down on chronic pain treatment, has helped the Schneiders line up attorneys and expert witnesses, and has put up billboards supporting them.

The Justice Department has issued a grand jury subpoena for Reynolds and her group seeking all correspondence and other documents related to the Schneider case, including Reynolds’ interactions with attorneys, patients, Schneider family members, doctors and others.

Reynolds has refused to comply with the subpoena. She said Friday that she has not yet been found in contempt of court.

“Ms. Treadway’s conduct in the case has been nothing short of shocking and ruthless; she has in fact displayed the kind of ‘win at all costs’ mentality that you have publicly stated your department will no longer tolerate,” Reynolds wrote in her June 18 letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder.

The American Civil Liberties Union has taken up the Reynolds defense in the grand jury proceedings, claiming in initial court papers that subpoenas sought by a “frustrated prosecutor seeking to silence a dissenting advocate” have a chilling effect on First Amendment rights.

The ACLU has also contended Treadway – who also is prosecuting the Schneiders – had misused the grand jury process to circumvent the standard criminal discovery process in the related pending case against the doctor and his wife.

U.S. District Judge Julie Robinson rejected earlier this week the ACLU’s motion asking the judge to reconsider an earlier ruling declining to quash the subpoenas, Reynolds said Friday.