Drug Enforcement Administration Liability for False Arrest of Physician

Abstract

Prescribing opioid analgesic medications brings with it a risk of regulatory oversight. A Florida Physician, Dr. Andrew Nguyen, was arrested in 2000 for allegedly violating controlled substance laws. The allegation was that Dr. Nguyen had not conducted a physical examination of a patient for whom controlled substances were prescribed. The allegation was untrue, and the charges against Dr. Nguyen were dismissed. Dr. Nguyen successfully sued the local law enforcement authorities, but a companion lawsuit against the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) was dismissed. The United States Court of Appeals has now reinstated Dr. Nguyen's lawsuit against the DEA. The reinstatement of the lawsuit corrects a moral hazard that produces imbalanced regulatory perspectives on the enforcement of controlled substance laws.

KEYWORDS:

• Collinsville raid
• DEA
• false arrest
• moral hazard
• physical examination
• sovereign immunity
• voluntary compliance