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For years, Dr. Charles Battle abused his position as a licensed Fort Worth physician to access heaps of controlled substances, the U.S. Attorney’s Office alleged in 2020.
The allegations led to a series of criminal charges out of the Northern District of Texas. First among them is a conspiracy to “illegally distribute and possess with intent to distribute controlled substances, namely, Hydrocodone, Tylenol with Codeine, Tramadol, Xanax, and phentermine,” court documents say.
Battle and his co-conspirators also sought to scam the health insurance industry by submitting false claims for compensation to insurers based on prescriptions they were writing illegally, federal authorities said in a press release.
On Friday, U.S. Judge Chad Meacham sentenced Battle to 12 years in federal prison. Battle was convicted on controlled substance conspiracy charges in early July 2021 after turning down a plea deal and opting for a trial instead. After the trial conviction, Battle chose to plead guilty to mail fraud later that month.
“Dealers of illegal drugs come in many forms. This is a case of the abuse of trust and position,” said DEA Special Agent in Charge Eduardo A. Chávez in the press release.
Battle and his co-conspirators were moving high volumes of illegal drugs, authorities say. During the five-plus years of the scheme, Battle issued more than 50,000 controlled substance prescription. 17,000 of which were for the powerful opioid hydrocodone.
At trial, one of Battle’s former employees testified that she, her husband, and Battle agreed that the doctor would trade illegal controlled substance prescriptions for cocaine with employee’s husband.
Evidence presented at trial also showed that Battle would receive money in the form of $200 fees for initial visits granted to non-patients looking for drugs. They would get $80 for return visits in exchange for controlled substance prescriptions as well.
To make matters even shadier, Battle also provided his nurse practitioner, Donna Green, access to his DEA registration number and medical credentials so Green could issue prescriptions for controlled substances without his supervision. Green pleaded guilty to one count of acquiring a controlled substance through fraud on the morning the trial was set to begin.
News of Battle’s sentencing comes as the number of Texans dying from overdoses on fentanyl and other opioids is rising.
“Dr. Battle and his co-conspirators used their authority to push pills into our neighborhoods disregarding the inherent harm they cause,” added Chávez in the release. “DEA’s teamwork with our federal and local area law enforcement agencies make it possible to pursue any person distributing illegal drugs, no matter the disguise.”
