Posted on February 26, 2013 in Breathalyzer

As an Aggressive Baltimore Maryland DUI Attorney I have handled literally thousands of DUI cases both as a former prosecutor and as a defense attorney. I have written several times in this blog that it is extremely difficult these days to secure a not guilty in a DUI case on the issue of whether in fact the client was under the influence or impaired. I have won more than my fair share of DUI trials over the last 15 years since I left the State’s Attorney’s Office but the overwhelming majority have been on technical issues such as an illegal stop or the State’s inability to prove that my client was the operator of the vehicle.

I published a blog last week about a DUI trial that I won on the impairment issue but that was only one of two that week. I won a second on this issue in spite of the fact that my client had 3 recently consumed beer cans in the car when he was stopped and told the police that he would not do the field sobriety tests because he “would fail them”. That case was scheduled in the District Court for Baltimore County last Friday. Here are the facts:

My client who was admittedly suffering from a combination of psychiatric and alcohol issues, was operating his vehicle in the Catonsville area of Baltimore County one day last summer. It was in fact a few days after the first big wind storm we had when many people lost power for a week or more. He was unfortunately one of those people so he decided to sit in his car to listen to the radio and drink beer. After a few beers he decided to take a drive to survey the damage which was needless to say a mistake.

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 Posted on February 26, 2013 in Dr. Nikita Levy and Johns Hopkins Hospital

This past week, Marylanders were stunned and sickened by news that Johns Hopkins’ gynecologist, Dr. Nikita Levy, allegedly used still cameras and video recording devices to capture surreptitiously his gynecological examinations of potentially hundreds of his patients, and that he allegedly collected massive amounts of those images and videos on multiple media storage devices (computers, thumb drives, etc.). What Dr. Levy did with these images is not yet clear. Local, state and federal law enforcement have begun a large-scale cooperative investigation, and, according to reports, officers have searched Dr. Levy’s home and office, seizing multiple media storage devices pursuant to search warrants issued by Baltimore County and Baltimore City Judges. But in the Dr. Levy case, which involves electronic surveillance and electronic privacy crimes, potential child pornography, voyeurism, and invasion of the privacy of hundreds and hundreds of women, law enforcement faces obstacles far more complex than a physician sexually assaulting one or more patients.

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 Posted on February 26, 2013 in Dr. Nikita Levy and Johns Hopkins Hospital

As news continues to unfold about the now-dead Dr. Levy’s alleged use of still cameras and video recording devices to capture surreptitiously his gynecological examinations of potentially hundreds of his patients, the entire Baltimore and Maryland community is reacting to and struggling to understand how an invasion of privacy of this magnitude occurred. In a nutshell:

• Women everywhere are thinking hard about their privacy-and cringing as they visualize what happens when they hop on a gynecological examination table and reveal their most intimate body parts to a medical care provider;
• If interviews with dozens of Dr. Levy’s patients can be taken as representative of the whole, the hundreds and hundreds of women examined by Dr. Levy are experiencing the trauma commonly associated with such an abusive invasion of their sexual privacy and are experiencing emotional distress as they imagine what pictures and videos might exist and whether those videos and images are floating about on the Internet;
• Horrifically, some of Dr. Levy’s teenage patients may be possible victims, raising the question–was Dr. Levy creating child pornography;
• Federal and state law enforcement are working diligently to investigate, gather, sort, catalog and evaluate massive amounts of electronic evidence and identify victims from that evidence;
• Prosecutors are considering what electronic privacy laws, criminal laws, child pornography laws, and medical privacy laws may come into play;
• Johns Hopkins is reaching out to former patients while trying to conduct its own internal investigation and handling a PR crisis; and • Medical malpractice attorneys have rushed to the courthouse filing suits for millions in damages for medical malpractice when not a single victim has yet to be identified, although make no mistake-victims will be identified when there is this much electronic evidence.

The unfolding facts of this case reveal far more complexity, however, than a typical medical malpractice case, and a rush to the courthouse without the full facts only generates more angst and anxiety for all of the patients as they read hyperbolic Complaints, and it potentially impedes the ability of Johns Hopkins, local police and the FBI to sort through the massive amounts of electronic evidence and to identify victims.

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 Posted on February 22, 2013 in Hospital Malpractice

A number of news organizations are reporting today that lawyers in Baltimore are racing to the courthouse to file lawsuits against Dr. Nikita Levy and Johns Hopkins Hospital. When I heard that, I sadly chuckled. The only thing that these lawyers know now is what the media is reporting. There is no other information available from Dr. Levy’s family, Johns Hopkins, the Baltimore County Police who executed the search warrant, the Baltimore City Police who are leading the investigation or the FBI which is assisting the Baltimore City Police with the forensic evaluation of the electronic evidence.

My firm and I are taking a different approach than rushing to the courthouse; we believe that it is better to conduct a thorough and detailed investigation rather than run the courthouse simply to be the first to file a civil lawsuit. Accordingly, I issued a pre-lawsuit deposition notice and subpoena to Johns Hopkins today seeking to determine what it knows and where documents and other evidence are located. A copy of the Deposition Notice can be found here. While I believe that ultimately a lawsuit is likely in these cases, such a lawsuit should be based upon a through analysis of the facts and not media reports.

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 Posted on February 22, 2013 in Breathalyzer

As a Baltimore Maryland DUI/DWI Lawyer, I have handled more than 5,000 DUI cases. I have blogged many times about the new laws that have been passed in recent years, particularly the DUI Per Se law, making it increasingly difficult to get Not Guilty verdicts for clients in these cases. More often than not, if the police have probable cause for the stop, it is a relatively easy matter for prosecutors to prove the balance of their case. particularly if the person submits to a breathalyzer and the result is .08 or greater.

I represented a client in Baltimore County District Court this week whose case proved to be one of the exceptions to the rule. In spite of the fact that she blew a .15 on the PBT at the scene, I secured her not guilty verdicts on each of the alcohol related offenses. Here are the facts:

My client was driving on the inner loop of I695 in Baltimore County one night last summer. She had been at a party most of the day and had consumed some alcohol. The police officer wrote in his report that his attention was drawn to her because she was changing lanes erratically. He conducted and pace of the vehicle and found her to be traveling at 75 MPH in a 55 MPH zone. It was also a work area.

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 Posted on February 19, 2013 in Child Pornography

Sexual assault and child pornography. These words have thus far been missing from the discussion concerning former Hopkins doctor Nikita A. Levy’s alleged filming of his patients in various states of undress. Dr. Levy’s alleged actions constitute a form of sexual assault against every patient he filmed in this manner. Moreover, Dr. Levy (and potentially others) are guilty of possessing, manufacturing and distributing child pornography to the extent that any of the victims were under age 18.

All who were filmed are victims of sexual assault. Victims of sexual assault have rights which are vitally important for Dr. Levy’s victims to understand. These rights are discussed in detail here. Most significantly, these victims have important privacy interests in the images and video obtained and they have the right to meaningfully participate in any criminal case that may result from the ongoing criminal investigation. Additionally, law enforcement has certain important obligations to these victims throughout the criminal investigation. All these victims may have civil causes of action against Dr. Levy’s estate and others.

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 Posted on February 19, 2013 in Child Pornography

As a Former Baltimore Prosecutor and current criminal attorney I have been involved in the prosecution of hundreds of child sex offenders. The disgraced and now deceased Johns Hopkins Gynecologist, Dr. Nikita Levy, would have likely faced prosecution under multiple federal and state criminal statutes had he not apparently committed suicide. The police are conducting an investigation that could potentially lead to charges against others if they either conspired with him to collect the images without the knowledge of the victims or if the materials were distributed to by others. In addition to many other areas of practice at STSW, we have a Practice Area Exclusively Dedicated to the Protection of Victim’s Rights.

Among the most serious charges that could have been filed against Dr. Levy and anyone who may have participated with him in these crimes, are charges involving the possession, distribution and manufacture of child pornography. According to news reports, many of his long time patients sent subsequently sent their daughters to him for gynecological care. Assuming any of the large cache of photos allegedly found in his home, turn out to be of minor victims, these statutes have undoubtedly been violated.

Under both Maryland and federal law it is a crime to possess. manufacture of distribute child pornography. Child pornography is generally defined as being images or video of the genitalia of a child under the age of 18 or depictions of that child participating in the commission of sexual acts either with adults or with other minors. Under Maryland state law a person can be incarcerated for up 10 years for violating the statute in any of the above described ways but there are no mandatory penalties. Under federal law the penalties are much more severe.

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 Posted on February 19, 2013 in Hospital Malpractice

Over the last few days, news reports have surfaced that a gynecologist / obstetrician who worked for Johns Hopkins, Dr. Nikita Levy, was improperly taking photographs and videos of patients.

Apparently, a co-worked reported Dr. Levy to a supervisor at Hopkins on 2/4/13 which resulted in Dr. Levy being fired by Hopkins on 2/8/13 and Hopkins notifying the police.

The police subsequently searched Dr. Levy’s home and found a large amount of “evidence.” Presumably, this means that they found many photos and videos of his patients. After retaining a local lawyer, Dr. Levy committed suicide.

Surprisingly, patients are finding out about Dr. Levy’s misconduct through the news media instead of through Hopkins itself. Even the now disgraced St. Joseph Medical Center advised patients when its cardiologist Dr. Midei was found to have unnecessary implanted cardiac stents in hundreds of patients over years.

One major issue is who is responsible for Dr. Levy’s misconduct. He is certainly liable, but his malpractice insurance may exclude coverage for such misconduct and the extent of his assets are unknown. Hopkins, on the other hand, may be liable for the conduct of their employee.

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 Posted on January 24, 2013 in Energy Drinks

Recent developments and reports regarding the side effects of energy drinks are getting more and more attention in Maryland and national news. Reports are surfacing of several deaths and other serious medical conditions potentially resulting from the consumption of energy drinks or “dietary supplements” such as; Monster Energy, Red Bull, Amp, 5-Hour Energy, Rockstar, and Venom. Personal injury lawyers are taking notice.

A recent report filed by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) revealed some alarming information of this rising concern. The report illustrates that the number of emergency department visits involving energy drinks, since 2007, has more than doubled in 2011. Further evidencing this growing issue, the Food and Drug Administration (F.D.A.) has reported that 13 deaths over the last four years have involved the small yet caffeine packed energy shot, 5-Hour Energy. Moreover, the F.D.A. has had the same energy drink mentioned in more than 90 filings. In an article by the New York Times, the F.D.A. is also cited as receiving five fatality filings referencing 5-Hour Energy’s main competitor – Monster Energy.

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 Posted on January 18, 2013 in Internet Law

Sure, we’ve all heard that mobile software applications collect more personal data from our smart phones than they need to or should; and the mobile apps’ privacy policies are such a byzantine morass, none of us read them anyway. But the news that the most popular children’s mobile software apps are surreptitiously collecting and then selling to dozens, even hundreds, of marketers and third parties exactly where our children are at all times, what their mobile phone numbers are, and where exactly they go and what they do online, and that this all being done without notice to parent or child…well that creeps out even the most jaded adult.

Yesterday, December 10, 2012, the Federal Trade Commission released a detailed Report replete with research and data that demonstrates the most popular mobile software apps designed for, marketed to, and used by our children are doing all of this, and in so doing, may be running afoul of numerous federal and state consumer protection/deceptive advertising and privacy laws.

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