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Whistleblower nurses facing bizarre criminal charge

Two former Winkler County Memorial Hospital nurses who complained that Rolando G. Arafiles, M.D. was trying to sell herbal products to patients whom he had seen at his hospital's clinic are facing criminal charges as a result. In a bizarre case that has drawn national attention, Anne Mitchell and Vickilyn Galle are awaiting trial for "misuse of official information," which is a third-degree felony under Texas law. In April 2009, the Board notified Arafiles that he was being investigated and asked for several medical records. After receiving the board's notice, Arafiles asked his local sheriff to find out who had made the complaint. The nurses had complained anonymously, but information supplied by the board enabled the sheriff to figure out who they were. Subsequently, even though federal laws protect whistleblowers, the hospital fired the nurses and the district attorney was able to persuade a grand jury to indict them. The Texas Medical Board and the American Nurses Association have complained that the prosecution is improper.

Mitchell and Galle have filed suit in federal court alleging not only illegal retaliation for patient advocacy activities, but also civil rights and due process violations. The defendants include Winkler County, the hospital administrator, Arafiles, the district attorney, the county attorney, and the sheriff. Their suit also alleges that Arafiles was the sheriff's doctor and that they were associates in the herbal business. [Barrett S. Whistleblowers facing outrageous criminal prosecution. Quackwatch, Sept 17, 2009] http://www.quackwatch.org/14Legal/nurses.html