It is nothing short of bad news when you are caught driving under the influence of drugs, in possession of drugs, with the intention to distribute drugs, or the like. This is because New York State considers all of these matters serious criminal offenses, which thereby come with serious criminal penalties. But outside of the New York State criminal court, you may also receive backlash from the New York State medical community. This may be to the point where your medical license is put on the line. Without further ado, follow along to find out how to stop drug charges from threatening your medical license and how one of the proficient New York physician defense lawyers at Walker Medical Law can step in when need be.
In what ways can drug charges threaten my medical license?
First of all, receiving a drug charge may automatically go on your permanent criminal record. With this, the New York State Office of Professional Medical Conduct (OPMC) or Office of Professional Discipline (OPD) may get word of this incident. The Board may soon expect you to speak on your criminal conviction in a disciplinary hearing.
It may not do you any good if it comes out that you used your position as a medical professional to illegally pocket drugs for yourself or unlawfully distribute drugs through writing prescriptions. What’s worse is if testimonies against you insinuate that you were under the influence of drugs while practicing medicine. Overall, this disciplinary hearing may result in the temporary suspension, or more than likely permanent revocation, of your medical license.
How can I stop drug charges from affecting my medical license?
The best way to stop drug charges from affecting your medical license is to start at the source. That is, you must first retain strong legal representation for your criminal court proceedings. This is so you can hopefully receive a not guilty verdict and avoid all these subsequent consequences entirely.
But if you are unfortunately found guilty in your criminal case, you must then retain strong legal representation for your OPMC or OPD disciplinary hearing. Here, you may argue that the seriousness of your drug charges may not necessarily constitute a license suspension or revocation, such as if your case had to do with legalized, recreational marijuana. Rather, you may fight for a lesser penalty being more appropriate, such as a fine, community service hours, drug education course, etc.
In conclusion, we understand just how delicate this situation may be for you. If you need an emotional support system that doubles as a legal support system, look no further than Walker Medical Law. Retain the services of one of the talented New York physician defense lawyers today.
