[Blindtlk] justice served, blind lawyer convicted

Tue May 13 16:36:03 CDT 2008

I aplod the judge in this case. Its not often that a court of law holds a 
blind person to the same standards as sighted citizens. What I love most is 
the judge's reasoning that the blind lawyer can use his hand held braille 
computer and braille documents for his testimony. I'm so glad that the judge 
didn't by into the crap about not being compident to stand trial because of 
blindness.

Milissa
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Ray Foret jr" <rforetjr at comcast.net>
To: <Undisclosed-Recipient:;>
Sent: Tuesday, May 13, 2008 12:36 PM
Subject: [Blindtlk] justice served, blind lawyer convicted

> While I was watching "Eye Witness News" on Channel 4 last night, they said
> that Barry Scheur was convicted of all charges against him.  Can you 
> believe
> that Barry Scheur had the unmitigated Gaul to try to claim that, because 
> he
> is blind, he can't read or understand financial documents?  I'm glad the
> judge didn't buy that.  What I didn't tell you until now was this.  Barry
> Scheur and my famly's paths crossed because we were at one time under his
> so-called coverage; under what was then known as "The Oath Of Louisiana". 
> .
> Would you believe it, he claimed that because of his blindness, he had a
> unique understanding of the health issues which his customers (now 
> victims)
> faced.  Then, one day, we got a letter from him indicating that because of
> financial hardship, he was forced to sell the company to some other firm.
> Justice has indeed been served.
>
> Here are the stories I found about this.
>
> Blind Lawyer Ruled Competent to Stand Trial in Fraud Case
>
> Leigh Jones
> The National Law Journal
> May 1, 2008
>
> A federal judge in Louisiana has ruled that Barry Scheur, a managed care 
> executive who is an attorney and is blind, is competent to stand trial in 
> the government's
> case that alleges fraud and conspiracy in the management of a now-defunct 
> health insurer.
>
> Scheur, a Yale Law School graduate and former partner at LeBoeuf, Lamb, 
> Leiby & MacRae, along with two other former executives are charged with 
> unlawfully
> paying themselves $6.1 million and misleading the Louisiana Department of 
> Insurance into believing that the insurer, The Oath for Louisiana, was 
> operating
> in the black.
>
> Scheur's attorney, James A. Brown, a partner with Liskow & Lewis in New 
> Orleans, had argued that Scheur was unable to read and comprehend the 
> financial
> statements that are the heart of the government's case.
>
> "He has been totally blind since birth," Brown said. "He is not in a 
> position to assimilate these financial statements." U.S. District Judge 
> Eldon Fallon,
> in the Eastern District of Louisiana was not persuaded. "Scheur began his 
> career by working for several law firms before accepting an in-house 
> counsel
> position with a healthcare organization," the judge wrote. "Indeed, Scheur 
> has touted himself as a 'managed care iconoclast.'" The judge determined 
> that
> Scheur can use his hand-held Braille computer at trial and can use Braille 
> documents during the course of his testimony.
>
> The trial is scheduled to begin April 28.
>
> Former HMO official pleads guilty to mail fraud
> by Susan Finch, Staff writer, The Times-Picayune
> Thursday May 01, 2008, 5:33 PM
>
> A former official of The Oath for Louisiana, a health maintenance 
> organization shut down by the state six years ago, has pleaded guilty to 
> conspiring to
> give insurance regulators financial reports that falsely said the company 
> had enough money to pay the medical bills of its 80,000 subscribers.
>
> Rodney Moyer, the HMO's executive vice president, admitted guilt Friday 
> under an agreement with prosecutors that could require him to testify next 
> week
> against three other Oath officials named with Moyer in an April 
> indictment. They are accused of using the mails and bank wire transfers 
> over more than
> two years to mislead state insurance officials about The Oath's financial 
> health.
>
> Trial began Monday before U.S. District Judge Eldon Fallon for Oath owner 
> Barry Scheur, a Massachusetts health care consultant whose Scheur 
> Management Group
> was paid $200,0000 to $350,000 a month to manage the HMO; Scheur 
> Management consultant Robert McMillan, who served as the Oath's chief 
> financial officer,
> and Scheur Management comptroller Danette Bruno.
>
> Scheur came to Louisiana in mid-1999 after being hired to straighten out 
> the financially-troubled Southeast Medical Alliance health plan, an HMO 
> owned by
> five New Orleans area hospitals. Instead, he persuaded the state 
> Department of Insurance to let him take over the health plan, taking 
> control of it in
> January 2000.
>
> According to federal prosecutors, by September 2000 when The Oath was 
> struggling financially, Moyer, Scheur and McMillan feared the business 
> wouldn't be
> able to meet its legally-required net worth of $3 million, so they kept 
> the business afloat by including artificially inflated and nonexistent 
> accounts
> receivable in a report mailed to the state in November 2000, prosecutors 
> said.
>
> The government contends at a time when the HMO was not meeting the $3 
> million net worth requirement, the defendants illegally enriched 
> themselves by continuing
> to collect premiums from individuals and groups insured by The Oath, and 
> by having the HMO pay management fees to Scheur's firm.
>
> By the time The Oath was put into receivership in April 2002, the HMO's 
> liabilities exceeded its assets by about $45 million -- the amount of 
> money that
> The Oath owed medical service providers, according to court records.
>
> Susan Finch can be reached at sfinch at timespicayune.com or (504) 826-3340.
>
> Top execs at former HMO convicted
> 04:47 PM CDT on Monday, May 12, 2008
>
> WWLTV.com
>
> The top executives at the now-defunct The Oath for Louisiana HMO were 
> convicted Monday in U.S. District Court of conspiracy, wire fraud and mail 
> fraud charges,
> according to U.S. Attorney Jim Letten.
>
> According to Letten, Barry S. Scheur, the owner, president and CEO, and 
> Robert McMillan, the Chief Financial Officer, were convicted on several 
> charges
> related to the company's operations.
>
> A third defendant, Danette Bruno was acquitted.
>
> Scheur was convicted on one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and 
> wire fraud, three counts of mail fraud and four counts of wire fraud. 
> McMillan
> was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, 
> one count of mail fraud and one count of wire fraud.
>
> The defendants face the possibility of five years in prison, a $250,000 
> fine and three years supervised release on each charge. Sentencing is 
> scheduled
> for August 13.
>
>
>
> Sincerely,
> The Constantly BAREFOOTED Ray
> Phone:
> 985-360-3375
> e-mail:
> rforetjratcomcastdotnet
> Skype Name:
> barefootedray
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