Fraudsters Seem to Have Unlimited Funds to Fund Attempts to Change Conviction

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The case involved fraudulently billing of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas (“BCBS”) for hearing aids. On March 8, 2018, a jury convicted Terry Anderson of Counts One – Fifteen, and Rocky Anderson of Counts One – Four, Six, and Eight – Fifteen of the Superseding Indictment.

The Defendants appealed to the Fifth Circuit, and the Fifth Circuit affirmed the judgment. The Defendants moved for a new trial claiming newly discovered evidence, in United States Of America v. Terry Lynn Anderson (1) Rocky Freeland Anderson, No. 3:17-CR-00222-M, United States District Court, N.D. Texas, Dallas Division (April 15, 2022).

ANALYSIS

The Defendants’ Motion for a New Trial was untimely filed three years and ten months after the jury returned its verdict. The time to file a motion for new trial could not be extended because Defendants did not show excusable neglect.

The Defendants were convicted of health care fraud for submitting insurance claims for hearing aids that were medically unnecessary and for which Defendants did not conduct the requisite examinations.

DISCUSSION

Evidence from an unrelated DOJ investigation in 2021-2022 is not relevant to the Defendants’ actions.

Since the proposed FDA rule would not be admissible at trial, and therefore would not result in an acquittal; thus, the Motion failed on the merits.

Because Defendants’ Motion for a New Trial was untimely, and further did not cite newly discovered admissible evidence which would probably result in an acquittal of Defendants, the Motion for New Trial was denied.

ZALMA OPINION

Insurance fraud is a highly profitable and unusually effective crime. Even when the fraud perpetrators are caught, convicted and sentenced they have access to the millions of dollars they took from the insurers and the government from the fraud scheme, they can fund an appeal and when that fails, a tardy motion for new trial based on fairly spurious grounds.

(c) 2022 Barry Zalma & ClaimSchool, Inc.

Barry Zalma, Esq., CFE, is available at http://www.zalma.com and [email protected].

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