Gerald Barnbaum | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1933 (1933) |
| Died | (aged 84) |
| Other names | Gerald Barnes, Jerold C. Barnes, Jerald C. Barnes, Gerald Charles Barnes |
| Occupation | Former pharmacist |
| Criminal status | Deceased |
| Criminal charge | Fraud, Identity Theft, Manslaughter, Escaping Custody |
| Penalty | 12.5 years in federal prison |
Gerald Barnbaum (1933 - June 15, 2018), aka"Gerald Barnes","Jerold C. Barnes","Jerald C. Barnes" and"Gerald Charles Barnes", was apharmacist who posed as amedical doctor between 1976 and 2000.
Born inChicago, Illinois and originally trained as a pharmacist, Barnbaum had his license revoked in the aftermath ofMedicaid fraud charges in 1971. He moved toCalifornia in 1976, and after having legally changed his last name to Barnes, stole the identity of a licensed medical doctor inStockton, Gerald Barnes, and worked as a physician in theLos Angeles andSouthern California region for the next three years.[citation needed]
In 1979, his negligence and lack of medical knowledge contributed to the death of John McKenzie, a 29-year-old undiagnosedType I diabetic fromAnaheim who had complained of a dry mouth, chronic thirst, dizziness, and rapid weight loss. Although these were classic signs of uncontrolled diabetes, Barnbaum gave him a drug forvertigo and sent him home. McKenzie's blood test came back a few days later, showing ablood glucose content of 1200 mg/dL (HbA1c > 40%), indicating severehyperglycemia. When Barnbaum'sphysician assistant saw the test results, he immediately called police, who found McKenzie dead in his apartment. The PA suspected soon afterward that Barnbaum was an imposter, believing that a real doctor would have never missed such obvious symptoms. The investigation confirmed this, and in 1980 Barnbaum was charged withsecond-degree murder in McKenzie's death; the charge was plea-bargained down tomanslaughter and practicing without amedical license, and he was sentenced to three years and four months jail, serving 19 months before being paroled.[citation needed]
Despite McKenzie's death, after his release from prison and still on parole, Barnbaum continued to practice medicine fraudulently. He briefly served as a referral doctor, but was caught in 1984 when he tried to apply for hospital privileges and the real Dr. Barnes blew the whistle. He was convicted of grand theft and forgery and sentenced to three years and four months jail. The state medical board, however, never flagged the real Dr. Barnes' file.[nb 1]
His third conviction was in 1989 for stealing the identity ofSan Francisco pharmacist Donald Barnes;[nb 2] he was caught when he tried to land a job at aLos Angeles pharmacy using Barnes' license.[citation needed]
Arrested again in early 1991 for parole violations and released in October, the impostor worked for four and a half years in a half-dozen medical facilities in the Los Angeles area. He earned more than $400,000, while the various medical facilities billed insurance companies and individuals approximately $5 million for his services.[citation needed]
In 1995, he obtained a position as staff physician at Executive Health Group, a Los Angeles clinic that handled physical checkups onFBI agents and senior officials with theFederal Reserve Bank. Depending on the source, Barnbaum investigated as few as 70 and as many as several hundred FBI agents in a year. However, he was discovered when a new investigator for the state medical board inherited the Barnes case and questioned him. Under the weight of questioning, Barnbaum first feignedsuicidal intent and then faked aheart attack. It later emerged that Barnbaum had misdiagnosed several patients and dispensed improper medications, in some cases resulting in patients losing their jobs.[citation needed]
Federal authorities joined the investigation, since Barnbaum had defrauded federal employees. Facing the possibility of spending the rest of his life in federal prison, Barnbaum pleaded guilty tomail fraud, unlawful dispensing of controlled substances and fraudulent use of a controlled substances registration. He was sentenced to 12.5 years in prison. Executive Health was later sued for battery, sexual battery and medical malpractice during Barnbaum's tenure there; the company agreed to pay $9.2 million in damages to almost 500 plaintiffs.[citation needed]
During a transfer to another prison in 2000, Barnbaum escaped while on a transfer furlough from a prison in California to another minimum security prison in Minnesota. He was captured by the US Marshals Service four weeks later while working in yet another medical clinic. He was sentenced to an additional six months in prison for escaping custody, to be served consecutively with his original sentence.[citation needed] Barnbaum served his sentence at theFMC Rochester inRochester, Minnesota, where he died on June 15, 2018.[1] The real Dr. Barnes spent several years repairing his credit and his reputation as a result of Barnbaum's fraudulent activities.[citation needed]
Barnbaum's case was profiled on the TV seriesMasterminds, in 2007 onAmerican Greed, in the second episodeof the first season.[citation needed], and in 2013 onWho the (Bleep)... Season 1, Episode 11 “Bad Medicine.”
Gerald Barnbaum died in prison on June 15, 2018, according to information available online from the Federal Bureau of Prisons. He was 85.