MEADVILLE —
At least one Crawford County resident is calling for the ouster of the physician for the Crawford County jail.
Connie Lee of Meadville questioned the Crawford County Board of Commissioners why Dr. Richard Moran, 54, of Linesville is still the physician for the county jail when he is due to be sentenced on federal income tax evasion.
Moran could get up to three years in jail and a $250,000 fine on one count of filing a false federal income tax return for the 2005 tax year.
On June 27, Moran pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Erie for filing a false income tax return for the 2005 tax year, but in his plea agreement with the federal government Moran also admitted responsibility for filing false income tax returns in 2006, 2007 and 2008.
Moran admitted to underreporting his income by about $100,000 a year in each of those years.
He remains free on $5,000 unsecured bond while awaiting sentencing Oct. 29.
Moran’s osteopathic medical license still remains active with the Pennsylvania Department of State through Oct. 31 of this year. The Department of State, which oversees medical licensing, also reports no disciplinary actions have been taken against Moran.
“He’s a convicted felon. Why is he still seeing patients at the jail?,” Lee asked. “There has to be another physician out there.”
The board of commissioners didn’t have a direct answer for Lee, but agreed to pursue the matter.
“We need to contact the rest of the prison board,” said Francis Weiderspahn, county commissioner chairman.
“The buck stops here,” said C. Sherman Allen, county commissioner. “We’re the ones who hire and fire.”
Weiderspahn, Allen and fellow commissioner Jack Lynch serve on the prison board along with District Attorney Francis Schultz, Crawford County Common Pleas Judge John Spataro, county Treasurer Christine Krzysiak and Sheriff Nick Hoke.
At its July 26 meeting, the Crawford County Prison Board was informed by Warden Tim Lewis that Moran was willing to remain the jail’s physician as long as the board wanted him.
The prison board hopes to have a new comprehensive medical services contract in place by Oct. 1. The prison board currently has individual contracts for physician, dental, nursing, pharmacy and psychiatric services at the jail.
Commissioners said they would look into the possibility of a physician on a temporary basis until the new contract is in place.
The physician would have to have admitting privileges for Meadville Medical Center.
Keith Gushard can be reached at 724-6370 or by email at kgushard@meadvilletribune.com.
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