Jay McCloskey Under Consideration for U.S. Attorney of Maine Again

The citizens of Maine don't deserve a U.S. Attorney who has both hands plunged into the deep pockets of Purdue Pharma and is their "poster child."

Oxycontin is used by some for the right reasons, in measured ways, with doctors who guide the process. In the past Purdue Pharma marketed the drug as one that was less likely to be addictive or abused to physicians and patients. Salem-News.com

(ASHEVILLE, N.C.) - Last week I received a telephone call from a concerned citizen in the State of Maine. "Are you aware that Jay McCloskey, former US Attorney of Maine may be confirmed once again as our US Attorney?" I was aware, but had thought it wasn't a "done deal." I think I'm wrong and it may just be a very "scary" done deal.

Marianne Skolek

McCloskey served as the US Attorney for Maine from 1993 to 2001. In late 1999 and early 2000, McCloskey became aware of a growing problem in Maine involving the abuse of prescription drugs including OxyContin.

In February 2000, he sent a letter to all of Maine's practicing physicians warning them about increasing problems with the illegal diversion and abuse of OxyContin and other opiate-based prescription medications.

Shortly thereafter, in March 2000, he received a call from Purdue Pharma's Medical Director, who asked about the level of OxyContin abuse in Maine. Even though this "Medical Director" wasn't named, I suspect it was one J. David Haddox, MD who I recently wrote about.

The same Haddox who coined the word "pseudo addiction." He asked whether McCloskey would be willing to meet with him and other Purdue Pharma executives in order to discuss and better "understand the problem".

Fast forward to July 2007 -- The former U.S. Attorney who brought national attention to abuse of OxyContin and other prescription painkillers in Maine testified in front of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee in Washington on behalf of the company that makes the drug, OxyContin.

McCloskey testified that Purdue Pharma was not a corporate criminal and further that they were a responsible company. I sat two seats away from McCloskey and thought of one of my favorite sayings "I wonder who leads when he dances with the devil" when I heard him say he now consulted for Purdue Pharma.

The U.S. Senate's Judiciary Committee hearing focused on the propriety of the plea agreement that allowed company officials to avoid prison. It represented a "double standard," testified Dr. Sidney M. Wolfe of Public Citizen, a public-interest watchdog group founded by Ralph Nader.

Wolfe said the fines and community service did not compare to justice meted out to individuals "who serve long jail sentences for activities resulting in a tiny fraction of the damage done by the corporate criminal activity." I was privileged to sit next to Dr. Wolfe while giving my testimony and then hearing his testimony.

Shortly after our testimony in front of the U.S. Senate, former U.S. Attorney McCloskey was quoted as saying "The drug diversion problem was not caused by OxyContin and it will not be solved by going after OxyContin as a whipping boy." "Purdue Pharma was a responsible company," he said. "But they became the poster child of prescription drug abuse."

This was after Purdue Pharma and its top executives pleaded guilty to criminal charges in federal court and were fined $632 million -- as well as a settlement to his state of Maine in the amount of $719,000.

The Corporate Crime Reporter, Multinational Monitor listed Purdue Pharma as one of the "10 Worst Corporations of 2007". Guess they didn't think that the words "responsible company" applied to Purdue Pharma as Mr. Closkey seemed to think.

Attorney Jay McCloskey Photo courtesy: mrgllc.info

Mr. McCloskey was quoted in his defense of Purdue Pharma as saying "I have never heard any suggestion made by a Purdue Pharma executive, or any other Purdue Pharma employee for that matter, that OxyContin was less addictive, less subject to diversion and abuse, or less likely to cause tolerance or withdrawal than other opiates.

I have no doubt that the Purdue Pharma executives would have stopped any Purdue Pharma employee from making these improper claims had they known about them." Maybe Mr. McCloskey should have represented Purdue Pharma in Federal Court so they wouldn't have pleaded guilty to charges of doing exactly what he said they didn't.

Hopefully, the citizens of Maine will receive better. They don't deserve a U.S. Attorney who has both hands plunged into the deep pockets of Purdue Pharma and is their "poster child."

In May 2009, I sent the below email to Mr. McCloskey at his law firm McCloskey, Mina, Cunniff & Dilworth in Portland, Maine:

Jay McCloskey

Subject: U.S. Attorney position

I understand you are being considered for the position of U.S. Attorney in the State of Maine. Since Maine has an epidemic of OxyContin deaths and addictions and you were an outspoken opponent of Purdue Pharma at one time and are now a paid consultant of Purdue Pharma's, I think the citizens of Maine deserve better. I intend to do what I can to see that Maine's citizens receive better.

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Salem-News.com Reporter Marianne Skolek, is an Activist for Victims of OxyContin throughout the United States and Canada. In July 2007, she testified against Purdue Pharma in Federal Court in Virginia at the sentencing of their three CEO's who pled guilty to charges of marketing OxyContin as less likely to be addictive or abused to physicians and patients. She also testified against Purdue Pharma at a Judiciary Hearing of the U.S. Senate in July 2007. Marianne works with government agencies and private attorneys in having a voice for her daughter Jill, who died in 2002 after being prescribed OxyContin, as well as the voice for scores of victims of OxyContin. She has been involved in her work for the past 7-1/2 years and is currently working on a book that exposes Purdue Pharma for their continued criminal marketing of OxyContin.

Marianne is a nurse having graduated in 1991 as president of her graduating class. She also has a Paralegal certification. Marianne served on a Community Service Board for the Courier News, a Gannet newspaper in NJ writing articles predominantly regarding AIDS patients and their emotional issues. She was awarded a Community Service Award in 1993 by the Hunterdon County, NJ HIV/AIDS Task Force in recognition of and appreciation for the donated time, energy and love in facilitating a Support Group for persons with HIV/AIDS.

oxydeaths.com/news_chilling.htm
nytimes.com/2007/05/10/business/11drug-web.html?
blog.nj.com/njv_bob_braun/2007/07/sometimes_only_justice_can_rel.html
judiciary.senate.gov/hearings/testimony.cfm?id=2905&wit_id=6612
You can send Marianne an email at: mskolek@aol.com
oxydeaths.com