Judge bars publication of attorneys' letter

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A judge has barred The Kansas City Star from publishing a letter from lawyers representing hundreds of people who are suing two drug manufacturers whose products were diluted and sold by pharmacist Robert Courtney.

In a two-page temporary restraining order issued Friday against The Star and reporter Dan Margolies, Senior Jackson County Circuit Judge Lee Wells stated that release of the information "presents an immediate and potentially irreparable harm to the parties that can only be prevented by entry of this restraining order restraining release of the attorney client privileged communications and privileged information."

Courtney pleaded guilty in February to 20 federal charges of tampering with, adulterating and misbranding chemotherapy medications. He has since admitted diluting 72 drugs, dating back to at least 1992. Federal authorities have suggested the scheme may have affected as many as 400 doctors, 4,200 patients and 98,000 prescriptions.

The civil lawsuits, filed by Courtney's victims and their family members, allege that Eli Lilly and Co. and Bristol-Meyers Squibb Co. knew or should have known of the scheme but failed to notify authorities or otherwise take steps to prevent it. The companies have denied the allegations.

Restraining order upheld

The Star appealed the order to the Missouri Court of Appeals in Kansas City. A two-judge panel said the restraining order would remain in effect pending further action.

Curtis Woods, an attorney for The Star, called the temporary restraining order a prior restraint on the newspaper "and the U.S. Supreme Court has struck down prior restraints routinely as violative of the First Amendment's freedom of the press."

The letter was addressed to plaintiffs in the civil lawsuits filed as a result of the drug dilution scheme. An October trial date in Wells' courtroom has been set for the first of the lawsuits.

The plaintiff's attorneys and Lilly argued the letter, which The Star obtained, contained privileged attorney-client information.

The restraining order barred The Star "from publishing any attorney client privileged communications between the parties and their attorneys," as well as references in those communications to documents subject to the court's protective order in the cases.

Wells has placed documents in the Courtney litigation under seal. Lilly and Bristol-Myers Squibb, citing trade secrets and other confidential information, requested the order.

Mark Zieman, editor of The Star, called the restraining order "unprecedented and outrageous."

"The Robert Courtney case is a story of vital interest to hundreds of Kansas City families," Zieman said. "We will continue to aggressively report this story, no matter how uncomfortable that makes some parties. Of course, if justice prevails, we hope to continue publishing our findings as well."