Case Database
Filter every documented case by date, drug, state, setting, role, prosecution status, and penalty. Search accepts brand or generic drug names, facility names, and cities.
Showing 124 of 931 cases · page 9 of 16.
| Case / When | Where | Setting | Drug | Method | Role | Prosecution status | Penalty | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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North Carolina Hospital Nurse Sentenced for Tampering With Hydromorphone Vials
2022-06-01
|
North Carolina Winston-Salem, North Carolina |
Hospital pre/post-procedure unit, Winston-Salem, North Carolina | Injectable hydromorphone | Removed hydromorphone from sealed vials in an automated medication dispensing/monitoring system, injected it herself, refilled vials with saline, and reglued tamper seals before returning them to patient-use stock | not stated | Convicted of tampering with a consumer product; sentenced to 54 months in prison plus 3 years supervised release. She was already serving a three-year prison sentence for a related consumer-product-tampering conviction at a hospital in Danville, Virginia. | $3,000 (criminal fine) | source |
|
Missoula Hospital Nurse Sentenced for Diverting Fentanyl and Hydromorphone
2022-04-26
|
Montana Missoula, Montana |
Hospital (Community Medical Center, Missoula, Montana) | Fentanyl and hydromorphone | Diverted vials and syringes during patient care and had a coworker unknowingly witness the disposal of tampered medication | not stated | Pleaded guilty; sentenced to 2 years probation and a $2,000 fine | $2,000 (criminal fine) | source |
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Danville Hospital Nurse Sentenced for Tampering with Fentanyl and Hydromorphone
2022-03-04
|
Virginia Danville, Virginia |
RN, Sovah Health-Danville (Danville, VA) | Fentanyl and hydromorphone (Dilaudid) vials | Popped tops off fentanyl vials in an AcuDose machine using her unique access code, diverting the drug for personal use; denied tampering to investigators in two separate interviews before admitting it | not stated | Pleaded guilty May 2021; sentenced Mar 4, 2022 to 36 months in federal prison | $4,360,000 (civil settlement) | source |
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Montana Nurse Sentenced in Opioid Diversion Case (2022, case 2)
2022
|
Montana Montana |
Nurse (Montana) | Hydromorphone | Details are limited to what the source states; see the summary above | not stated | Pleaded guilty; sentenced (2022) to 60 months probation | none documented | source |
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Contract nurse at Winston-Salem hospital diverted hydromorphone and replaced it with saline
2021-12
|
North Carolina Winston-Salem, NC |
Novant Health Forsyth Medical Center | injectable hydromorphone | Removed vials of injectable hydromorphone from an automated dispensing cabinet machine, injected the drug into herself, replaced the drug with saline solution, used glue to replace the lids, and returned the contaminated vials to locked drawers. | not stated | Pleaded guilty to one count of tampering with a consumer product; sentenced to four years and six months in federal prison, a $3,000 fine, and three years of supervised release; nursing license suspended. | none documented | source |
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Colorado Nurse Sentenced Over Fake Research-Study Hydromorphone Diversion
2021-12
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Colorado Colorado |
A Colorado hospital | Hydromorphone | Falsely told patients not assigned to her care that she was conducting a PCA-pump study, used a key to open the secured syringe, removed a portion of hydromorphone from it, and returned the syringe to the patient's PCA; obtained the drug from three patients on four occasions and fabricated a false email to law enforcement to support her cover story | not stated | Sentenced to 12 months in federal prison plus one year of supervised release for obtaining controlled substances by fraud and deception | none documented | source |
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Ann Arbor VA Nurse Anesthetist Stole 2,000+ Vials of Opioids
2021-11-09
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Michigan Ann Arbor, Michigan |
Surgical unit, Ann Arbor VA Hospital (Ann Arbor, MI) | Fentanyl, hydromorphone, morphine, midazolam — 2,000+ vials | Used patient data and falsified records to withdraw drugs from dispensing machines | not stated | Pleaded guilty; sentenced Nov 9, 2021 to 3 years' probation | none documented | source |
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Southeast Missouri medical center paid $1.6 million to resolve invalid opioid prescribing claims
2021-09-01
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Missouri | Medical center in southeast Missouri; physician practiced in Farmington, Missouri | Morphine, hydromorphone and oxycodone, prescribed alongside muscle relaxers and benzodiazepines | not stated | Employed physician (prescriber) at a hospital-affiliated practice | not stated | none documented | source |
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What each column does and doesn't cover
Every case states When (date) and Where (state) — 931 of 931. Beyond that, a blank cell means the source record does not state that fact, not that it did not happen:
- Setting: stated in 850 of 931 cases (91%)
- Drug: stated in 858 of 931 cases (92%)
- Method: stated in 675 of 931 cases (73%)
- Prosecution status: stated in 675 of 931 cases (73%); a documented penalty (fine, settlement, or restitution) exists for 107 of 931 cases (11%)
- Role: stated in only 255 of 931 cases (27%) — filtering or sorting by role silently hides the rest of the registry, which may still describe the same role in prose without a structured field
Disclaimer
Case summaries are based on public records (DOJ press releases, court documents, news reports). Charges are allegations unless a conviction is noted. Analysis is educational, not legal advice.
Last reviewed: September 2026 · Content is educational, not legal advice.