Former nurse Jaclyn McQueen faces the music after her guilty plea earlier this year for one count of tampering with a consumer product. As reported by the U.S. Attorney's Office of Massachusetts, McQueen has been sentenced to three years of probation for her actions involving oxycodone syringes at a Dedham rehab center.
Between February and May 2020, McQueen was entrusted as a registered nurse to care for patients in need of chronic and post-acute care. However, McQueen betrayed that trust by tampering with the very medication intended to ease their suffering. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office's statement, McQueen consumed the oxycodone herself and refilled the syringes with water, which would've been administered to unsuspecting patients then.
Her sentence, administered by U.S. District Court Judge Julia E. Kobick, comes after McQueen was charged on December 7, 2023. The announcement of her sentencing was made collectively by Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Fernando McMillan, who serves as Special Agent in Charge of the FDA's Office of Criminal Investigations; and Robert H. Goldstein, MD, PhD, Commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.
This case, which was brought forward as part of a concerted effort to staunch the misuse of controlled substances within the healthcare system, was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kelly Begg Lawrence, positioned as Chief of the Health Care Fraud Unit. While McQueen's actions represent a breach of both legal and ethical bounds, it's a reminder that the systems in place are working tirelessly ensuring justice when faced with such violations and protecting patient safety, Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy pointed out.
