Cases and materials on constitutional and administrative law

But it was not until 1993 that the board mounted a full-scale, heavily-documented effort to revoke Scheffey's license in an administrative law court. Hearings in that case coincided with news of yet another Scheffey disaster: In 1994 his patient Ancel "Bud" Freeman, who had gone in for his third back operation, lost four quarts of blood and died after a seven-hour surgery. In 1995 a judge did what everyone expected: She recommended that Scheffey's license be revoked, not just for malpractice but also for excessive charges. But the board ignored that recommendation and voted instead to give Scheffey a five-year probation that would let him continue to practice but with some restrictions: To operate, for instance, he would have to have a written consultation from another doctor. "I was extremely distressed and disgusted at the board's action," says then-executive director Bruce Levy, whose staff mounted the case. "I came close to resigning." Scheffey immediately appealed the ruling in a state district court and won a temporary injunction ...»