Florida Drug Litigation Lawyers

West Palm Beach, Resident Agent In Charge, Port St. Lucie Office Of The Drug Enforcement Administration

R. Alexander Acosta, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Dale Armstrong, Resident Agent in Charge, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearm and Explosives (BATF) in West Palm Beach, and Anthony Cooper, Resident Agent in Charge, Port St. Lucie Office of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), announced today that defendant, Robin Lynn Doris, pleaded guilty to one (1) count of possession of a firearm while being an unlawful user of and being addicted to methadone, a controlled substance under Title 21, United States Code, Section 812, in violation of Title 18 United States Code, Section 922(g)(3) and 924(a)(2), in case number 05-14033-CR-Graham. Doris also pleaded guilty in case number 05-14049-CR-Marra to one (1) count of fraudulently acquiring approximately 3,600 tablets of methadone, a controlled substance under Title 21, United States Code, Section 812, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 843(a)(3).

As the result of her guilty pleas, Doris faces maximum sentences of ten (10) years in prison on the gun charge and four (4) years in prison on the drug charge. She also faces maximum fines totaling $500,000 and a period of supervised release of six (6) years. Doris will be sentenced at 11:00 a.m. on September 9, 2005, in Fort Pierce, Florida.

According to the statements made in open Court, Doris and her husband, Matthew Doris, were both using forged prescriptions to obtain methadone from various pharmacies in the Vero Beach area. Between December 10, 2002, and March 14, 2005, Doris submitted forged prescriptions to those pharmacies and obtained a total of approximately 3,600 methadone tablets. The evidence also revealed that on twenty-eight (28) separate occasions between September 3, 2002, and April 2, 2005, Matthew Doris submitted fraudulent prescriptions to various pharmacies and obtained a total of approximately 8,400 tablets of methadone.

This investigation was commenced in early April 2005 by the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office. As the result of that investigation, a search warrant was executed on April 19, 2005 at the Doris’ home on 24th Street in Vero Beach. The search resulted in the seizure of one hundred and forty-two (142) doses of methadone, approximately twenty-eight (28) weapons, multiple rounds of ammunition, six sticks of dynamite, and fuse material for that dynamite. A subsequent search of a storage facility rented by the Doris’ in Vero Beach resulted in the seizure by local and federal law enforcement agents of an additional twenty (20) weapons and miscellaneous rounds of ammunition.

Mr. Acosta stated, “The United States Attorney’s Office, along with BATF and DEA, remain committed to identifying and prosecuting those who abuse narcotics while at the same time possessing weapons, ammunition, and explosives. Guns and drugs are each dangerous on their own, but when possessed together, they present a far greater danger to our community.”

Mr. Acosta commended the investigative efforts of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in West Palm Beach and the Drug Enforcement Administration in Port St. Lucie. He also noted and commended the critical assistance provided by the members of the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office. This case is being prosecuted by Senior Litigation Counsel Jim McAdams.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

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