A federal judge denied Dr. Raynaldo Ortiz Jr.’s motion for release Friday morning, sending the disgraced anesthesiologist back to jail to await trial.
Ortiz was indicted on several counts related to allegations that he had doped IV bags, which resulted in multiple life-threatening medical emergencies and one death.
As previously reported in The Dallas Express, federal prosecutors filed a counter to Ortiz’s motion, arguing that he was a danger to the community and potential government witnesses.
Dressed in a brown jumpsuit and wearing a surgical mask, Ortiz sat in court as his defense team pushed to secure his release on bail, arguing that he was not a flight risk and posed no danger to the public.
Federal prosecutors pushed back, claiming that Ortiz was indeed a flight risk and needed to remain in federal custody because of his history of alleged abusive behavior and professional belligerence.
Food and Drug Administration investigator Daniel Allgeyer testified against Ortiz, stating, “Thirty or more of Ortiz’s colleagues voiced concerns of safety if Ortiz is released.”
One such colleague, Dr. Jeremy Johnston, also took the stand and testified that he feared for his life and that of his family and colleagues with whom he and Ortiz worked.
“Yes, because he’s a retaliatory person,” Johnston claimed in court. “The staff said they’re afraid Ortiz will come back and possibly shoot up the place.”
Johnston testified in court about an altercation he and Ortiz had at a Mesquite hospital they both previously worked for. He claimed Ortiz got in his face and chest-bumped him, then followed him around menacingly.
During his three-year tenure in Mesquite, Ortiz was allegedly involved in 30 or more “incidents” with colleagues and staff, according to Johnston, who oversaw all incident reports as the hospital’s director of surgery.
Furthermore, Johnston claimed he had never had an altercation with any staff in his career until Ortiz, who was constantly moving and leaning forward during the hearing.
For its part, Ortiz’s defense team argued to the judge that Ortiz had met all court conditions related to his previous run-ins with the law, including the shooting of his neighbor’s dog, allegedly in retaliation against its owner, and multiple arrests for alleged domestic violence without conviction, as reported by The Dallas Express.
Still, the judge sided with federal prosecutors, and Ortiz was remanded back to federal custody, where he will await trial at the Limestone County Detention Center.
The Dallas Express originally broke the connection between Ortiz and the facility where IV bags had allegedly been injected with various drugs in order to cause a medical emergency. This coverage later seemingly informed the Texas Medical Board’s decision to suspend Ortiz’s medical license prior to his arrest.
Video surveillance footage provided by the prosecution seemingly showed Ortiz depositing IV bags into a warmer outside of operating rooms where medical incidents would occur shortly after various other staffers retrieved the bags. Federal prosecutors have claimed that Ortiz’s alleged actions constitute that of a “medical terrorist.”
Evil people like this cannot be allowed to be free in our society. This is not mental illness, this is just pure evil, for which their is no cure or treatment. Execution is the only permanent solution to individuals like this.
I’m sure you’re qualified to make such a decision. Likely just a car salesman talking about taking a life. Is he innocent or a good guy? No. But does someone who calls themselves LoWa online really think they have the right to pass judgment and take another life? Makes you just as “evil”
And what gives you the right to pass judgement on Not LoWa?
There was something in the bible that when I read it in all honestly it didn’t totally click with me. One day I listen to Billy Graham go over it and explain it. It was about conscience and in particular a “seared with a hot iron” conscience? He also covered how it could lead you wrong one seared? I didn’t totally get it until just recently. It explains a lot of how people are able to do this very thing. If you are more interested in “what” exactly I am talking about when it comes to “conscience” please follow the link below and listen to Bill Graham. It is a good 27 minutes you’ll spend.
https://billygraham.org/audio/conscience/
I would like to close with this statement. Be extremely cautious to care for your conscience as it can get you into serious trouble and lead you the wrong way if you go against it enough time and kill it i.e. sear it with a hot iron.
I hope this post is allowed to be published as it contains religious references and that in today’s world is becoming more and more VERBOTEN.
Wow he sounds like a pathetic psycho…he needs to be committed to a mental hospital 4ever, he sound like a definite harm to society!!
‘ologist’ needs both licenses pulled as fits w/i realm of a sociopath. How did he become a md?
Get your facts straight. Jeremy Johnston is not a dr. He’s a nurse. And I can guarantee he wasn’t afraid for his life 🙄
“The judge sided with federal prosecutors, and Ortiz was remanded back to federal custody, where he will await trial at the Limestone County Detention Center.”
Which is where he belongs, keep him locked up please…..