United States v. Starks

Andrew Siegel (defendant) ran Future Steps, a drug-treatment company that contracted with a Florida hospital while explicitly agreeing not to pay for patient referrals in violation of the federal anti-kickback statute. Angela Starks and Barbara Henry (defendants), state employees who advised pregnant women about drug treatment, were barred from outside conflict-of-interest work, yet secretly accepted $250 per referral from Siegel for nearly a year, referring 18 women to Future Steps. Trial evidence showed Starks and Henry threatened some women that the state would take their babies if they didn't accept Future Steps' treatment. A jury convicted all three, and they appealed, arguing the court gave the wrong mens rea instruction and that the statute was unconstitutionally vague.