Kan. doc to appeal conviction in painkiller case

Recent Cases

Defense attorneys plan to seek the release of a Kansas doctor and his wife while they appeal their convictions on charges they conspired to profit from illegally prescribing painkillers to patients who later died.

Jurors found Dr. Stephen Schneider and his wife, Linda, guilty Thursday. Prosecutors linked their suburban Wichita clinic to 68 overdose deaths.

The Schneiders also were found guilty of unlawfully writing prescriptions and health care fraud.

No sentencing date has been set. Each faces up to a life sentence.

Linda Schneider's attorney, Kevin Byers, blames the guilty verdict on a national crackdown on doctors caught in the middle of a federal policy dispute over the drugs.

Related listings

  • NY appeals court tosses ruling on RNC surveillance

    NY appeals court tosses ruling on RNC surveillance

    Recent Cases 06/14/2010

    A court overstepped its authority by trying to force the New York Police Department to release of hundreds of pages of documents about its infiltration of protest groups before the 2004 Republican National Convention, an appeals court found Wednesday...

  • Phoenix bankruptcy filings fall in May

    Phoenix bankruptcy filings fall in May

    Recent Cases 06/09/2010

    Bankruptcy filings in the Phoenix metropolitan area fell in May for the second straight month.However, officials say the 2,763 filings in the metro area represent a 35 percent increase compared with May 2009.Experts say soft housing prices, a bleak e...

  • Man acquitted of arson in Cleveland house blast

    Man acquitted of arson in Cleveland house blast

    Recent Cases 05/28/2010

    A Cleveland man has been acquitted of charges he caused an explosion at a vacant house resulting in damage to more than 70 homes in the area.Fifty-seven-year-old William Calderwood was acquitted Friday of 55 counts of aggravated arson in Cuyahoga (ky...

USCIS Adjusting Premium Processing Fee

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today it is adjusting the premium processing fee for Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker and Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers beginning on Oct. 1, 2018 to more effectively adjudicate petitions and maintain effective service to petitioners.

The premium processing fee will increase to $1,410, a 14.92 percent increase (after rounding) from the current fee of $1,225. This increase, which is done in accordance with the Immigration and Nationality Act, represents the percentage change in inflation since the fee was last increased in 2010 based on the Consumer Price Index for all Urban Consumers.

“Because premium processing fees have not been adjusted since 2010, our ability to improve the adjudications and service processes for all petitioners has been hindered as we’ve experienced significantly higher demand for immigration benefits. Ultimately, adjusting the premium processing fee will allow us to continue making necessary investments in staff and technology to administer various immigration benefit requests more effectively and efficiently,” said Chief Financial Officer Joseph Moore. “USCIS will continue adjudicating all petitions on a case-by-case basis to determine if they meet all standards required under applicable law, policies, and regulations.”

Premium processing is an optional service that is currently authorized for certain petitioners filing Forms I-129 or I-140. The system allows petitioners to request 15-day processing of certain employment-based immigration benefit requests if they pay an extra fee. The premium processing fee is paid in addition to the base filing fee and any other applicable fees, which cannot be waived.

Business News