Masoud Bamdad, MD, a family practitioner in San Fernando, California and 54 at the time, was sentenced July, 2010 to spend the rest of his life (25 year sentence) in prison. The justification US District Court Judge George Wu used for this outrageous sentence was his “lack of remorse”.  Why should he be remorseful for treating patients appropriately, when it was the government who broke the law? It is the DOJ and the federal judges in collusion that should spend time in prison and show some remorse for their illegal actions. 

So what were the reasons behind the illegal attack on a legitimate medical practice? How about a $1 million fine assessed by the judge with $$$ in his eyes? 

So let’s look at what Dr. Bamdad’s “crime” consisted of. Doctors today need to pay attention to this, because the government has made these types of charges become so much easier.

First, Dr. Bamdad was identified as being among the state’s highest prescribers of oxycodone three years prior. He was convicted of 13 counts of illegal drug distribution, being portrayed by the prosecutors as a common drug dealer—the tactics that have been polished off in multiple courts and through the propaganda-filled media—but is actual illegal use of the Controlled Substance Act.

And then, in spite of not being convicted on the death of a patient, Judge Wu allowed the parents of the 23 y/o to testify at the sentencing hearing, and considered this as a factor in the sentence. That alone should be grounds for an appeal, which we will look into later.

Dr. Bamdad was inappropriately defended by David Kaloyanides, as in the course of the trial, Dr. Bamdad threatened to fire him. From my experience, defense attorneys in these cases against doctors must get some kind of kickback for losing the case. There is no other explanation for their frank failure to defend. I remember so well getting angry with my attorneys as they failed to point out the law-breaking and false statements by the prosecution.

So besides the money they made on the conviction, why else was Dr. Bamdad targeted?

Dr. Bamdad is an Iranian immigrant. He came to America in 1987 after graduating from the Tehran School of Medical Sciences in 1979. He went to residency at UCLA and Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital. His goal in life was to raise his family and devote his life to helping others. With over 30 years’ experience in multiple areas of medicine, and with knowledge of various non-pharmaceutical treatment options, he became a sought-after pain management physician. He was careful to always follow the BOM’s guidelines for treating pain, as well as prescribing physical therapy, exercise, and diet. But one of the necessary requirements for being a good pain management physician is to have an honest relationship between patient and doctor.

In order to create a case against him, DEA agents went to his office pretending to be patients. The DEA then evaluated his care, as if they were physicians (which would really be the illegal act since only a doctor is qualified to evaluate and decide treatment).

On April 17, 2008, while in the midst of treating patients at his clinic, Dr. Bamdad was arrested. A fully armed S.W.A.T. team of DEA, federal and local law enforcement raided his home and office as the culmination of the illegal action of the DEA sending in agents posed as patients in need of treatment. Continuously, the agents lied about who they were, as well as their medical condition. As part of the sting operation, the DEA carried out hidden audio and video surveillance, violating Dr. Bamdad’s 4th and 5th constitutional rights. The raid was a clear abuse of power as according to Chapter 64 of the agency’s rules of operation, the DEA Diversion Division is not allowed to conduct undercover investigations of this nature. But they do it all the time throughout the country.

Not only was Dr. Bamdad victimized by the egregious action of the DEA, the raids also violated the rights of numerous other people. Everyone at the clinic and his home were detained with numbers hanging around their necks, as they and their vehicles were searched. People who should have been treated with respect, were instead threatened with guns shoved in their faces, being degraded and humiliated.

Dr. Bamdad was taken to custody. He was denied any bail, severely impeding his ability to find a competent attorney. As a result, Dr. Masoud remains incarcerated to this day.

Trial commenced on April 21, 2009 and took only nine days. The jury deliberated for five days but finally found him guilty of ten counts of distribution of a controlled substance. Eight of the ten counts were undercover DEA agents posing as patients.

Important things to note:

1. The case should had never been prosecuted as a federal criminal case. Dr. Bamdad did not violate any federal laws.
2. The undercover investigation by the DEA’s Diversion unit was in direct violation of the department’s own policies and procedures (See: Chapter 64, Diversion Division Investigations, subchapters 6411.1 and 6411.2).
3. The DEA also conducted hidden video and audio surveillance without any consent or any warrants from the courts—a blatant violation of Dr. Bamdad’s Fourth and Fifth constitutional rights.
4. The increase in the DEA’s aggressive attacks on pain management practitioners coincides with major cuts by Congress to the DEA’s budget. Because the DEA gets to keep as a form of “bounty”, 30% of all assets claimed in a forfeiture that results from a criminal conviction in these types of cases.
5. The systematic violation of people’s 6th amendment constitutional right. There appears to be a major disparity between the level of punishment a person receives when they try to fight off this type of abuse, and the little or no jail time they receive when they simply plead guilty, even if they are guilty of horrendous crimes. This is because it is not about fighting crime, it is about seizing assets with as little exposure as possible. When a person pleads guilty, they do not expose the corruption, they just quietly forfeit their assets to the government.
6. According to the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, based on the weight of the drugs he was convicted of prescribing, Dr. Bamdad should have been sentenced to a maximum of 63 months in prison. However, he was instead sentenced to 25 years, by Judge Wu, based on 4,418 grams, an arbitrary number given to him by the DEA.

For more of Dr. Bamdad’s own evaluation of his trial, read his Circuit Court appeal HERE, which, of course, was denied by the 9th Circuit. The higher courts are turning a $$$-filled blind eye to the illegal decisions coming out of the lower courts. Someone interested in following the money should do a FOIA request for whose pockets get filled with the proceeds of these forfeitures and fines.

Also, read Dr. Bamdad’s wife’s plea for support on her post: Masoud Bamdad, MD and Government Misconduct

 Join us in the fight for freedom for Dr. Bamdad and all the other innocent physicians whose lives have been ruined by government misconduct. 

Addendum

Dr. Bamdad was scheduled for release in January, 2030. He was reported on the FBOP website as being at  a halfway house in Long Beach, CA earlier. But now the FBOP site says he “escaped” on Dec 5, 2022.  There is no mention in the media.  I guess he walked away from the halfway house and didn’t return.  I pray that, wherever he is, he stays safe. And naturally, he can’t come out in support of our fight or he will go back to prison.

Addendum from the author:

I have failed in my mission to end these attacks on doctors and pain patients. Through John Bevere’s book The Bait of Satan, I have figured out why—my lack of forgiveness to those who attacked me. As in Mark 11: 24-26:

“Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them. And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.”

And when you do not do the will of the Father, you are estranged from him and he will ignore you.  So we all must forgive the agents who attacked us in order for things to be made right through any of our works.

Jesus said

“Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.”

But we cannot lay down our lives for God unless we know Him well enough to trust Him. We must have the assurance that He would never do anything to harm us. He always looks out for what He knows is in our best interest. As a nation, those of us suffering from these attacks must understand that we are serving as God’s messengers of love.  We must forgive those who persecute us and love them instead, following God’s will for us. Then and only then will we see fruits from our labor.

So I hope that everyone who has suffered from what happened to the doctor can trust the Lord, forgive those who have hurt you, and help bring this country back to the God-fearing country that our forefathers founded. Then, and only then, can you be a part of the effort to stop these attacks. I look forward to that day.