Summaries of Regents Actions
On Professional Misconduct and Discipline*
December 2006
Architecture - Chiropractic - Dentistry - Engineering and Land Surveying -Massage Therapy - Nursing - Pharmacy - Psychology - Public Accountancy - Social Work
Architecture
Nicole De Acetis, Asharoken, NY
Profession: Architect; Lic. No. 016923; Cal. No.
23069
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application for consent order granted; Penalty
agreed upon: 2 year stayed suspension, 2 years probation, $2,500
fine.
Summary: Licensee did not contest the charge of
having been convicted of failing to collect withholding tax in violation
of New York Tax Law section 1806(a), a class A misdemeanor.
Christopher Beardsley, Philadelphia, PA
Profession: Architect; Lic. No. 027006; Cal. No.
23020
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application to surrender license granted.
Summary: Licensee did not contest the charge of
filing a false report.
Brian Burke, New Rochelle, NY
Profession: Architect; Lic. No. 022649; Cal. No.
22441
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Found guilty of professional misconduct;
Penalty: 36 month suspension, execution of last 30 months of suspension
stayed, probation for at least 7 years and until termination of criminal
probation as set forth in Regents Review Committee report.
Summary: Licensee was found guilty of having been
convicted of the crime of Disseminating Indecent Material to a Minor,
in the 1st Degree, a felony.
Chiropractic
Salvatore A. Feudi, Malone, NY
Profession: Chiropractor; Lic. No. 006391; Cal.
No. 23011
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application to surrender license granted.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charges of having
been convicted of three counts of Sodomy in the 2nd Degree.
Norman E. O’Dell, Webster, NY
Profession: Chiropractor; Lic. No. 006229; Cal.
No. 22835
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application for consent order granted; Penalty
agreed upon: 1 year stayed suspension, 1 year probation, $1,500 fine.
Summary: Licensee did not contest charges of using
the word "Doctor" in offering to perform professional services
without also designating "DC," and of advertising or soliciting
for patronage that is not in the public interest.
Dentistry
Ahmed Aziz, Burke, VA
Profession: Dentist; Lic. No. 036909; Cal. No. 23021
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application to surrender license granted.
Summary: Licensee did not contest the charge of
having been convicted of 2nd Degree Sexual Offense in the State of
Maryland.
Richard J. Bollon, Jericho, NY
Profession: Dentist; Lic. No. 029679; Cal. No. 22799
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application for consent order granted; Penalty
agreed upon: 1 month actual suspension, 23 month stayed suspension,
24 months probation, $50,000 fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charges of failing
to exercise sufficient care in preparing insurance claims for patient
care on more than one occasion, as the result of which claim forms
submitted either misstated the date of treatment or made claim for
treatment not charted in the patient dental record.
Richard J. Bollon, DDS PC, 366 North Broadway, Jericho, NY 11753
Profession: Dentistry; Cal. No. 22800
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application for consent order granted; Penalty
agreed upon: 24 months probation, $10,000 fine.
Summary: Respondent admitted to charges of failing
to exercise sufficient care in preparing insurance claims for patient
care on more than one occasion, as the result of which claim forms
submitted made claim for treatment not charted in the patient dental
record.
Arthur Merrill Chasin, Merrick, NY
Profession: Dentist; Lic. No. 020598; Cal. No. 22904
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application for consent order granted; Penalty
agreed upon: 2 year stayed suspension, 2 years probation, $7,500
fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to the charge of failing
to exercise sufficient care in preparing Medicaid claim forms on
more than one occasion, as a result of which claim forms were submitted
for 5 patients for orthodontic services either not rendered or provided
subsequent to the billing date.
Oliver Marvin Harmon, Largo, MD
Profession: Dentist; Lic. No. 026968; Cal. No. 22965
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application for consent order granted; Penalty
agreed upon: 2 year stayed suspension, 2 years probation, 100 hours
of public service.
Summary: Licensee did not contest the charge of
having been found guilty of professional misconduct by the Maryland
Board of Dental Examiners.
Shahryar Sedgh, Brooklyn, NY
Profession: Dentist; Lic. No. 047141; Cal. No. 22789
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006 (see also June 2012)
Action: Application for consent order granted; Penalty
agreed upon: 2 year stayed suspension, 2 years probation, $7,500
fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charges of having
been convicted of Aggravated Unlicensed Operation of a Motor Vehicle
in the 3rd Degree, Aggravated Unlicensed Operation of a Motor Vehicle
in the 1st Degree, and Operating a Motor Vehicle While Under the
Influence of Alcohol.
Engineering and Land Surveying
Neal A. O’Connor, Staten Island, NY
Profession: Professional Engineer; Lic. No. 059548;
Cal. No. 22890
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application for consent order granted; Penalty
agreed upon: 1 year stayed suspension, 1 year probation, $2,500 fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to the charge that he
filed an incomplete financial disclosure form.
Massage Therapy
Cary C. Smagala, Queensbury, NY
Profession: Massage Therapist; Lic. No. 015515;
Cal. No. 22905
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application for consent order granted; Penalty
agreed upon: 2 year stayed suspension, 2 years probation, $500 fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charges of having
been convicted of Driving While Intoxicated as a misdemeanor and
as a felony.
Nursing
Heather Anne Benedict, McGraw, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse; Lic. No. 237985;
Cal. No. 22927
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application for consent order granted; Penalty
agreed upon: 1 month actual suspension, 23 month stayed suspension,
2 years probation, $500 fine.
Summary: Respondent admitted to charges of having
been convicted of Welfare Fraud in the 5th Degree and Petit Larceny.
Vicki Lee Buback, Jacksonville, NC
Profession: Registered Professional Nurse; Lic.
No. 499280; Cal. No. 22996
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application for consent order granted; Penalty
agreed upon: Indefinite actual suspension until fit to practice –
upon termination of suspension 2 years probation to commence upon
return to practice in New York State.
Summary: Licensee admitted to the charge of having
been found guilty of improper practice or professional misconduct
in Arizona.
Shamsher Chauhan, Scarsdale, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse, Registered
Professional Nurse; Lic. Nos. 195968, 419670; Cal. Nos. 22512, 22513
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application for consent order granted; Penalty
agreed upon: Indefinite actual suspension for not less than 6 months
and until fit to practice – upon termination of suspension 2 years
probation, $1,000 fine.
Summary: Licensee did not contest the charge of
willfully making false reports by falsely charting on hospital narcotics
records that she intended to administer to hospital patients the
narcotics that she withdrew from the hospital’s supply.
Elizabeth Anne Cole, Tyrone, NY
Profession: Registered Professional Nurse; Lic.
No. 185498; Cal. No. 23046
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application to surrender license granted.
Summary: Licensee could not successfully defend
against the charge of diverting the drug Ultram for her own use.
Sandra G. Corder, Highland, IN
Profession: Registered Professional Nurse; Lic.
No. 313730; Cal. No. 23054
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application to surrender license granted.
Summary: Licensee did not contest the charge of
having been found guilty of professional misconduct in Indiana.
Michael A. Edwards, Sonyea, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse; Lic. No. 231951;
Cal. No. 22501
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Found guilty of professional misconduct;
Penalty: Revocation.
Summary: Licensee was found guilty of having been
convicted of the crime of Willful Violation of Health Laws, a misdemeanor,
as a result of having sexual contact with a female patient who was
in a persistent vegetative state and incapable of consenting.
David C. Glover, Buffalo, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse; Lic. No. 241813;
Cal. No. 23001
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006 (see also September
2004)
Action: Application to surrender license granted.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charges of having
been convicted of two counts of child pornography.
Slava Gotlib a/k/a Vycheslav Gotlib, Brooklyn, NY
Profession: Registered Professional Nurse; Lic.
No. 507078; Cal. No. 22938
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application for consent order granted; Penalty
agreed upon: 1 month actual suspension, 23 month stayed suspension,
2 years probation, $500 fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to the charge of documenting
a patient’s blood-sugar level and blood pressure when in fact neither
had been measured.
Shannon K. Harkins, Perry, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse; Lic. No. 258604;
Cal. No. 21859
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Found guilty of professional misconduct;
Penalty: Partial suspension in certain area for not less than one
year and until present satisfactory proof of completion of certain
course of retraining in said area, probation 2 years.
Summary: Licensee was found guilty of having practiced
the profession negligently, on more than one occasion, as a result
of committing a variety of nursing errors related to medication administration.
Cheryl Kiss a/k/a Cheryl Kluchar, Poughkeepsie, NY
Profession: Registered Professional Nurse; Lic.
No. 507284; Cal. No. 22794
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application for consent order granted; Penalty
agreed upon: 6 month actual suspension, 18 month stayed suspension,
2 years probation to commence upon return to practice.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charges of having
been convicted of Attempted Assault in the 2nd Degree and of Possession
of a Controlled Dangerous Substance in the 3rd Degree.
Kathleen A. Leone, Southold, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse; Lic. No. 225138;
Cal. No. 22959
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application to surrender license granted.
Summary: Licensee admitted to the charge of diverting
controlled substances for her own use.
Ronald Paul Mastronardi, Jefferson Valley, NY
Profession: Registered Professional Nurse; Lic.
No. 483943; Cal. No. 22929
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application for consent order granted; Penalty
agreed upon: 1 month actual suspension, 23 month stayed suspension,
24 months probation.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charges of having
been convicted of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the 4th Degree,
a class A misdemeanor, and of falsely denying on his registration
renewal application that criminal charges were pending against him
in a court.
Timothy K. Murtaugh, Middletown, CT
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse; Lic. No. 267115;
Cal. No. 22661
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Found guilty of professional misconduct;
Penalty: 2 year suspension, execution of suspension stayed, probation
2 years, $500 fine.
Summary: Licensee was found guilty of having been
convicted of the crimes of Vehicular Assault in the 2nd Degree, a
felony and Driving While Intoxicated, a misdemeanor.
Jason Anthony Rotunno, Rocky Point, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse, Registered
Professional Nurse; Lic. Nos. 234685, 470121; Cal. Nos. 21865, 21866
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application to surrender licenses granted.
Summary: Licensee did not contest charges that,
while practicing the profession of nursing in the Intensive Care
Unit at Stony Brook University Hospital and Medical Center, and caring
for a post-partum patient, he failed to take and/or document the
patient’s vital signs and intake and output as often as was ordered;
he failed to pick up some physician orders; he failed to write an
admission note; and he administered 1000 cc’s of fluid to the patient
when in fact the physician’s order called for only 500 cc’s to be
administered.
Stacy Lynn Sharot a/k/a Stacy L. Burlison, Endicott, NY and Nichols, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse; Lic. No. 266117;
Cal. No. 22524
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Found guilty of professional misconduct;
Penalty: Censure and Reprimand.
Summary: Licensee was found guilty of having been
convicted of committing the crime of aggravated Unlicensed Operation
of a Motor Vehicle in the 3rd Degree, a misdemeanor.
Laura J. Spiak, Watervliet, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse; Lic. No. 088968;
Cal. No. 22834
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application for consent order granted; Penalty
agreed upon: 1 year stayed suspension, 1 year probation, $250 fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to the charge of failing
to maintain an accurate record.
Christine A. Trischitta, Highland Hills, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse; Lic. No. 167738;
Cal. No. 22960
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application for consent order granted; Penalty
agreed upon: 2 year stayed suspension, 2 years probation, $500 fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to the charge of having
been convicted of Leaving the Scene of an Accident.
Selina N. Uche, Rochester, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse; Lic. No. 268564;
Cal. No. 21623
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Found guilty of professional misconduct;
Penalty: Pursue and complete certain courses within 1 year, probation
1 year.
Summary: Licensee was found guilty of having practiced
the profession negligently, on more that one occasion, as a result
of committing a variety of nursing errors related to patient care
and medicine administration.
James H. VanDamme, Canandaigua, NY
Profession: Registered Professional Nurse; Lic.
No. 245075; Cal. No. 22724
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application to surrender license granted.
Summary: Licensee did not contest the charge of
willfully failing to comply with substantial provisions of state
laws, rules or regulations governing the nursing profession.
Lorri Varese a/k/a Lorri A. Varese, Northport, NY
Profession: Licensed Practical Nurse, Registered
Professional Nurse; Lic. Nos. 248765, 525821; Cal. Nos. 22780, 22781
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application for consent order granted; Penalty
agreed upon: Censure and Reprimand, 1 year probation, $500 fine.
Summary: Licensee did not contest charges of failing
to document the order of a physician; documenting on the wrong record;
documenting the administration of a respiratory inhalant that was
actually administered by a respiratory therapist; and failing to
document the administration of a medication.
Kristine Lisa Welles a/k/a Kristine Lisa McKey, Holley, NY
Profession: Registered Professional Nurse; Lic.
No. 391429; Cal. No. 22865
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application for consent order granted; Penalty
agreed upon: Indefinite actual suspension until fit to practice,
upon termination of suspension 2 years probation to commence upon
return to practice.
Summary: Licensee admitted to the charge of diverting
valium for personal use.
Pharmacy
Andrea Lynn Holstein, Dublin, OH
Profession: Pharmacist; Lic. No. 046457; Cal. No.
23066
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application to surrender license granted.
Summary: Licensee did not contest the charge of
having been found guilty of improper professional practice or professional
misconduct in Ohio.
Kenneth R. Horwitz, Randolph, NJ
Profession: Pharmacist; Lic. No. 042014; Cal. No.
22966
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application for consent order granted; Penalty
agreed upon: 1 year actual suspension, 1 year stayed suspension,
2 years probation.
Summary: Licensee admitted to the charge of having
been convicted of Insurance Fraud in the 3rd Degree.
Mary Jo Marino a/k/a Mary Jo Brown, Latham, NY
Profession: Pharmacist; Lic. No. 036576; Cal. No.
19540
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Found guilty of professional misconduct;
Penalty: Censure and Reprimand, $500 fine.
Summary: Licensee was found guilty of filling prescriptions
that contained certain deficiencies such as a lack of signatures
or other required information.
Steven Mensah-Narh, North Brunswick, NJ
Profession: Pharmacist; Lic. No. 050940; Cal. No.
23065
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application to surrender license granted.
Summary: Licensee did not contest the charge of
having been found guilty of improper professional practice or professional
misconduct in New Jersey.
Rite Aid of New York Inc. #686, 9519 Foster Wheeler Road, North Dansville, NY 14437
Profession: Pharmacy; Reg. No. 014308; Cal. No.
22405
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006 (see also June
2007)
Action: Application for consent order granted; Penalty
agreed upon: 1 year stayed suspension, 1 year probation, $5,000 fine.
Summary: Respondent admitted to charges of committing
a dispensing error, failing to maintain a counseling log, and failing
to offer counseling.
Brad A. Vacchetto, Rochester, NY
Profession: Pharmacist; Lic. No. 047814; Cal. No.
22886
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application for consent order granted; Penalty
agreed upon: 3 year stayed suspension, 3 years probation, $5,000
fine.
Summary: Licensee admitted to charges of forging
prescriptions and stealing stock bottles of narcotics.
Psychology
Yevgeniy Margulis a/k/a Yevgeniy D. Margulis a/k/a Eugene Margulis, Brooklyn, NY
Profession: Psychologist; Lic. No. 014157; Cal.
No. 22827
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Found guilty of professional misconduct;
Penalty: 24 month suspension, execution of last 18 months of suspension
stayed, $1,250 fine to be paid within 90 days.
Summary: Licensee was found guilty of having been
convicted of committing the crime of Offering a False Instrument
for Filing in the 1st Degree, a felony, as a result of false Medicaid
filings.
Public Accountancy
Lee Steven Epstein, Oceanside, NY
Profession: Certified Public Accountant; Lic. No.
059732; Cal. No. 22869
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application for consent order granted; Penalty
agreed upon: 2 year stayed suspension, 2 years probation, $1,500
fine.
Summary: Licensee did not contest charges of, on
more than one occasion, performing an audit of financial statements
where the audit report stated that said statements were prepared
in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP)
when they were not in accordance with GAAP.
Krinsky & Epstein, CPA, P.C., 265 East Merrick Road, Valley Stream, NY 11590
Profession: Public Accountancy; Cal. No. 22870
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Application for consent order granted; Penalty
agreed upon: 1 year probation, $1,500 fine.
Summary: Respondent did not contest charges of,
on more than one occasion, performing an audit of financial statements
where the audit report stated that said statements were prepared
in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP)
when they were not in accordance with GAAP.
Social Work
Yevgeniy Margulis a/k/a Yevgeniy D. Margulis a/k/a Eugene Margulis, Brooklyn, NY
Profession: Licensed Master Social Worker; Lic.
No. 052298; Cal. No. 22828
Regents Action Date: December 5, 2006
Action: Found guilty of professional misconduct;
Penalty: 24 month suspension, execution of last 18 months of suspension
stayed, $1,250 fine to be paid within 90 days.
Summary: Licensee was found guilty of having been
convicted of committing the crime of Offering a False Instrument
for Filing in the 1st Degree, a felony, as a result of false Medicaid
filings.
* Terms under which this information is provided.
For further information: dplsdsu@mail.nysed.gov
