Philadelphia Personal Injury Attorney Blog | Pomerantz Perlberger & Lewis LLP

It was a remarkable case of "who's treating who?": a psychiatrist told his patient that he wanted to kill six people and then asked his patient to help him find a gun. The patient, rightfully concerned, called police in January 2003.

The murder plot started when the psychiatrist, Richard Karpf, had sex with one of his patients, then felt humiliated by her. He decided he wanted to kill her and five others, dismember them and dump their bodies in the ocean, according to the patient.

The police then set up a sting operation, with an undercover officer selling a pistol and silencer to the psychiatrist. The doctor was arrested and pled guilty in 2004 to illegal weapon possession. He was sentenced to three months in jail and four years' probation. He also surrendered his psychiatric license.

The patients did not feel that the criminal sentence was sufficient, and still fear for their lives.

However, the doctor decided to fight charges of medical malpractice, and took the case all the way to court. However, as the jury was deliberating, he apparently changed his mind and decided to settle the case for $365,000.

Psychiatric malpractice is also a form of medical malpractice. If you have been hurt as a result of incompetence or craziness of your psychiatrist, contact the experienced medical malpractice lawyers at Pomerantz, Perlberger, and Lewis, LLP today for a free initial consultation.