Judge overturns doctor verdict after finding witness lied about secret payoff to him
Two years ago, the owner of a South Florida substance-abuse facility testified that he paid the program’s medical director cash under the table as an incentive to approve tens of millions of dollar in unnecessary urinalysis tests for patients with addiction problems.
Dr. Mark Agresti was found guilty of a dozen healthcare fraud and conspiracy charges, including for a billing scheme with the sober home owner, Kenneth Bailynson, who had struck a plea deal with prosecutors and testified against the psychiatrist at his jury trial in Fort Lauderdale federal court.
But in a rare ruling, the federal judge overseeing the case discovered after the trial that Bailynson lied about making the secret cash payments to Agresti, who testified that he was only a salaried employee at the West Palm Beach treatment facility, Good Decisions Sober Living.
Judge orders new trial for doctor
As a result, U.S. District Judge Rodolfo Ruiz threw out Agresti’s prison sentence of more than eight years along with an order to pay back $31 million to dozens of private insurance companies. Ruiz ordered a new trial for Agresti, 62, who has been free on bond while appealing his conviction. The state is also reviewing his medical license.
But will federal prosecutors retry the case against Agresti after the judge found their star witness “committed perjury” at the doctor’s trial? They are expected to let Ruiz know the answer on Feb. 19, according to court records.
“Throughout his testimony ... Bailynson weaved lies with truths, crafting a narrative that pitted his word against Agresti’s,” Ruiz wrote in a Jan. 30 order. “Bailynson’s fable was crucial to [Agresti’s] conviction.”
“But while Bailynson’s conviction-making testimony undoubtedly contained some truths, the problem lies in his failure to tell the right amount of truth or shut up,” Ruiz wrote, paraphrasing famed science-fiction writer Robert A. Heinlein from his novel, “Stranger in a Strange Land.”
“As is now clear—largely because Bailynson decided to brag about it to anyone who would listen [after Agresti’s trial] — Bailynson committed perjury,” Ruiz concluded. “Then, Bailynson claimed he lied about the lying to try to make the earlier lies stick—specifically, that he lied when he said he committed perjury, rather than be seen as a snitch.”
Billed millions to insurance companies
In his plea agreement, Bailynson was convicted of one count of conspiring to commit healthcare fraud when his sober home billed dozens of private insurers $106 million for unnecessary urinalysis tests between 2011 and 2015. The insurance companies paid $31 million to Good Decisions Sober Living, which was located in a multi-unit condo complex in West Palm Beach that housed patients with drug addictions. With the benefit of his cooperation, Bailynson was sentenced to six years in prison.
Two of the sober home’s employees, Stephanie Curran and Matthew Noel, also pleaded guilty to the conspiracy charge and were sentenced to just over one year in prison.
Agresti’s defense lawyers said prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and Justice Department should dismiss the case against the physician, saying their main witness, Bailynson, has been completely discredited by Judge Ruiz. They said prosecutors have no evidence proving Agresti committed healthcare fraud.
“We’re pleased with the judge’s excellent, well-reasoned decision,” said Miami attorney Richard Klugh, who worked on Agresti’s case with lawyers Gregory Rosenfeld and Jenny Wilson. “Our view is, the matter should be concluded.”
This story was originally published February 10, 2025 at 4:45 PM.
