William Weeks, a Dartmouth Medical School professor of psychiatry and community and family medicine, is facing federal conflict of interest charges for his involvement with contracts between the Department of Veterans Affairs and the College, according to The Rutland Herald.
Weeks, a physician at the VA Medical Center in White River Junction, Vt., was charged Friday with five federal misdemeanor counts by acting U.S. Attorney Paul Van de Graaf, according to The Burlington Free Press. Weeks and Van de Graaf could not be reached for comment by press time.
A Dartmouth spokesperson, when contacted on Saturday, said the College would not make a statement on the matter until Monday.
Weeks also faces civil complaints alleging conflict of interest, breach of fiduciary duty and false claims, according to The Herald.
If Weeks is convicted, potential penalties include prison time and $1.8 million in fines, according to The Herald.
Weeks participated in five fixed-price contracts in 2003, both initiating the contracts on behalf of the VA and performing the work as the College's principal investigator, the U.S. Attorney's office told The Herald. By concurrently filling both roles, Weeks was responsible for ensuring that the work was performed and for regulating the funding. The U.S. Attorney's office contends that some of the contract money was deposited into a reserve account at the College associated with Weeks, rather than being used for the contracted work, The Herald reported.
Documents obtained by The Dartmouth indicate that Weeks had previously filed suit against the federal government on April 9, alleging that his chances for promotion were greatly diminished when his offices at the VA Medical Center were illegally searched and that information about the ongoing federal investigation had been improperly shared with his superiors.
Court documents also state that Weeks tried to commit suicide after failing to secure a promotion, The Herald reported.
Representatives from the VA Medical Center could not be reached for comment Saturday evening.
This article will be updated as more information becomes available.
Article first posted on May 9, 2009, at 7:20 p.m.
