A federal appeals court has ordered a new sentencing hearing for a Fredericksburg doctor after ruling that his original sentencing hearing was flawed.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit in Richmond said yesterday that Dr. Marc J. Blatstein, a Fredericksburg podiatrist, must return to federal district court in Richmond to be resentenced.
Blatstein pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud in February 2006 and was originally sentenced to 12 months and 1 day in prison. He served that sentence and was released from custody last month.
A spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Richmond said yesterday that Blatstein must go back to district court for a new sentencing hearing and faces the possibility of returning to jail. No date has been set for the new hearing.
The appeal court's decision was a victory for federal prosecutors, who had appealed Blatstein's original sentence, and a rebuke to U.S. District Court Judge Richard L. Williams, the sentencing judge.
In a written opinion, the three-judge panel said that Williams erred in not giving notice that he intended to depart from federal sentencing guidelines.
At the 2006 hearing, Laura C. Marshall, prosecuting attorney, and David G. Barger, Blatstein's attorney, recommended a 24-month prison term, the low end of the advisory guidelines.
However, Williams reduced the sentence to almost half that. Williams said at the time that the shorter sentence was appropriate since Blatstein had started to make amends for his crime. Williams also said that the longer sentence would be hard on Blatstein and his family, and that a shorter sentence would save the federal government at least $25,000.
Marshall objected to the shorter sentence and later filed an appeal to the 4th Circuit.
She told the appeals panel last month during oral arguments that if Williams had given notice, she could have rebutted the facts and the legal reasoning.
"From start to finish, the sentencing proceeding was unreasonable," she said.
Blatstein pleaded guilty in October 2005. He admitted bilking health insurance companies for the use of a phantom surgery center at his podiatry office in Central Park.
In reality, the center was little more than a phone line, tax ID number, fake stationery and a rental box.
Because of the scam, Blatstein billed the companies twice, for his service and for the use of the center. The fraud lasted three years and netted $272,704 in overpayments.
He must make restitution as part of his plea deal.
Click to expand...