FRANKFORT, Ky.- A Harrodsburg, Ky., man, Jeremy Bryson, 47, was convicted by a federal jury in Frankfort on Wednesday for charges related to unlawfully distributing controlled substances.  After approximately two hours of deliberations, following an eight-day trial, the jury convicted Bryson on o ne count of conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, six counts of distribution of controlled substances, one count of conspiracy to use a DEA registration issued to another person, and one count of money laundering. According to evidence introduced at trial, during the conspiracy, Jeremy Bryson and Don Bryson, his father, operated a medical clinic in Paintsville, Ky., called Appalachian Family Medicine (AFM). Don Bryson had previously surrendered his medical license in 2012 after a Kentucky Board of Medical Licensure investigation into complaints about his controlled substance prescribing practices. Jeremy Bryson hired Don Bryson as a “medical consultant” at AFM. Evidence at trial established that under Jeremy and Don Bryson’s operation, AFM functioned as a cash-only clinic that consistently issued illegitimate controlled substance prescriptions to patients. Although AFM was not registered as a pain management facility, AFM issued controlled substance prescriptions to the majority of its patients. Between January 2021 and early 2022, 14 separate medical providers worked at AFM, many of whom left after working at the clinic for only a matter of days.  The trial evidence established that Jeremy and Don Bryson pressured and used these temporary providers to issue controlled substance prescriptions while limiting the time they spent with patients and restricting their access to basic tools for safe prescribing like drug testing and prescription drug monitoring reports. In August and September of 2021, Jeremy Bryson directed the clinic’s staff to misuse an absent provider’s DEA registration number, which permits a qualifying practitioner to prescribe controlled substances, to continue issuing illegitimate controlled substance prescriptions in that absent provider’s name without her knowledge. Additionally, evidence showed that in August 2021, Jeremy Bryson engaged in money laundering with proceeds derived from the controlled substance offenses through a check payment of $67,466.40 for the purchase of a Ram 2500 pickup truck.  Don Bryson previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to unlawfully distribute controlled substances in June 2024.  Don Bryson is scheduled to be sentenced on April 2. Paul McCaffrey, First Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky, and Jim Scott, Special Agent in Charge, DEA, Louisville Field Division, jointly announced the conviction. The investigation was conducted by the DEA. Assistant U.S. Attorney Andy Smith is prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.   Jeremy Bryson will appear for sentencing on June 2. He faces a maximum of 20 years in prison. However, the Court must consider the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the applicable federal sentencing statutes before imposing a sentence. The post Johnson County Clinic Owner Convicted of Conspiracy to Distribute Controlled Substances appeared first on The Lexington Times. ...read more read less