Wisconsin Medic Charged with Stealing Drugs

Nov. 14--A 29-year-old Chippewa Falls man was charged Wednesday with stealing a variety of narcotic drugs while working as a paramedic with Lakeview Medical Center in Rice Lake.

Max-well J. Bauer, 3323 109th St., is charged in Barron County Court with eight felony counts of forgery, eight felony counts of obtaining a controlled substance by fraud, and eight misdemeanor counts of obtaining prescription drugs by fraud.

Bauer, who faces a maximum penalty of 48 years in prison if convicted of the felonies, is scheduled for a preliminary hearing Nov. 21.

Bauer is accused of falsifying reports about narcotic usage eight times between June 4 and Nov. 4. Bauer no longer works for Lakeview, according to medical center officials.

According to the criminal complaint:

An audit indicated several instances in which prescription medications were signed out for but not administered to a patient, and that Bauer was working those days. Reports indicated Bauer forged the signatures of other paramedics, and in some cases altered the amount of medication actually administered.

In a Nov. 4 incident, morphine and Hydromorphone were listed on a narcotic transfer sheet as being administered to patients by two paramedics, but they told police they did not administer any medication and their signatures were forged by Bauer.

On July 1, Lakeview paramedics transported a patient who was not breathing and had no pulse and there was no reason to use narcotics as the patient was in cardiac arrest. However, a narcotic transfer sheet signed by Bauer indicated 200 mg of Fentanyl was either used or wasted. The other paramedic on that transport said his signature was forged and no Fentanyl was administered.

Rice Lake police arrested Bauer Friday without incident. His $5,000 signature bond calls for him not to enter the city of Rice Lake, not have contact with Lakeview or its employees, and not use illegal drugs.

Copyright 2013 - The Leader-Telegram, Eau Claire, Wis.