United States

Medical Tech in Hepatitis C Outbreak Wants Sentence Vacated

A traveling hospital technician who was sentenced to 39 years in prison for infecting patients in multiple states with hepatitis C through tainted syringes has asked a federal judge to vacate his sentence, saying his lawyer was ineffective in representing him.

David Kwiatkowski was sentenced in 2013 after admitting he stole painkiller syringes from hospitals where he worked and replaced them with saline-filled syringes tainted with his blood. He was at New Hampshire's Exeter Hospital when he was arrested.

The 39-year-old Kwiatkowski filed his motion from prison in Sumterville, Florida. He's scheduled to be released in 2046.

He wrote that his lawyer allowed him to plead guilty under extreme emotional distress and that his sentence was incorrectly calculated.

A message seeking comment from U.S. attorney's office was left Wednesday.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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