Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2000. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
San Francisco Chronicle - Saturday, December 2, 2000
Alan Gathright, Chronicle Staff Writer
Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Charles Hayden said there is sufficient evidence that Giorgi should be tried for two counts of assault with a deadly weapon and four counts of illegal disposal of medical waste for reusing syringes on patients at the SmithKline Beecham clinic on Welch Road. She also faces a misdemeanor count of falsifying medical records.
But Hayden threw out a dozen additional felony counts, which were based on admissions Giorgi made about reusing needles, because the victims could not be identified. State law forbids prosecuting a defendant solely on a confession and there were no witnesses or other evidence to confirm Georgi's admissions. The 53-year-old Giorgi sat stoically, wearing a silver wig to conceal her identity from TV cameras, as defense attorney James Leininger unsuccessfully argued that she did not pose criminal harm to patients, because she disinfected the syringes with hydrogen peroxide and water. He stressed that none of the patients has contracted an infection.
But Hayden said it can take more than a decade for someone to test positive for the HIV virus or other deadly infections.
"That's the frightful and scary thing about this case," Hayden said. Outside court, prosecutor Dale Sanderson said the law does not require proof that the technician injured or intended to injure people but has to prove only that "she knows she's creating a risk" to patients.
When a co-worker reported in February 1999 that Giorgi was reusing "dirty needles" it ignited a legal and medical uproar.
State health officials eventually barred her from working in the medical field, fined SmithKline Beecham $102,000 and urged thousands of worried patients to be tested for HIV, hepatitis B and hepatitis C. A state study found no increased incidence of infection among her patients.
The case led to a new law requiring tougher education and training standards for phlebotomists, technicians who draw blood. It has also drawn at least 17 state and federal civil lawsuits against SmithKline and Giorgi, including one from a woman who said she was infected with hepatitis C.
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