Drug Arrest Redirects Doctor Into New Job as a Lawyer
After 20 years in practice as a physician, a Pennsylvania doctor turned to a new career as an attorney after his arrest five years ago on a prescription drug charge.
Lawrence Kansky, then 50, felt he should never have been charged concerning what he describes as an unwitting technical violation of his Drug Enforcement Administration license, by having prescription drugs for his medical practice sent to his home. However, he retired and pleaded no contest in the controlled-substance case in exchange for a six-month probation sentence and eventual expungement of his record, the Standard Speaker (sub. req.) reports.
A religious man who believes things happen for a reason, he found himself drawn toward a new vocation as a lawyer.
When he started classes at University of Baltimore in Maryland, he expected to take notes with pencil and paper. Other students were using laptops. Kansky added a word processing course to his schedule of classes.
And “I studied my butt off,” he tells the newspaper. “I was driven to succeed.”
This year, after graduating with honors in January, he went into practice in Wilkes-Barre with another lawyer, specializing in personal injury and criminal defense matters.
Although he could regain his medical license, he feels it would create conflicts for him and he expects to make a difference helping others trapped in situations similar to the one his criminal case created for him.
“I miss my practice but I’m still serving people,” he says.
Related coverage:
Times Leader: “Podiatrist arrested on prescription drug charges”
