Former Delaware Chief Medical Examiner Richard Callery has pleaded no contest to two counts of misusing state resources for running a private business on public time.
Callery, formerly one of the state’s highest paid employees, was driven from his office after officials discovered his private consulting business was taking precedent over his official duties.
He faces up to two years in prison, but there’s no minimum mandatory penalty. Callery will also be forced to repay $100,000 to the state and must surrender his medical license during his punishment.
An internal investigation reported “egregious” and “profound” violations in his conduct, acting as an expert-for-hire in cases in the Mid Atlantic and New England.
Callery was also fingered in the disarray of the state Controlled Substances Lab. Two employees accused of stealing drug evidence and selling it plead to lesser charges or had those charges dropped.
The Department of Safety and Homeland Security now oversees the department.