A San Francisco transplant surgeon who came to San Luis Obispo in early February 2006 to harvest the organs of a 26-year-old disabled and dying man is facing three felony criminal charges relating to the man's death.

Dr. Hootan Roozrokh, 33, has been charged with one count of dependent adult abuse after allegedly prescribing excessive amounts of morphine and Ativan and administering the topical antiseptic Betadine into the stomach of the patient.

Roozrokh has also been charged with one count of administering a harmful substance - Betadine - to a human being knowing that it would cause injury.

He's also facing one count of administering unlawful controlled-substance prescriptions - the pain-killer morphine and the sedative Ativan - that weren't used for a legitimate medical purpose, according to the complaint.

San Luis Obispo resident Ruben Navarro was dying of a rare metabolic disorder when he was sent Feb. 3, 2006, to an operating room at Sierra Vista Regional Medical Center so his organs could be harvested.

“We aren't alleging that the doctor's actions contributed to his death,” said Stephen Brown, San Luis Obispo County chief deputy district attorney. “We're alleging that the doctor's actions were an attempt to accelerate (Navarro's) death.”

A report from federal regulators shows that Roozrokh ordered Navarro to receive 200 milligrams of morphine and 80 milligrams of Ativan - far in excess of the usual doses.

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When Navarro was admitted to the hospital, he weighed approximately 80 pounds and suffered from adrenal leukodystrophy, cerebral palsy, severe chronic neuromuscular and cognitive defects and a seizure disorder. He was also in a coma.

However, Navarro didn't die within 30 minutes of being removed from life support, so his organs could not be harvested. He died the next day, Feb. 4.

It's against state law for transplant doctors to direct treatment of potential organ donors until they are declared dead, Brown said.

“The lines weren't just blurred; (Dr. Roozrokh) took over,” Brown added. “Central to this case is the mistreatment of a disabled patient.”

An autopsy revealed that Navarro died from natural causes, according to the county Coroner's Office.

Roozrokh, a surgeon at Kaiser Permanente's now-closed kidney transplant program, was working at the time on behalf of a group that procures and distributes organs.

Roozrokh's lawyer, M. Gerald Schwartzbach, called the charges “unfounded and ill-advised,” saying his client “has unfairly been the subject of an 18-month witch hunt.”

“Nothing that Dr. Roozrokh did or said at the hospital that night adversely affected the quality of Mr. Navarro's life or contributed to Mr. Navarro's eventual death,” Schwartzbach said in a statement.

Previously, Schwartzbach said his client was being used as a “scapegoat” and that he “killed no one.”

Last month, Navarro's mother, Rosa, filed a wrongful-death and medical malpractice lawsuit against Roozrokh and others, claiming her son was removed from life support without her permission and given lethal doses of drugs.

Roozrokh will be allowed to surrender at San Luis Obispo County Jail, where he can post bail and will be given a future arraignment date, Brown said.

If convicted of all three counts, the surgeon faces potential punishments ranging from eight years in state prison to probation, with up to one year in jail and a $20,000 fine as conditions of probation, Brown said. Sierra Vista hospital officials launched an internal investigation after nurses alerted their bosses after Navarro's death. A spokesman has said the hospital has since strengthened its organ donation procedures.

April Charlton can be reached at 489-4206, Ext. 5016, or acharlton

@santamariatimes.com. The

Associated Press contributed to this report.

July 31, 2007