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May 26, 2006

Update: Jury finds 'natural healer' guilty on all 21 counts

PROVIDENCE – A jury has found John E. Curran, the “natural healer” accused of pretending to be a doctor, guilty on all 21 counts against him – 18 counts of wire fraud and 3 counts of money laundering.

The jury returned to the courtroom of U.S. District Court Judge Mary M. Lisi at 2 p.m. after seven hours of deliberations. Curran stood facing the court clerk as he read the jury's verdict.

Each separate count against Curran carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Wearing a light tan jacket and dark dress pants, Curran stood with his hands clasped in front of him as the clerk read the same statement 21 times, altering just the number of the charge against Curran: “As to Count 1 of the indictment, we, the jury, find the defendant, John Curran, guilty.”

Minutes after the verdict was read, a loud sobbing could be heard outside the courtroom, prompting the judge to send someone into the hallway to investigate. According to a court sheriff, the sobbing came from Curran’s wife, who was in a hallway in the courthouse with a friend. The wailing filled the courtroom.

The jury began deliberating yesterday afternoon, the ninth day of the trial, after closing arguments in the case. Curran, who has practiced in Cranston, Providence and East Greenwich, had been under investigation by federal authorities since April 2004.

-- projo.com staff writer Steve Peoples

Posted by Kate Bramson  at 2:55 PM | Permalink

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