Doctor allegedly made patient a prisoner

DULUTH, Ga., June 20 (UPI) -- A Georgia doctor and two of his office assistants have been charged with holding a patient prisoner because she didn't have the money to pay her bill.

A grand jury handed down an indictment this week naming Dr. John Drew Laurusonis and his office assistants at Doctors Medical Center in Duluth, Ga., The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. They were charged with false imprisonment.

A lawyer representing Frances Bales said that when she went to the clinic in October 2007 because her arm hurt she was told she would have to pay $98 for the visit. After tests, she was told that the cost was $755.

"She says, 'I don't have the money,'" said Joseph Fried, Bales' lawyer. "They direct her to go into what they called their billing office."

The staff allegedly made Bales wait in the office for hours, occasionally locking her in, and got her to look up her bank records by computer while she was there, Fried said. They also allegedly took her outside to look for a payroll check in her truck but held her keys, the newspaper said.

"They made her feel like she was a criminal," Fried said. "She was made to feel like she couldn't leave without something bad to happen to her."