Dr. Lisa Tseng's arraignment hearing delayed in patient deaths trial

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- An arraignment hearing for a Rowland Heights doctor charged with murder was delayed on Tuesday morning.

Dr. Lisa Tseng faces 24 felony charges, including three second-degree murder charges in the deaths of three patients in 2009. The arraignment was delayed until Aug. 7.

Tseng was ordered to stand trial late last month after a judge determined there was enough evidence for a trial to move forward.

Prosecutors accuse Tseng of overprescribing drugs like OxyContin, Vicodin, Xanax and Valium to make a profit. The Drug Enforcement Administration alleges she wrote more than 27,000 prescriptions at her medical clinic within a three-year period at a rate of 25 per day with minimal questions.

In 2008, Tseng came under scrutiny when a pharmacy reported problems with her prescriptions. The prosecution also says she settled five wrongful death suits going back to 2007, yet kept prescribing the powerful drugs.

Tseng's attorneys claim her patients hid their motives. They say they mixed their meds, ignored warning labels and in multiple cases crushed and snorted pills and combined them with alcohol and street drugs. They also added that Tseng cares very deeply for her patients and looks forward to her "opportunity to vindicate herself in court."

Tseng maintains she is innocent. If convicted, she could face 45 years in prison.

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