News and Press Releases
Rochester woman sentenced for stealing patient’s medical information
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 15, 2012
MINNEAPOLIS – Earlier today in federal court, a former employee of a health care
provider in Rochester was sentenced for wrongfully obtaining the personal medical information
of a patient and using that information to cause malicious harm to that patient. United States
District Court Judge Patrick J. Schiltz sentenced Autumn Lee Wright, age 34, of Rochester, to
three years of probation and 300 hours of community service on one felony count of wrongfully
obtaining individually identifiable health information. Wright was charged on April 12, 2011,
and pleaded guilty on June 15, 2011.
In her plea agreement, Wright admitted that on August 31, 2009, she obtained the patient’s
demographic information, medical history, and information relating to the patient’s past and
present physical and mental health. Wright also admitted disclosing that information to another
person. In addition, she admitted that she obtained the information from the records of her
employer with the intent to use it for personal gain, including for reputational and other
malicious harm.
This case was the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the
Rochester Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David M. Genrich.
