Former Tulare hospital CEO pleads no contest to felonies, misdemeanors, will pay $2.4m and likely avoid jail

Dr. Yorai ”Benny” Benzeevi is now a felon. On Friday, the 61-year-old pleaded no contest to six felony and two misdemeanor charges stemming from crimes committed while acting as CEO of the Tulare Local Healthcare District from 2014 to 2017. Tulare County Superior Court Judge Michael Sheltzer accepted the plea agreement during a hearing on […]

Plea deal negotiations scheduled in Tulare hospital case, Benzeevi to appeal recusal decision

A plea deal could be on the table for three former Healthcare Conglomerate Associates (HCCA) executives, nearly three years after they were charged with alleged crimes during the time HCCA managed Tulare Regional Medical Center and the Southern Inyo Hospital in Lone Pine. In a Friday hearing, Trevor Holly with the Tulare County District Attorney’s […]

Judge rules Tulare County DA Tim Ward may stay on HCCA case

The Tulare County District Attorney’s office may continue to prosecute three former Healthcare Conglomerate Associates (HCCA) executives, a judge ruled earlier this month. Yorai ‘Benny’ Benzeevi, HCCA’s CEO;  Alan Germany, HCCA’s former CFO; and Bruce Greene, an attorney with Baker Hostetler who served Benzeevi, HCCA and the Tulare Local Healthcare District, were charged in 2020 […]

DA, AG respond to former Tulare hospital leaders’ bias allegations

The Tulare County District Attorney’s office has responded to allegations made by Healthcare Conglomerate Associates (HCCA) CEO Yorai “Benny” Benzeevi that his prosecution is due to political pressure against – and bias by – Tulare County District Attorney Tim Ward. The California Attorney General’s office backed up Ward’s office with a separate filing and the […]

DA gets more time to respond to hospital leaders’ bias claims

After an hour-long hearing in the Tulare County Superior Court’s Juvenile Division, the Tulare County District Attorney’s office earned slightly more time to respond to claims by three former Tulare hospital leaders who say they are being unfairly prosecuted. The trio are specifically seeking the recusal of District Attorney Tim Ward and the entire Tulare […]

Attorneys for former Tulare hospital leaders accuse DA Ward of biased prosecution

The Tulare County District Attorney’s office may be forced to recuse itself from the long and winding cases against three former Tulare hospital leaders if the attorneys’ claims of bias against District Attorney Tim Ward hold up in court. Attorneys representing Dr. Yorai ‘Benny’ Benzeevi, Bruce Greene and Alan Germany filed a motion on Tuesday […]