Murphy v. State

Coleman, J. —

Patrick Murphy and his family sued the State for damages they claimed were caused by the Washington State Pharmacy Board’s negligent disclosure of Murphy’s prescription records to the prosecuting attorney. The disclosure of those records resulted in Murphy’s prosecution for obtaining prescription drugs by deceit, but the criminal charges were dismissed because the Board failed to obtain a warrant before examining the records. In the civil trial, the jury found the Board was negligent and awarded Murphy damages he allegedly suffered when stress from the prosecution exacerbated his…