The Hustler Files Ep. 175 - Esther & Eve – An Unwavering Belief In Her Innocence

Twenty years, that’s the sentence she received for refusing to take a plea deal. Now Elizabeth Mercedes Hernandez, a former nurse practitioner, a mother of five and a healthcare professional with no prior criminal record, is serving in a Florida federal prison after being convicted of committing healthcare and wire fraud.  In this episode, her mother, Esther Pino, and sister, Eve Hernandez, say the government got her story wrong. Elizabeth’s journey from working in the rapidly expanding world of telemedicine to discovering what the prosecutors, at her trial, say was the misuse of her medical credentials and NPI number. Despite cooperating with investigators, refusing a plea agreement and ultimately taking her case to trial, Elizabeth lost her freedom. Esther and Eve share their continuing fight for Elizabeth’s freedom and their larger effort to bring attention to healthcare practitioners they believe have been unjustly prosecuted.  This is a story about one family’s unwavering belief in Elizabeth’s innocence, and the questions her case has left them asking about truth, justice and the power of the federal criminal justice system.