'Opioid Jack': Sherrill Doubles Down On Accusations Against Ciattarelli In New Website

NOTE: This article was updated with a statement from Jack Ciattarelli's campaign on Oct. 15

Mikie Sherrill isn’t backing down from last week’s bombshell accusation against Jack Ciattarelli – even at the threat of a lawsuit.

In a surprise twist at the final gubernatorial debate last week, Sherrill – a former federal prosecutor – went on the offensive against her Republican opponent, accusing him of misleading people about the dangers of opioid drug abuse when he served as owner of a publishing firm.

The allegations first surfaced when Ciattarelli ran against Gov. Phil Murphy in 2021.

“I think you’re trying to divert from the fact that you killed tens of thousands of people by printing your misinformation, your propaganda, and then getting paid to develop an app so that people could more easily get the opioids once they were addicted,” Sherrill said.

The accusation got an indignant reply from Ciattarelli, who called the allegations a “lie” in remarks to reporters after the debate. Ciattarelli later said he intends to sue Sherrill for defamation.

“In a time where political violence and violent rhetoric are becoming all too prevalent, Mikie Sherrill baselessly and recklessly accusing a political opponent of mass murder in a televised debate crosses the line,” a campaign spokesperson for Ciattarelli remarked.

According to fact-checking website, PolitiFact, there is no evidence that Ciattarelli “killed” anyone. Other pundits have questioned whether Sherrill’s comments during the debate were “inflammatory and irresponsible.”

• Read More: 5 Takeaways From NJ Governor Debate: ‘Shame On You,’ Candidates Rage
• Read More: Ciattarelli Says He Will Sue Sherrill For Defamation

Ciattarelli’s chief campaign strategist said Sherrill should “retract her slanderous comments and apologize.”

“The truth is that Jack Ciattarelli's medical publishing company helped to create an online tool which allowed a small group of chronic pain sufferers to educate themselves on treatment options and better advocate for their own healthcare choices when meeting with their medical professionals,” he argued.

“Today, Jack took the first step in his legal efforts to sue Mikie Sherrill for her defamatory and false allegations related to his small business,” a campaign spokesperson told Patch on Wednesday, sharing a letter that was sent to the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission.

“In her desperation, Mikie Sherrill crossed a line and sunk to dangerous levels of unhinged rhetoric,” Ciattarelli’s campaign team added. “New Jersey deserves better and Jack looks forward to his day in court.”

DEMOCRATS MAKE ALLEGATIONS

The legal threat from Ciattarelli hasn’t caused Sherrill to change course, however.

“Every one of us knows someone – a friend, a family member, a neighbor – who has been impacted by the opioid crisis in New Jersey,” Sherrill said at a press conference in Clifton on Monday.

The congresswoman accused her opponent of “pocketing millions from opioid manufacturers in exchange for putting their deadly propaganda in front of doctors.”

“After running for governor three times on his experience as a small business owner, it’s long past time Jack is held accountable for the damage his company did to New Jerseyans,” Sherrill said.

Sherrill’s campaign team laid out their claims in a website, posting them under a banner tagline that reads: “Opioid Jack: The Ciattarelli Files.”

The website alleges that opioid companies paid more than $3 million to Galen Publishing – the company Ciattarelli formerly owned – to produce medical education materials that “downplayed the dangers of opioids.”

In one case, Galen Publishing was paid $139,000 by an opioid manufacturer to produce a “Patient Education” app that would coach people on how to obtain a hydrocodone prescription, the website alleges.

Ciattarelli sold the company in 2017. However, Sherrill’s campaign claims that at the same time he was profiting off the opioid industry, the former state assemblyman also sponsored and voted on several pieces of legislation involving prescription drugs – such as a bill authorizing optometrists to continue prescribing medications containing hydrocodone.

“Jack Ciattarelli loves to talk about his small business chops, but it was no mom-and-pop shop,” the website charges. “Jack made millions publishing the opioid companies' misinformation, fanning the flames of the epidemic even after the devastating effects had been made public.”

Sherrill doubled down on her claim at Monday’s press conference, getting support from her fellow congressional Democrat: U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone.

“Big corporations paid [Ciattarelli’s] company millions to downplay the risk of opioids – he even made an app to make it easier to get the drugs,” Pallone alleged. “Those companies flooded New Jersey with more than 300 million prescriptions. Big corporations and pharma made billions. Jack and his company got paid millions, and New Jerseyans got hooked, and tens of thousands died.”

“Let’s call this what it is: a scheme,” Pallone charged.

The general election will take place on Tuesday, Nov. 4. Early in-person voting will take place from Oct. 25 to Nov. 2.

• See Related: ‘Die-In’ At NJ Statehouse Protests $45M Diversion Of Opioid Funds To Hospitals
• See Related: NJ Town 'Wasted' $632K Of Opioid Settlement On Concerts, Officials Allege

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