Dr. Hasan Gokal's Attorney speaks to FOX 26, says the family still fighting to clear name

Family of fired doctor working to clear his name

The family of Dr. Hasan Gokal, the man who was fired because he distributed expiring COVID-19 vaccines, are working hard to clear his name.

HARRIS COUNTY, Texas - It’s being called a trial by social media. The Harris County DA's office has yet to announce when they will be moving forward with presenting their case against Dr. Hasan Gokal.

In December of 2020, the local doctor was accused of stealing a vial of the COVID-19 vaccine.

The story gained worldwide attention. The family’s attorney, Paul Doyle, a criminal defense lawyer in Houston, spoke with FOX 26 Wednesday.

It’s been three months since the Harris County DA’s Office publicly announced they will bring the case to a grand jury, but there’s been no movement.

Doyle tells us the family is overtaken with fear.

"People haven’t let the story go because the DA’s office won’t let the case go," said Doyle. "In the meantime, Dr. Gokal has this uncertainty hanging over his head, it’s almost like torture."

Back in February, FOX 26 spoke with Dr. Gokal. At the time he told us, he felt it was the moral thing to do and that he did not want to vaccine to go to waste.

"My experience come from emergency medicine where the patient’s life always trumps," said Gokal. "We always air on the side of human life."

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Dr. Gokal’s daughter posted on social media and it's garnering a lot of attention. Her post on Twitter is going viral and it has received thousands likes.

"This is really important to us because it’s been our main source of stress for the past few months, said the daughter. "It’s been draining and exhausting and it’s relieving to see how much people care."

The attorney tells FOX 26, he believes the DA is using a stall tactic, saying it’s uncommon for a county DA’s office to take three months to move forward with a grand jury.

A magistrate judge first agreed to charge Gokal but it was later dropped by another judge.

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At the time, the Harris County attorney’s office wrote in a statement:

"Because of the conflicting opinions, all the evidence will be presented to a grand jury. He admitted he took it away from a facility without receiving authorization to do so."

Dr. Gokal claims there was no protocol in place at the time at the county site.

In March, the Texas Medical Board dismissed its investigation.