Colonie

Albany County Deputy Executive Christine Quinn was arrested Tuesday on charges she convinced a local nurse practitioner to give her up to hundreds of extra Ritalin pills — even though her prescription had already been filled, according to court documents and law enforcement officials.

Quinn, 35, who earns $106,869 a year as the deputy to County Executive Daniel McCoy and is a member of the Albany Convention Center Authority, has been suspended with pay following her arrest.

The investigation was headed by the Department of Health's Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement, which BNE Director Terence O'Leary called "a coordinated investigation" in keeping with a prescription drug reform law signed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

According to a complaint filed in Colonie, Quinn is accused of telling a nurse in March that a Ritalin prescription filled earlier this year did not have the full 84-day supply. But authorities allege the prescription had been filled. Ritalin is a controlled substance that's most commonly used to treat children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and is also a known stimulant with addictive qualities.

Quinn's arrest is among the first since the state started a database to track prescriptions to try to unearth possible abuse.

"Sadly, we stand here today talking about a member of our Albany County family who has allegedly fallen victim to the lure of prescription medications," County Executive Dan McCoy wrote in an internal email Tuesday afternoon to department heads and county officials.

Quinn was charged with a felony count of attempted drug possession and a misdemeanor count of fraud.

Quinn was arraigned Tuesday in Colonie Town Court and released without bail by Justice Andrew Sommers, who refused to allow cameras inside. The court clerk's office also declined to release a copy of a law enforcement officer's affidavit that was filed with the court and gave additional details about the investigation.

The judge ordered Quinn released without bail at the request of her attorney, Michael P. McDermott, who told the judge that prosecutors did not oppose his client's release.

The judge told Quinn to immediately report to the county probation department and warned her that conditions of her release may include drug testing.

McCoy and District Attorney David Soares held a joint news conference to discuss the arrest.

"I have no reason to believe the integrity of our office or Albany County government has been compromised," McCoy told reporters.

He also said he saw no signs of drug use by Quinn.

"There's nothing I caught on to," he said, noting he works closely with Quinn.

Soares' girlfriend, Stacy Quackenbush, was hired by McCoy's administration in 2012. Soares employs Kimberly McCoy, the sister of the county executive, as an investigator. Soares said his office became involved in the case last week following a referral from the Department of Health's BNE unit.

"That referral involved a person who is very known and, truth be told, very near and dear to all of us here who've had the pleasure of working with her over the years in county government — Miss Christine Quinn," Soares told reporters.

Soares said he would not recuse his office from the case. "On what basis?" he said when asked if he would step aside for a special prosecutor.

When pressed about his reference to Quinn as "near and dear," Soares said his office engages in a "dispassionate" review of facts, adding: "There is one standard of law that is applicable to every person in this county."

A Soares spokesman later said prosecuting the case is no different than the office's prosecution of police officers who have worked with prosecutors.

Soares declined to speculate on what type of sentence Quinn may face if convicted.

"This is a person who engaged in this behavior with no collateral crime, which are factors that are usually taken in when we are talking about actual criminal liability and exposure," he said. "We're taking this case very seriously but also we're treading very slowly as this is a case of first impression."

Quinn, an attorney, has served as McCoy's second in command since July 2012.

Jordan Carleo-Evangelist contributed to this report.