Hengjung Chao, a former assistant professor of medicine at Mount Sinai, pleaded not guilty to charges claiming he attempted to shoot Dennis Charney, MD, dean of New York City-based Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, according to News 12 Westchester.
Police arrested Mr. Chao after he shot his former boss, Dr. Charney, and a bystander on Aug. 29 at Chappaqua, N.Y.-based Lange's Little Store & Delicatessen.
Dr. Charney fired Mr. Chao from his position at Mount Sinai in 2009 after incidents of "research misconduct." Mr. Chao then sued Mount Sinai and Dr. Charney for discrimination, but after an appeals process, he was terminated in early 2010.
A lawyer on behalf of Mr. Chao claims Mr. Chao did not intend to kill Dr. Charney and asked he be released until his next court date. A judge denied the request and set Mr. Chao's bail at $1 million.
Prosecutors said Dr. Charney is still dealing with injuries from the shooting.