U.S. doctor to face Australia manslaughter charges

PORTLAND (Reuters) - A surgeon dubbed "Dr. Death" by some and charged with killing three patients in Australia, signed papers in U.S. District Court in Portland on Thursday agreeing to be sent to Australia.

Australia wants to try Indian-born doctor Jayant Patel for the deaths of three patients at the Bundaberg Base Hospital in Brisbane in 2003 and 2004. He could be sentenced to life in prison on each of the three manslaughter charges if convicted.

Patel has said he is innocent.

Patel, 58, a U.S. citizen, ended his fight against extradition on Thursday and asked to be released from jail until he is taken back to Australia. He has been in custody in Oregon since March.

Federal judge Dennis Hubel said he expected to rule on Patel's release on Friday. Patel's activities would be restricted and he would be electronically monitored under the proposed release. The courts have held his passport for several years.

Government attorneys spoke against his release in court on Thursday.

U.S. court documents reveal Patel has a checkered history of botched surgeries and negligent care going back decades.

Regulators in New York found Patel guilty of gross negligence in 1984, the government's original extradition complaint said. Patel moved to Oregon and began practicing at Kaiser Permanente and by 1998 that medical group placed limits on his practice, the original complaint said.

Other hospitals followed, with Providence Portland Hospital revoking his surgical privileges in 2001. He then moved to Australia to practice.

(Reporting by Teresa Carson; Editing by Jill Serjeant and Eric Walsh)