Senate vote on contempt of court for Ralph de La Torre is scheduled for Thursday

Steward's management cannot be compelled to “make a sworn statement specifically (but baselessly) designed to portray Dr. de la Torre as a criminal scapegoat for the systemic failures in the Massachusetts health care system,” said the letter from Alexander Merton, a partner in the Washington office of the law firm Quinn Emanuel.

Massachusetts Senator Edward Markey rejected the arguments and called on de la Torre to testify.

“Ralph de la Torre's apologies are as hollow as his chair at our hearing last week,” Markey told the Globe. Granting the contempt of court motions “will show him that he will be held accountable and that he must give answers to the committee, the people of Massachusetts and the country.”

The trial could follow the path laid out by lawmakers investigating the attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021. Trump advisers Steve Bannon and Peter Navarro were subpoenaed but refused to testify, citing executive privilege. Both were charged and served months in prison.

At last week's hearing, senators heard from nurse Ellen MacInnis, who worked at St. Elizabeth's Medical Center for 25 years. She told the panel she had seen patients die because of understaffing. As Steward filed for bankruptcy, the company closed Carney Hospital in Dorchester and Nashoba Valley Medical Center in Ayer last month, leaving large holes in the state's health care system. Six other Steward hospitals in Massachusetts are being turned over to new operators.

Politicians and other critics accuse de la Torre and his financial partners – the private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management and the real estate investment fund Medical Properties Trust – of making enormous profits while burdening the company with debt, which led to its bankruptcy.

Aaron Pressman can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him @ampressman.