Business owner's death puts software users in dark

Equine veterinarians across the country are seeking answers after the sole proprietor of a software management company committed suicide May 30.

Of concern to the veterinary community is the status of multi-million dollar investments in Equine Data Management Software (EDMS). Customers of the Woodstock, Ill., firm also are wondering where now to turn for support with the COBOL language-based software.

Randy Travnick, 51, died of carbon monoxide asphyxiation at his home and place of business in Woodstock. The coroner's office of the McHenry County Courthouse ruled the death a suicide.

At press time, the Illinois Securities Department was investigating the matter.

While authorities would not disclose an exact dollar figure on investments or the actual number of investors, sources close to the matter said between 1,000 and 2,000 professionals in the equine industry used the software. One source also claimed an estimated 75 percent of U.S. practitioners were investors.

For 21 years Travnick single-handedly operated the billing and record keeping company and wrote the software devoted to equine practitioners, breeders and trainers.

"Randy was basically a one-man show," says Dr. Kenneth Marcella, Canton, Ga., who has used the software for about 12 years while investing $60,000 in the company. "The main concern is the software. If I take a $60,000 hit on an investment, it's going to hurt me and be a pain in the neck, but I can generate more business if I can keep my business running. If all of a sudden my software crashes now, nobody knows how it's written."

At the scene

According to a report from the coroner's inquest dated July 8, Officer Ray Preston of the Bull Valley Police Department arrived at the crime scene following Travnick's death in response to a phone call from Travnick's sister-in-law. Preston asked the sister-in-law, Christine Rose, why Travnick would kill himself. She reportedly informed him that Travnick was having financial problems.

Travnick's wife, who was on a business trip at the time, later told police "Randy did not want his wife to worry about finances," the report says.

According to the officer's report, authorities uncovered two life insurance policies for $400,000 and $600,000 at the residence, an investor list and legal pad with names and credit card numbers. No notes were found to indicate Travnick was mulling suicide.

DVMs catch wind

The circumstances surrounding Travnick's death started to unravel within the veterinary community in mid-June following a conversation Dr. James Hume shared with his attorney, Daniel Sullivan, at his place of practice, Arlington Park racetrack, outside Chicago. Hume, before deferring inquiries to his attorney, said that another veterinarian at the track attempted to reach Travnick about an equipment-leasing program his company offered.

"The voicemail (at EDMS) indicated he had passed and that business was being handled. But nobody was fielding any calls nor handling business," says Hume, whose practice was a beta site Travnick used to develop the software.

As a result, 18 practitioners have since contacted Sullivan to potentially represent them since they were unsuccessful in obtaining answers from the company. Sullivan forwarded retainer agreements to all who inquired; two responded, he said.

At press time, phone lines to Travnick's business were disconnected; however, the Web site continues to run at www.equinedata.com.

Legal involvement

Sullivan sent a paralegal to the EDMS site to gather more information. He then called the attorney representing the estate, Christopher Nudo of Nudo Poteracki & Salabes, who promised answers by the end of July. Sullivan responded with a letter demanding answers promptly for his clients who "have a lot of money in this."

Thus far, according to investigators, there is a record of all companies, practices and farms that bought software. Sullivan said Nudo indicated that computer professionals are working to extract investor information from the hard drive. However, Sullivan adds, "As to the software, the attitude of the lawyer is 'everything died with Randy, so what?' "

Sullivan says once practitioners retain him he plans to sue the estate. "It's real simple - where's the money? My clients want their money back."

State response

Cheryl Weiss of the Illinois State Securities Department tells DVM Newsmagazine the department was appointed by the state legislature to conduct an investigation on behalf of investors in EDMS. The department asks all investors to report complaints or concerns to (312) 793-3384 or fax (312) 793-1202. At press time, the department confirmed it had received numerous investor complaints.

According to a memorandum from the coroner's inquest that was sent to Sullivan, Weiss said the department is taking a "proactive approach" toward these kinds of "improper investment schemes." Weiss additionally noted, "Following the investigation the state could freeze all assets of the estate upon the recommendation by the director to the State Attorney General if the state found that there was an illegal investment scheme."

Estate tight-lipped

Nudo, attorney for the Travnick estate, would not elaborate on the case. He did say the investor list was "not handy." Further, he said he couldn't answer how much money was involved, whether it's retrievable, or where it was invested. He said the case would be made public by mid-August or September, or when the estate was filed with the county.

But in a conversation Nudo had with Sullivan, Nudo said there was not enough money to pay off all those who invested, and that one reason the estate has not been opened is because Nudo's law firm is trying to reconstruct the record to find out where the available money is.

Nudo acknowledged that two veterinary groups have approached him to buy the software from the estate. However it was questionable whether the software could be decoded and modified feasibly.

Red flags?

Responding to hearsay that EDMS may not have been operating up to speed, Sullivan says he heard from numerous clients and potential clients who were calling Travnick about their money but received no response.

"Regrettably, I've seen this type of thing in a different context," Sullivan says. "Professionals, especially in the care industries, should talk to their lawyers more."

One month prior to Travnick's death, Marcella received what he regarded as "typical marketing correspondence" from Travnick - a letter detailing a referral reward program EDMS launched to recruit more clientele. "The referral letter did not sound like somebody who was getting ready to disband the company or in dire straits," he says.

Shortly thereafter, Marcella received a call from an unnamed veterinarian in Texas who cited a "rumor" that Travnick had committed suicide.

Best in biz

Nonetheless, Marcella and others continue to defend the software as "the best in the industry."

Marcella, the Georgia-based investor, installed the software in three practices. "I never had a moment's problem with it. It was the first software to be Y2K compliant. (Travnick) basically buried two other competitors at the time," he says.

Rosary Pollara, practice manager for her husband, Dr. Joseph Pollara, Marlboro, N.J., says she has been "tremendously satisfied" with the EDMS data management software and support. "If you ever needed technical support, (Travnick) answered your calls any hour of the day personally," says Pollara, who has used the software for 10 years and invested a minimal amount. "Technically, he was a whiz. My heart is broken - I guess he had other problems."

Another investor and software user of 10 years, Dr. Duane McDavitt, Westfield, Ind., says he had an indication of trouble when requests for his money over a 12-month period were never fulfilled. "That presented a concern. We have a significant amount of money invested and haven't been able to get all of it back," he says.

"That's the double whammy," says Sullivan. "You put money with this guy and then you run your entire business on it. The software program (is) in total disarray at this point. If your software breaks down, there's nobody around to fix it, update it or expand it."

Benefit of doubt

Despite evidence surfacing in the case, Marcella cautions veterinarians not to prematurely accuse Travnick of fraudulent practice. "There may not be malfeasance or chicanery - it may just be he ran his own show and nobody was there to know where the pieces are," says Marcella.

"However," he adds, "every client out there wants to know their records are safe. What do you do for equine software? Up until now, this is the one everyone recommended."