NEWNAN, Ga. -- The personal doctor to a professional
wrestler who killed himself, his wife and their 7-year-old son was
sentenced to 10 years in prison for illegally distributing
prescription drugs to patients.
Dr. Phil Astin, 54, was sentenced Tuesday after pleading guilty Jan. 29 to 175 counts that including illegally distributing prescription drugs.
World Wrestling Entertainment's Chris Benoit killed his family and then himself in 2007
in their suburban Atlanta home. A medical examiner couldn't say
whether the steroids Astin prescribed for Benoit played a role in the deaths.
U.S. District Judge Jack Camp said there was no doubt the
54-year-old Astin tried to help hundreds of patients at his western
Georgia clinic. But the judge said he could not overlook the fact
that two patients died as a result of Astin's misconduct.
Astin pleaded guilty in January to a 175-count federal indictment. He also admitted that prescriptions he issued resulted in the overdose death of a female patient in 2007.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.