Va. Doc Gets Year In Prison For Prescription Scam

BOSTON (AP) — A Virginia doctor who wrote tens of thousands of prescriptions for muscle relaxants and other drugs over the Internet without meeting or examining the patients has been sentenced to a year and a day in federal prison.

Dr. Torrino Jennings of Mechanicsville, Va., was also sentenced in federal court in Boston on Wednesday to three years of probation following his release.

Jennings pleaded guilty in July to seven counts of introducing misbranded drugs into interstate commerce and four counts of tax evasion.

Prosecutors say between 2004 and 2007, Jennings issued from 50,000 to 100,000 prescriptions based on forms completed for online pharmacies. Jennings was paid from $5 to $7 per prescription, but never reported the income to the Internal Revenue Service.