CINCINNATI, OH – The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit affirmed the conviction of Dr. Eskender Getachew, a Columbus physician found guilty of unlawfully prescribing opioid addiction medications without legitimate medical purpose.
According to court records, Getachew, who operated an addiction treatment clinic, prescribed the drug Subutex—an opioid treatment medication without the anti-abuse component naloxone—to as many as half his patients, despite the rarity of naloxone allergies. The court described this as “an astronomically high” rate and noted evidence that some prescriptions were inconsistent with medical standards, including continued prescriptions after suspected diversion and falsified medical notes.
After a seven-day trial, a jury convicted Getachew on eleven counts of unlawful distribution of controlled substances under 21 U.S.C. § 841(a). He was sentenced to concurrent six-month prison terms followed by three years of supervised release.
On appeal, Getachew challenged the sufficiency of the evidence, the district court’s jury instructions, his absence during the verdict reading, and the denial of an evidentiary hearing on claims of ineffective assistance of counsel. Chief Judge Jeffrey Sutton, writing for the panel, rejected all arguments and held that the government presented “ample circumstantial evidence” showing Getachew knew his prescriptions were unauthorized.
The Sixth Circuit concluded that any alleged instructional or procedural errors were harmless and that the district court acted within its discretion in denying a hearing on Getachew’s post-trial motion.
The conviction and sentence were affirmed in full.
