A physician from Kennebunk found guilty of unlawfully distributing controlled substances will not serve prison time.
Federal prosecutors had asked that Dr. Merideth Norris serve a 16 month sentence.
But at a hearing in U.S. District Court in Portland Thursday, Norris was sentenced to three years of probation.
Her attorney, Tim Zerillo, said that's the sentence he and his client had asked for.
Zerillo said Norris treated marginalized patients experiencing both pain and addiction, and her actions were intended to help their complex needs.
"In our view at least, there was some cherry picking by the government of some very discreet prescriptions that they found to be outside of the normal course of a professional medical practice," he said.
Zerillo said Norris plans to maintain her physician license, but no longer has a DEA license to prescribe controlled substances.
Norris must also perform 600 hours of community service as part of her sentence.
