Written By:

Associated Press

February 21, 2008

A local physician who kept a pool table and chilled beer in his medical office has been sentenced to 22 months in federal prison for illegally prescribing anabolic steroids.

Howard J. Levine, 58, of Seattle, was arrested last June after an undercover agent with the federal Drug Enforcement Agency was able to obtain a prescription for steroids from Levine without being evaluated medically, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Parrent.

"There were no patient charts and the examination room featured a pool table. While a refrigerator in a legitimate medical office might contain medications that needed to be kept cool, the refrigerator in Dr. Levine's office contained beer," prosecutors wrote in their sentencing memo.

Levine pleaded guilty in November to one count of distribution of a controlled substance and surrendered his permit to prescribe controlled substance. He was sentenced Tuesday.