Judge Orders Kansas Doctor, Wife Returned for Re-sentencing

A judge has ordered the return for resentencing of a Kansas doctor and his wife convicted of a moneymaking conspiracy at a clinic linked to 68 overdose deaths.

U.S. District Judge Monti Belot signed the order Wednesday in the case of Stephen Schneider and his wife, Linda. Their hearing is Aug. 31 in Wichita.

They were convicted in 2010 of conspiracy to commit health care fraud resulting in those deaths, unlawfully prescribing drugs, health care fraud and money laundering. Schneider was sentenced to 30 years and his wife to 33 years.

But in June, Belot overturned the conspiracy sentence following an unrelated U.S. Supreme Court decision that the victim’s drug use had to be the actual cause of death, not merely a contributing factor. He also threw out some convictions.