TEXARKANA, Ark. — On November 1, 2022, U.S. Attorney David Clay Fowlkes announced that Dr. Lonnie Joe Parker of southwest Texarkana was convicted on two counts of distribution of a schedule II controlled substance without an effective prescription and two counts of distribution of a schedule V controlled substance without an effective prescription.
An investigation into Dr. Parker was initiated in 2018 after complaints were received about an alleged "pill mill" and possible overdose death of a patient.
Following an investigation, officials suspended his license due to the alarming number of prescriptions he was writing.
According to prescription drug monitoring data attributed to Dr. Parker, he prescribed approximately 1.2 million dosage units of opioid pain medications, including oxycodone, hydrocodone, and fentanyl, to 1,508 patients— 847 dosage units per patient.
Additionally, 16 gallons of promethazine with codeine cough syrup was prescribed to approximately 29 patients within the same two-year time frame.
The prescriptions combined narcotics with sedatives, which can lead to a high risk of addiction and overdose in patients.
Parker will be sentenced at a later date and will face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison in addition to a period of supervised release and monetary penalties.