One of three doctors who ran a world-renowned fertility clinic shut down because of an egg-theft scandal has been sentenced to three years' probation for mail fraud.
Dr. Sergio Stone faced his trial alone because both his co-defendants fled the country.
"I am going to try my best to practice again," Stone said after his sentencing Monday. "I am not so sure I will be able to do so, but I will try my best."
Stone's probation includes a year of home detention, during which he must wear an electronic monitoring device. The judge also ordered Stone to pay a $50,000 fine and more than $14,000 in restitution to insurance companies.
The Center for Reproductive Health on the University of California's Irvine campus was run by Dr. Ricardo Asch, with Stone and Dr. Jose Balmaceda as partners, until it was shut down in 1995.
Patients alleged that their eggs or embryos were taken without their consent and implanted in other women, resulting in an estimated 15 babies born of uncertain parentage.