Anchorage Superior Court Judge Michael Wolverton sentenced Lookhart on Monday to serve 20 years in jail with eight years suspended, the statement said. That means Lookhart will serve 12 years behind bars. He also cannot practice dentistry during his 10 years of probation.
Lookhart apologized for his actions while reading from a prepared statement.
He also said he had changed, and asked the court to reconsider.
“I know I would be my best self and in turn able to serve my family and the community best if I were granted the privilege and the hope of a renewed lease on life, practicing dentistry and living among those that I love,” Lookhart said.
Hoverboard incident was just one of part of the case
His case gained widespread attention over an incident described in the lawsuit, in which he extracted a tooth from a sedated patient while riding a hoverboard, filmed the procedure and then sent it to several people.
In at least one conversation, Lookhart joked that performing oral surgery on a hoverboard was a “new standard of care,” the lawsuit said, citing phone records.
The judge said the hoverboard incident was not the most serious aspect of the case.
Lookhart was found to have performed anesthesia “thousands of times without training or consent, on patients outside his scope of training and expertise, while stealing money from Medicaid and embezzling from his bosses,” the statement from the Department of Law said.
“This is not an economic crime,” Eric Senta, an assistant attorney general with the Department of Law, said at the sentencing. “This is not a case where the court is sentencing someone who stole $2 million. Lookhart hurt people, vulnerable people, disabled children.”
Lookhart’s attorney, Kevin Fitzgerald, argued that his client had already faced consequences for his actions.
“He’s lost a business, honor, your court is well aware there are civil suits, there’s been negative publicity and the likely loss of his license, which, again, is pending, but the state’s position is to revoke it permanently,” Fitzgerald said at the sentencing.
Lookhart is scheduled to start serving his sentence December 7, Senta confirmed to CNN.
Lookhart’s co-defendants — his office manager Shauna Cranford and his corporation, Lookhart Dental LLC — are scheduled for sentencing later this week, the statement said.
Prosecutors are pushing for the court to order Lookhart to pay more than $2 million “to compensate for the funds that Lookhart fraudulently obtained from the Alaska Medicaid system and embezzled,” the Department of Law statement said.
