Physician Gets 5 Years for Assault on Ex-Wife

After a highly unusual, daylong hearing, Dr. Thomas Gionis was sentenced to five years in prison Monday for masterminding an assault on his ex-wife, the daughter of the late actor John Wayne, and her then-boyfriend.

Aissa Wayne and developer Roger Luby were attacked at Luby’s Newport Beach estate on Oct. 3, 1988, by two employees of Gionis’ private investigator. Wayne and Luby were seized at gunpoint, pushed to the floor of the garage and had their faces slammed repeatedly into the concrete. In addition, Luby’s Achilles’ tendon was nearly severed in an apparent attempt to disable the tennis buff.

At the time of the attack, Gionis and Wayne were embroiled in a custody dispute involving their daughter, Anastasia, now 5.

In addition to the prison sentence, Orange County Superior Court Judge Theodore E. Millard also fined the 38-year-old Pomona physician $10,000 and ordered him to serve three years probation after completing his prison sentence. The judge estimated that, with work credits, Gionis could be free in as little as 2 2/1 years.