CHATSWORTH : Veterinarian’s Son Gets 6 Months in Jail
The son of a Chatsworth veterinarian pleaded no contest Thursday to four misdemeanor counts of practicing medicine without a license at his father’s clinic and was sentenced to six months in County Jail.
Alan Abrams, 31, had been charged with 25 counts of illegally performing procedures on house pets and passing himself off as a doctor.
Los Angeles Municipal Court Commissioner Harold S. Vites placed Abrams on probation for three years and ordered him not to work in veterinary medicine.
“Effectively, what his plea places over him is a fairly ominous term of probation” that would lead to four years in jail if Abrams makes any mistakes, said Deputy City Atty. Greg Parham, who prosecuted Abrams and his father.
Steven Abrams, 65, pleaded no contest last month to a single misdemeanor count of aiding and abetting the practice of medicine without a license.
The elder Abrams is scheduled to be formally sentenced Tuesday, and is expected to be ordered to serve 30 days in custody. Attorneys in the case are now battling to determine if Steven Abrams will serve his time in jail or under electronic home detention.
The Abrams are expected to reimburse the state Department of Consumer Affairs, Division of Investigation, about $8,000 to reimburse the agency for the work needed to investigate charges against the pair.
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