Man Gets 3 Years for Giving Son Valium

A former Maine man who was acquitted of manslaughter in the death of his 12-year-old son has been sentenced to three years in prison for giving the boy drugs without a prescription.

WABI-TV reports that Edward Smith, formerly of Lubec, was sentenced Wednesday in Washington County Superior Court following his conviction last month on a charge of giving the boy a small amount of Valium.

Prosecutors say the 44-year-old Smith failed to give his son proper medical attention when he was suffering from the effects of diabetes. The boy died in April 2012.

The defense said Smith gave his son, Aloric, the Valium because he thought he had a stomach bug and didn't realize the boy was suffering from diabetes.

The Valium had been prescribed to the father.