Doug Grant, the onetime nutritionist for the Phoenix Suns convicted of manslaughter in the death of wife Faylene, was sentenced to five years in prison a few minutes ago, He will have serve a little more than four years before being eligible for parole.
The 43-year-old Grant (pictured with Faylene) could have gotten up to 12 1/2 years behind bars if Superior Court Judge Meg Mahoney had imposed the super-aggravated sentence that prosecutors were hoping for. The five-year sentence is the presumptive, or average, sentence for a manslaughter conviction, though many courtroom observers expected a longer term.
Thus ends this phase of one of the more high-profile and controversial criminal cases in recent Maricopa County history. We have written extensively on what came to be kown as the Mormon Murder Case, because Faylene Grant was a devout member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Later-day Saints (Mormon theology permeated the saga surrounding her death).
Here's our latest big story on the Doug Grant case. We will have full details of the sentencing and what comes next in our May 21 print edition.