COLUMBUS, Ohio — Despite being found innocent of murder charges related to multiple patient deaths, former doctor William Husel determined practicing medicine again in Ohio would be impossible following a years-long ordeal and surrendered his medical license, his attorney said.

A jury found Husel, 46, not guilty in late April after being charged with the deaths of 14 people, claiming the former Mount Carmel doctor ordered excessive doses of fentanyl. 

Husel still faced an administrative charge of failing to cooperate with a medical board investigation into the criminal allegations. He agreed on May 5 that he was guilty of that charge, and on Wednesday, the board revoked his license.

As a practical matter, “the publicity, shall we say, the aura around the entire event” made practicing again in Ohio unlikely, Husel’s attorney, Doug Graff, told The Associated Press on Thursday.

“So that this was an appropriate way to resolve the matter, without going through another set of hearings,” Graff said.

Husel could practice in other states, though it’s unclear what the former physician plans to do, his attorney said.

“I don’t know what his future holds, and I’m sure at this point he doesn’t either,” Graff said. He added: “He was pleased to get the criminal charges resolved in his favor, and this was the way to get the matter resolved with the medical board.”

Prosecutors contended the amount of painkillers Husel ordered for nonsurgical situations indicated an intent to end lives and that regardless of how close a patient is to death, it was illegal to speed up the process.

Husel’s attorneys argued he was providing comfort care for dying patients, not trying to kill them.

Allegations surfaced in late 2018, accusing Husel of administering excessive doses of fentanyl to Mount Carmel intensive care unit patients between 2015 and 2018. Mount Carmel confirmed it received a report in late October 2018 related to the allegations, and the hospital removed Husel a month later. He was officially fired in December 2018. 

Fentanyl is an opioid that doctors use to treat patients with severe pain, and if warranted, after surgery. 

The trial began in February, nearly three and half years after allegations surfaced. 

In October 2020, Husel's defense team filed to have murder charges against him thrown out, which a judge then denied in December 2021. 

Jurors heard from 53 prosecution witnesses, including medical experts, Mount Carmel employees, investigators and family members of all 14 patients. They then deliberated for seven days. 

After the verdict was announced, Husel’s lead attorney, Jose Baez, said prosecutors didn’t produce “a shred of evidence” to back up their claims.

Two jurors who found Husel not guilty gave interviews to multiple media outlets this week, and one of them, Damon Massey, said he felt that on at least some charges Husel was guilty but that the prosecution didn’t prove its case.

Mount Carmel reached settlements totaling more than $16.7 million over the deaths of at least 17 patients, with more lawsuits pending.