Oxycodone Distribution Conviction Means Jail Time for Arlington Doctor

ARLINGTON, VA — An Arlington doctor convicted of illegally prescribing and distributing more than a million oxycodone pill was sentenced in federal court on Wednesday to 10 years in prison.

A federal grand jury convicted 68-year-old Kirsten Van Steenberg Ball on Dec. 12, 2023 to one count of conspiracy to distribute oxycodone, and 19 counts of distribution of oxycodone, according to court documents. Ball was also ordered to forfeit $750,000 and pay an additional $50,000 in community restitution to two separate Virginia state entities.

This is the first time in Virginia that a community restitution payment has been required, according to court documents. One of the state agencies to benefit from the payment is the department that distributes federal funds for substance abuse programs.

According to court records, Ball, who was a primary care physician in Arlington, conspired with her office manager to shield the fact that she was dispensing vast quantities of oxycodone to her patients — “contrary to ordinary standards of medical care” — from law enforcement and regulatory authorities.

Ball’s office manager, 40-year-old Candie Marie Calix of Front Royal used an alias to disguise the fact that Calix was, herself, a patient of Ball. According to the indictment, Ball prescribed her office manager about 50,000 oxycodone pills over a period of 10 years.

“Calix did not, however, function as a typical office manager,” prosecutors wrote. “Instead, Calix recruited individuals — including Calix’s mother, Kendall Sovereign, and several other members of Calix’s family — to become ‘patients’ of Ball.”

The Virginia Department of Health Professions investigated Ball twice, once in 2015 and once in 2021, according to court records.

Ball was investigated by the Virginia Board of Medicine from 2014-2015 for how she prescribed opioids. After its investigation, the board required Ball to complete a 20-hour class on controlled substances. Her medical license was then restored after completing the class.

The Virginia Board of Medicine revoked her license again in 2022, when federal prosecutors began investigating Calix.

Ball prescribed one patient as many as 360 oxycodone 30-mg tablets per month, according to court records. Calix recruited at least 12 people to be “patients” of Ball, even though she knew them to be addicted to opioids, according to prosecutors.

In September 2022, Calix was sentenced to seven years in prison for conspiring to distribute oxycodone.