A former physician indicted in July on a 96-count drug indictment was arraigned late last week in Lawrence County Common Pleas Court.

Judge Frank McCown set bond at $250,000 for Jeffrey Scott Stephenson, who resides in Wheelersburg, but whose medical office was located in South Point. A pretrial hearing has been scheduled for Sept. 17.

Stephenson, 46, faces four counts of second-degree felony possession of drugs, 71 counts of third-degree felony possession of drugs, three counts of fourth-degree felony deception to obtain a dangerous drug and two counts of fifth-degree felony attempted deception to obtain a dangerous drug. The charges span a period of five years and involve such medications as Lorcet, Tylenol 4, Xanax, Vicodin and OxyContin.

The indictment was the result of an investigation that was initiated by the Ohio State Medical Board.

According to information from the Ohio State Medical Board, Stephenson's license was suspended in March 2002 after he was diagnosed with chemical dependency.