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The Utah Supreme Court has upheld the dismissal of a doctor as a defendant in a medical malpractice suit that alleges the prescription medications taken by David Ragsdale contributed to him shooting his wife to death in 2008.

In a 5-0 ruling handed down Friday, the high court said physician Hugo Rodier did not have a duty to consult with nurse practitioner Trina West on each individual prescription she wrote for Ragsdale, who killed his wife in a Lehi church parking lot on Jan. 6, 2008.

The Utah Nurse Practice Act gave West the authority to prescribe controlled substances to Ragsdale under a consultation and referral plan developed jointly with a consulting physician, according to the ruling. It says the act regulates nurse practitioners, not doctors, and does not impose an obligation on the nurses to discuss with a physician each prescription or administration of a controlled substance.

Court documents say Ragsdale was under the influence of medications when he gunned down his wife, 30-year-old Kristy Ragsdale, who had requested a restraining order against him. He pleaded guilty to first-degree felony aggravated murder and was sentenced to 20 years to life in prison.

While saying he took full responsibility for his wife's death, David Ragsdale also contended he would not have murdered her had he not been on medications.

A conservator for the couple's children, who were 4 and 19 months old when their mother died, filed suit seeking damages on their behalf against West, Rodier and Pioneer Comprehensive Medical Clinic in Draper. The suit claims West's prescription of at least six antidepressants, steroids and other medications led to Ragsdale's violent outburst and his wife's death.

Third District Judge Denise Lindberg dismissed the lawsuit in 2011, ruling the children could not sue because they were not the patients. A year later, the Utah Supreme Court reinstated the suit, unanimously ruling that healthcare providers have a duty to consider how treatment of patients might affect their families.

The suit returned to 3rd District Court, and West later reached an out-of-court settlement.

Rodier filed a motion to be dismissed from the suit, which was granted in fall 2013 by Judge Robert Faust, who ruled that the doctor was not required to consult on every prescription.

The conservator appealed, leading to Friday's decision upholding Faust's ruling.

The clinic remains a defendant, according to court records. Its lawyer has said Ragsdale's care was appropriate.

Twitter: @PamelaMansonSLC