A 50-year-old Germantown, Maryland, oral surgeon was sentenced Wednesday to 45 years in prison, after he was convicted last year of supplying and administering powerful drugs to his girlfriend that led to her death.
During a four-hour sentencing hearing in Montgomery County Circuit Court, the family of Sarah Harris called James Ryan a “monster” and a “predator,” saying the oral surgeon led Harris down a road of addiction that took her life.
“I wanted him to hear me. I wanted him to know, in a way, what he had taken from me. I don’t think he quite understands what kind of damage he has caused, not just to me, but to my whole family, to his family, to his children, his granddaughter. I wanted him to sit there and be held accountable by listening to me,” Sarah’s mother Tina Harris told WTOP.
Ryan, 50, was convicted of murder in August in the death of Sarah Harris, who was 25 when she was found dead at Ryan’s Montgomery County home in January 2022. During trial, jurors heard testimony that Ryan set up an intravenous stand to administer drugs to Sarah.
An autopsy found that she died of intoxication from ketamine, Propofol and diazepam.
Prosecutors argued Ryan showed “an extreme indifference” to Sarah’s life by continuously supplying her with drugs as her health worsened. She weighed 83 pounds at the time of her death.
Ryan’s attorney said during Wednesday’s sentencing that he was only trying to help Sarah Harris as he battled his own addictions. Ryan told the court he deserved to be punished.
During last year’s trial, Ryan did not testify and his lawyers argued Sarah died of either suicide or an accidental overdose that she administered to herself. He was convicted on charges of second-degree depraved heart murder, involuntary manslaughter and drug distribution.
Sarah Harris began working for Ryan and dating him after she was a patient at his office in Germantown.
“It grieves my heart that he allowed himself to do the things that he has done, and that he did. He could’ve stopped at any time, but he didn’t, and then he tried to cover it up and he tried to blame it on my daughter Sarah,” Tina Harris said.
In the court room
One powerful moment in the court involved Sarah’s mother holding up a small bag that contained her daughter’s ashes and hair. Through tears, she looked at Ryan and said, “Do you see this? This is all I have!”
When Ryan appeared to look away, Tina Harris shouted, “Don’t look away from me!”
Tina told the court that she is broken after not only losing Sarah, but also her son days before to a fatal seizure.
Several impact statements from Harris’ close family members were followed by questions from Ryan’s attorney, asking them when they first noticed Sarah’s addiction and what they did to help her seek treatment, which drew anger from several family members.
While Ryan didn’t speak during his trial, he did speak at sentencing, telling the court, “Words do not express the remorse” he feels for what happened to Harris.
Tearing up at times, he said he deserved to be punished but also sought to convince the judge that while Sarah having the drugs was his responsibility, he didn’t administer the drugs that killed her that day.
Before delivering the sentence, Judge Cheryl McCally said during this case, she couldn’t help but think “that there is no reason for any of us to be here.”
McCally said while she doesn’t believe Ryan intended to kill his girlfriend, his actions started what she called the march to Sarah’s death. McCally also said Ryan “knew better” and should have sought help for Sarah.
“Your oath was to do no harm,” McCally said.
On Ryan’s claims he didn’t administer the drugs that killed Sarah, McCally said it “defies logic” that she had time to put away an IV pole used to deliver the powerful drugs before they kicked in.
McCally said that the discovery of vials of medicine in Sarah’s purse illustrated a “moment of self-preservation” by Ryan.
WTOP’s Thomas Robertson and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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