Slipknot Bassist’s Doctor Charged With Manslaughter in Eight Deaths
An Iowa doctor who allegedly overprescribed painkillers for Slipknot bassist Paul Gray is accused of causing the musician’s 2010 overdose death and seven others, the Des Moines Register reports.
Daniel Baldi, 50, has pleaded not guilty to eight counts of involuntary manslaughter. If he’s convicted, the doctor could face up to 16 years in prison. Baldi, who helped run a pain clinic in Des Moines until he was suspended earlier this year, has previously faced four medical malpractice claims, including three wrongful death suits. Those deaths are included in the criminal charges.
Gray was found dead in a suburban Des Moines hotel in May 2010 after struggling for years with addiction. Baldi “did unintentionally cause” Gray’s death, court documents charge, by writing “high-dose prescription narcotics to a known drug addict” from December 2005 until the bassist’s death.
Gray co-founded Slipknot in 1995 and helped shape the four studio albums the mask-wearing heavy metal band released through 2008. Slipknot, which released the compilation Antennas to Hell in July, haven’t commented on the charges.