Kansas City, Mo. ? Former Kansas City pharmacist Robert Courtney has lost a bid to have his 30-year prison sentence reduced by eight months.

U.S. District Judge Ortrie Smith denied Courtney’s motion on Wednesday.

Courtney was sentenced in 2002 after pleading guilty to diluting drugs for seriously ill patients and keeping the money for himself. Prosecutors have said 4,200 patients and about 98,000 prescriptions were affected.

In January, Courtney argued in his motion that Smith misunderstood how federal prisons calculated time off for good behavior and said his sentence should be reduced.

But on Wednesday, Smith said he understood the sentencing calculations and denied the motion.

“At best this argument would lead to (Courtney’s) re-sentencing, and the court can state the issues discussed herein would not persuade the court to impose a sentence less than 30 years,” Smith wrote.