Man sentenced in Texas overdose death of T. Boone Pickens' grandson

By Marice Richter DALLAS (Reuters) - A former Texas Christian University student accused of killing the grandson of billionaire T. Boone Pickens by injecting him with heroin was sentenced to 10 years' probation on Monday as part of a plea deal. Brennan Trainor Rodriguez, 23, pleaded guilty to delivery of a controlled substance that caused the overdose death of Thomas "Ty" Boone Pickens IV on Jan. 29, 2013, according to a statement from the Tarrant County district attorney's office in Fort Worth. As part of the plea agreement, prosecutors dismissed charges of murder, manslaughter and tampering with evidence. Judge Robb Catalano ordered Rodriguez to serve four months in jail as part of his deferred adjudication probation. "This agreement was reached after considering all the facts and consulting with the family," prosecutor Kevin Rousseau said in the statement. "No outcome can give them back their son, but hopefully with this plea, they can at least begin to heal." Pickens, 21, was at Rodriguez' apartment when Rodriguez injected Pickens with heroin, the statement said. Rodriguez and his cousin left the apartment to buy more drugs and Pickens had passed out and was sweating profusely when they returned, prosecutors said. When the two men were unable to awaken Pickens, Rodriguez’ cousin drove Pickens to a Fort Worth hospital, where he was pronounced dead. (Editing by Jon Herskovitz; Editing by Jim Loney)