A Maryland physician is the center of a scandal right now, and he’s been hit with charges for allegedly molesting a patient. He’s also been hit with another lawsuit, and that lawsuit claims he sexually assaulted another patient as well. One of the women, a patient from West Virginia, has filed a lawsuit against the Maryland doctor and is requesting over $1.5 million in compensation.
In her lawsuit, she reported that the man fondled her during an examination for a back injury. She reported in her lawsuit that the company the doctor worked for, MedExpress in LaVale, Maryland, should have been aware that the doctor had been convicted of raping a woman at gunpoint in 1987 while in Florida. She claims that a reasonable employer wouldn’t have let the doctor work with female patients.
In June 2014, the doctor’s license was suspended by the Maryland Board of Physicians after he was charged for the molestation of another woman at the same clinic. He has denied the charges against him. The state is, however, looking into the reasoning behind giving the physician a license in lieu of his imprisonment and conviction in Florida.
The Maryland medical board doesn’t conduct criminal background checks; it requires applicants to report their own serious offenses. In this physician’s case, he didn’t report the nature of the crime in Florida. He did, though, state that he had been convicted and incarcerated for assaulting someone while under the influence of alcohol.
When you’re convicted of a crime, how long should it affect your future? Clearly, this doctor is in trouble because of the digging up of his past, even though he did list his conviction when he was given his medical license. If you’re caught in a situation like this, you may be able to defend your right to your license. You put in the time to become educated and to have a career; you do have the right to defend yourself.
Source: WBAL TV, “Lawsuit alleges sex assault by accused Maryland doctor” Aug. 20, 2014
