A 1998 study identified 567 US physicians who were sanctioned by medical boards between 1981 and 1996 for crimes related to sexual abuse.
Since 2017, the Virginia State Police have been conducting an investigation of the staff at Cumberland Hospital in New Kent.
A former medical director of a Virginia hospital that cares for vulnerable children has been charged with four felony counts in connection with sexual abuse that authorities say occurred at the facility years ago.
A jury indicted Richmond physician Daniel N. Davidow, a former employee of the Cumberland Hospital for Children and Adolescents, with sexual assault last month, court records show. The searches were opened on Thursday, a local prosecutor announced on Friday.
Robert F. Donnelly, Davidow’s attorney, told The Associated Press by email that “we are still learning details and facts, so we are not in a position to comment.”
The hospital, located in New Kent County, about a half hour east of the state capital, treats children and young adults with complex medical needs, including chronic illnesses, brain injuries, and neurobehavioral disorders.
Virginia state police have been investigating hospital staff since 2017. The facility is also facing civil lawsuits that say it operated without proper licensing and “lacked basic sanitation or humanity,” claims the facility denies.
In the civil lawsuits, more than three dozen experts allege that Davidow sexually abused them during physical exams. In court documents and through an attorney, Davidow has previously denied those allegations.
Corinne Geller, a spokeswoman for the Virginia State Police, confirmed Friday night that Davidow was in custody at a local jail and was being held without bail.
The charging documents offer few additional details about the allegations, though they say both victims were children. The documents allege that the abuse of one victim occurred from March 1, 2018 to April 30, 2018. The other child was abused from mid-October 2017 to December 1, 2017, the documents say.
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