Abortion doctor Finkel arrested, accused of sexually abusing
patients
Beth DeFalco
The Arizona Republic
Oct. 24, 2001 13:40:00
Valley abortion doctor Brian Finkel was arrested this morning outside
his Phoenix home, accused of sexually abusing at least nine patients
over an 8-year period.
The arrest culminated a yearlong investigation by Maricopa County
Attorney Rick Romley, who said that "every time we thought we could
wrap up the investigation, another victim comes forward."
Finkel, who wears a gun on his side as protection against abortion
protesters, was arrested without incident about 8:45 a.m. at his home
near 16th Street and Thunderbird Road. A grand jury indicted him on 16
counts of sexual abuse and one count of sexual assault; the incidents
reportedly happened between October 1993 and August of this year.
The indictment alleges that Finkel, 51, fondled patients' breasts and
private parts. In one instance, the doctor placed his hands over the
mouth of a victim and held her against her will, the indictment charges.
Finkel was being held on $225,000 bond. He is expected to be read the
charges at an initial court appearance today.
Phoenix police began investigating in March of 2000, when a woman
reported being abused by Finkel, and authorities found additional
victims, especially after the allegations surfaced in media reports.
"This is not an abortion issue," Romley said this morning,
likening the investigation to his office's prosecution of abortion
doctor John Biskind for a botched abortion. "In the Biskind case
there was clear medical negligence. In this case, there's clear sexual
abuse."
Biskind, 75, was convicted of manslaughter in February and sentenced
to five years in prison.
On Monday, the Arizona Board of Osteopathic Examiners in Medicine and
Surgery ordered Finkel to stop practicing medicine immediately after the
panel, which oversees osteopathic doctors, concluded that he poses
"an immediate danger to the public." The order was delayed
Tuesday by a Maricopa County Superior Court judge, who scheduled a
formal administrative hearing on Nov. 5
The physicians board had met Saturday to review Phoenix Police
Department reports of complaints against Finkel and meted out its
harshest punishment. The board disagreed with Finkel's explanation of
why he touched the women the way he did while performing abortions.
Finkel's attorney, Richard Gierloff, said earlier this week that the
allegations are "meritless" and span 10 years. One of the
allegations was dismissed by the board, he added.
Gierloff was in trial today and not immediately available for comment
about Finkel's arrest. |
