Dr. Jonathan Yates, 51, of Bluefield, Va., appeared via videoconference before U.S. Magistrate Judge Omar Aboulhosn for a preliminary hearing. After hearing arguments from the federal government’s attorney and defense attorney Ward Morgan, who is representing Yates, Aboulhosn ruled that there was probable cause.
According to the criminal complaint, while working at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in February 2019, Yates examined a male patient identified as Veteran 1, and during the examination, Yates sexually molested the veteran. Yates caused Veteran 1 severe pain and numbness, and temporarily incapacitated him by cracking his neck, after Veteran 1 had explicitly requested Yates not to crack his neck.
While Veteran 1 was incapacitated, Yates sexually molested Veteran 1, according to the complaint. This conduct, performed while Yates was acting under color of law in his capacity as a federal employee at the VAMC, deprived Veteran 1 of his constitutional right to bodily integrity.
Deprivation of rights under color of law, as charged in the complaint, is punishable by up to life in prison.
Special Agent Georgia Marshall of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, who is assigned to the Huntington resident agency out of the bureau’s Pittsburgh division, testified at Tuesday’s hearing that the nature of the complaint was “inappropriate contact of a sexual nature during a medical appointment.”
Veteran 1 had sought a referral for massage therapy to address complaints including chronic back pain and pains in his hips, fingers and toes. Marshall said the veteran told Yates not to touch his neck because it was particularly sensitive. The incident took place in an examination room, and Yates and Veteran 1 were the only people there at that time.
Marshall said that the veteran told FBI investigators that Yates started by massaging his chest hair, but then commented about the amount of hair on his chest and called him “a real man.” She also testified that the Veteran said that Yates stated that it was normal to get “sexual arousal” during such appointments, and that Yates did not stop when Veteran 1 asked him to do so. During the examination, Yates touched Veteran 1’s genitalia, she stated.
During the incident, Yates performed a “neck crack” on Veteran 1 without warning him that he was about to do it, she told the court.
“He said that he experienced pain and numbness throughout his body and could not move,” Marshall testified. Yates then rolled the veteran onto his stomach without permission. At one point, Yates slapped Veteran 1’s backside.
Marshall said investigators consulted another osteopathic physician who said it is possible to immobilize a person with a neck crack if that person’s neck is particularly sensitive. The doctor the FBI consulted also stated there was “no medical reason” to touch Veteran 1’s genitalia.
“It ended with Dr.Yates hugging the veteran,” Marshall said.
Attorney Ward Morgan, who is representing Yates, asked if his client had made any statement during the FBI’s investigation. Marshall replied that to the best of her knowledge, he had not.
In the complaint, Veteran 1 said the examination room’s door was locked. Morgan asked Agent Marshall if she had ever visited the room and knew what sort of lock was on the door. She replied that she had not been there.
“The only proof you have that the door was locked comes from Veteran 1,” Morgan said.
“Yes, sir,” Marshall replied.
Morgan then asked Marshall what specific constitutional or statutory right investigators contend that Dr. Yates deprived Veteran 1 of. Marshall said it was “freedom of movement,” because he was unable to move and could not stop Dr. Yates from turning him over.
In his summation, Morgan argued that touching Veteran 1’s genitalia during the examination was “incidental” and that there was no evidence that he was incapacitated, and that he could have left at any point. He also argues that his client’s actions had not been shown to be a “willful deprivation of any right.”
Aboulhosn ruled that the case had probable cause. Yates is currently free on a $10,000 unsecured bond, but is under home confinement.
The hearing was conducted via teleconference due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., has called for a congressional hearing about the case.
“I am absolutely disgusted to learn new details about a medical professional abusing Veterans at the Beckley VA Medical Center,” Manchin said. “It is unthinkable that someone in a position of power would exploit our brave veterans and I am glad the FBI acted to remove this former doctor and deliver justice for those who were abused. Our Veterans Affairs facilities should be places of comfort and world-class care. As a member of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, I am going to demand a hearing to uncover how this abuse went undetected for so long.”
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Judge finds probable cause in veteran molestation case
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