An unlicensed therapist and respected member of an ultra-Orthodox Jewish community in Brooklyn was sentenced on Tuesday to 103 years in prison for repeatedly sexually abusing a young woman, beginning the attacks when she was 12.

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A state medical panel has issued a two-year suspension for a doctor awaiting trial on charges of committing sex crimes against young girls.

54-year-old Kassem Hallak of Holt Eaton County was charged with 11 counts of criminal sexual conduct, and he’s free on $250,000 bond while awaiting trial.

The charges in this case involve girls ages 12 and 14 and a high school student.

The earliest accusation is from 2003 when Hallak practiced at the Eaton Rapids Medical Center. A 14-year-old girl told police Hallak spanked and kneaded her buttocks.  Another girl said Hallak was giving her a physical at school when he grabbed her crotch.

In a separate case, a woman said Hallak pinned her legs to an exam table, assaulted her, and tried to kiss her as she sought treatment for back pain at the Charlotte Medical Center and Urgent Care in 2010.

Hallak, a native of Romania, has been ordered to surrender his Canadian passport and any other passport or document that would enable him to leave the country.

It's official - A serial child molester class action case involving Delaware, Pennsylvania and Maryland children settles.

A Wilmington, Delaware Superior Court trial judge has approved a $123,000,000 class action settlement for more than 900 victims of child sex abuse over a 15-year reign of terror and abuse by pediatrician Dr. Earl Bradley in Sussex County.

Serial child molester Dr. Bradley was convicted in August 2011 of multiple criminal counts of child rape involving his young patients (many were infants), and he was sentenced to 14 life terms plus 164 years of incarceration.

The 54-page settlement order appoints a mediator to distribute the funds to victims. The claims will be evaluated by the mediator and separated into five (5) categories based upon their severity. As stated previously, many of the victims were infants (the youngest victims were reported to be no older than 3 months of age).

These horrendous cases against Bradley were made easier to prove because of the pediatrician's meticulous documentation of his crimes on videotapes he kept in his office. These recordings were discovered by the police during their criminal investigation.

A prominent Boston physician, who served as medical director of the famed prep school Phillips Academy for nearly two decades, was arrested on Thursday and charged with receiving child pornography at his school office.

A search of Richard Keller's home turned up more than 500 photographs and as many as 100 DVDs full of pornography, the U.S. Attorney's Office in Boston said in a statement. An associated complaint described the content of some of the DVDs, which mostly featured young boys in a variety of situations.

The complaint noted that on multiple occasions, orders for pornographic DVDs were delivered directly to the Isham Health Center on Phillips' grounds.

Keller, 56, was medical director of Phillips for 19 years, ending in 2011. A prestigious boarding school that dates to the 1780s, it counts both former presidents Bush among its graduates.

The prominent people who attended the school during Keller's time there include Facebook co-founder Chris Hughes, actress Olivia Wilde and King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck of Bhutan. There was no suggestion in the criminal complaint, though, that Keller had abused any students while at the school.

Phillips Academy, in a brief statement on its website, said it was fully assisting prosecutors and that it planned to brief the community in coming days.

More recently Keller worked as a pediatric endocrinologist at Boston Children's Hospital. The hospital said it put Keller on administrative leave as soon as it learned of the complaint.

"No complaints or concerns have been expressed by any patients or family members about the care Dr. Keller provided while he was at Children's," the hospital said in a statement.

A check of Keller's record with the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Medicine shows no criminal convictions, hospital or board discipline or malpractice claim payments in the last decade. If convicted in this case, he faces a minimum of five years and a maximum of 20 years in prison.

Reuters (Reporting By Ben Berkowitz; editing by Mohammad Zargham)

A longtime child psychiatrist for the Austin State Hospital, Charles Fischer, 59, has been indicted on five felony cases, including two child sex assault charges.  The alleged crimes happened from 2001 through 2005.

His license has been suspended since late November.

Austin police started investigating after one of Fischer's former patients told the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services about the alleged sexual abuse from Fischer while at Austin State Hospital.

Austin police detectives spearheaded the investigation, with help from the Office of Attorney General, the Office of Inspector General, the Texas Rangers, the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services and the Austin State Hospital.

"We are all heartbroken over these allegations," said Texas Department of State Health Services spokeswoman Carrie Williams back in November 2011. "We’re investigating the situation and considering our next actions. These kids come to us to heal, and the situation is very sad and extremely troubling for everyone involved."

Williams said there were previous allegations against Fischer throughout the years. And while each was reported and investigated outside the agency, the allegations were never confirmed.

The Adult Protective Services division of DFPS is required by law to investigate allegations of abuse or neglect in state hospitals. After reviewing evidence, APS makes investigation findings and determines whether the abuse likely did or did not happen.

I’ve just posted to the Social Science Research Network my forthcoming article (“Duty Per Se: Reading Child Abuse Statutes to Create a Common-Law Duty in Favor of Victims”).

My argument, for the non-lawyers out there, is that laws that impose a duty on medical professionals to report child abuse should also provide the basis for a tort claim against those same providers. I wrote the piece for a symposium about “Dr.” (ugh) Earl Bradley, a deranged man who molested hundreds of children and even infants over the course of many years. And it became obvious to me that existing laws weren’t doing enough to stop this sort of madness, and that only the threat of tort law could get the medical professionals to speak out against one of their own. (I’m speaking in gross generalities here, of course.)

We’ve learned from the Penn State horror story involving Jerry Sandusky, from the exhausting spectacle of the Catholic cover-up, and from too many other sources that institutions protect themselves. Tort liability won’t stop this, but it might put a dent in it. And that’s well worth doing.

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A physical therapist who lives in Blue Springs, MO, is accused of sexually abusing a student and authorities want to know if there are more victims out there.

The therapist was arrested on Monday at a school in Marshall, MO.

Marshall police said a student at the Prairie View State School was sexually assaulted by her therapist - and they fear there may be other victims out there.

Paul Chang was charged with two counts of sexual abuse and two counts of sexual contact with a student.

Marshall police said Chang abused a student at Prairie View State School Monday - a state-run school for severely disabled students. Court documents show Chang was alone in a room with the victim when a teaching assistant walked in to see Chang abusing the student.

The victim’s family said the victim is a 19-year-old student and Chang was her physical therapist. The family said Chang had been working with her for 18 years. They don't know if this was the first time she had been abused.

Her family said the victim is severely handicapped and can't talk or defend herself. They said they fear there may be other victims out there and that Chang works with several other special-needs schools in mid-Missouri, students who can't fight back.  "They have no voice, they can't tell moms and dads, they can't tell their caregivers what's being done to them," the mother said.

The victim's family said Chang also runs at least two martial-arts schools.

The Missouri Department of Education said Chang worked as a contract therapist. He had passed the state's annual background check in November 2011. A spokesperson for the department of education couldn't say for sure how many other schools Chang may have worked in.

As The Missouri Highway Patrol division of drug and crime control and the Marshall police continue to investigate, they are looking for other students who have received therapy from Chang.

Anyone with information related to this investigation can contact Missouri State Highway Patrol Sergeant Darron Blankenship at Troop A Headquarters at 816-622-0800, ext. 3166.

A former pediatric doctor at Edmonton's Stollery Children's Hospital has been convicted of sexually abusing two young boys, under the age of 10 at the time of the abuse.

On July 15, 2009, Det. Francine McVeigh interviewed both boys at the Zebra Child Protection Centre, said the convictions are important because it means Castillo Cortes can never be in a position of trust as a doctor.

Crown prosecutor Marisa Anderson requested a psychological assessment be done on the former doctor before sentencing arguments begin, a process that will take weeks.

A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.

In December 2009, Delawareans were coming to grips with the arrest of former pediatrician Earl Bradley for sexually molesting scores of young patients at his Lewes office. Delaware’s response was quick. In 2010, legislators prepared a package of bills—known collectively as the “Bradley bills”— designed to strengthen patient protection and improve oversight of the medical profession, passed those bills unanimously, and Governor Jack Markell signed them into law in June of that year. But in the year and a half since, how much of a difference have the new laws made?

Two reviews were ordered following Bradley’s arrest—one by the Attorney General’s office and another by Linda L. Ammons, dean of Widener Law School. Both revealed systemic failures that allowed Bradley to continue practicing despite numerous red flags of misconduct raised by colleagues and family members.

The “Bradley bills” were designed to tighten regulations on doctors and clarify the legal obligations of the medical and law enforcement communities to report and share information about suspected physician misconduct and child sexual abuse.

“These are sensitive cases and you need to approach them in a way that offers opportunities for victims to come forward and to feel they’re not going to run the risk of being re-victimized,” said Mike Barlow, chief legal counsel in the Office of the Governor.

The new laws contain the following major provisions:

• A requirement that there be another adult present when the physician examines a disrobed patient aged 15 years or younger;
• A requirement that doctors, police and prosecutors receive additional training in recognizing and reporting child abuse;
• A requirement that physicians undergo the same background checks as teachers and other professionals who work with youth;
• A more robust reporting process enhanced by strengthening the Board of Medical Licensure and Discipline’s ability to police unprofessional conduct and clarifying and simplifying its administrative procedures to improve efficiency and its ability to work with law enforcement.

Last year, the threat of license revocation for misconduct or failure to report child sexual abuse was extended to include mental health and chemical dependency professionals, nurses, dentists, social workers, psychologists, dentists and dental hygienists, and physician’s assistants. “One of the main impacts of this package of legislation is to make sure that the community, the state, caregivers, providers, doctors and citizens know that they have a mandatory duty to report child abuse and neglect when they see it to the state,” said Attorney General Beau Biden.

Dean Ammons, who made 68 recommendations in her Bradley case review, most of which were included in the legislation, agrees. “You can’t legislate morals,” she said. “But what the state can do is remove or attempt to remove barriers that make it complicated or difficult for people to do the right thing.”

Indeed, experts commend Delaware for its ability to act swiftly and decisively where other states have failed. “Pennsylvania is a good example,” said Stephen J. Neuberger, attorney and partner in The Neuberger Firm in Wilmington. “They had the grand jury report (on the Archdiocese of Philadelphia) which just boggles the mind and that didn’t get the legislature to do anything.”

Better educating the public about child sexual abuse will help break the silence and taboo that surrounds child sexual abuse and bolster the efforts made in the legislative arena. In September, Biden announced a coordinated initiative to educate adults about recognizing the signs of child abuse and their legal obligation to report suspected crimes. The partnership, which includes Prevent Child Abuse Delaware, the YMCA of Delaware as well as the Attorney General’s office, aims to train 35,000 Delawareans or about 5 percent of the population, in the “Steward of Children” sexual abuse program.

“[Nationally], one out of four girls is sexually assaulted before they’re 18,” said Biden. “One out of six boys is sexually assaulted before they’re 18. Only one out of ten of these victims is ever able to muster the courage to report because nine out of ten of the perpetrators know or say they love or had the child entrusted to them. So it should come as no surprise that children who don’t have voices have a tough time raising their voice to report someone who has raped or abused them. It’s not a child’s responsibility. It’s our responsibility.”

Texas State mental health officials recently took action to protect patients in their care from abuse. The action comes after the American Statesman (A.S.) reported on reports of child sexual abuse lodged against Dr. Charles Fischer. Fischer, 59, a former child psychiatrist at Austin State Hospital, was allowed to continue working at the facility while the reports of abuse were investigated. He has since been fired from his state job on November 14 and his medical license has been temporarily suspended. After it was reported that Fischer was working with patients while under investigation for abuse, Mike Maples, assistance commissioner for mental health and substance abuse services, issued rules that included mandatory transfers or emergency leave for staff members under investigation for abusing patients. Also included in the rules is one against locking doors to treatment rooms during staff-patient sessions. Legislators should take a look at what needs to be done to protect patients who need the services because they are often unable to protect themselves.

Documents reviewed by the board show that Fischer was accused of abuse by at least nine youths. The board took the action because Fischer presented “a continuing threat to the public welfare”. The A.S. reported that seven Austin State Hospital patients between the ages of 13 and 17 made reports against Fischer between 2001 and 2006. Two other cases involving teenage boys reportedly under Fischer’s care in San Antonio and Waco are also being investigated.

A Travis County grand jury heard accusations of sexual abuse of a child against Fischer in 2002 but did not bring charges against him. Four law enforcement agencies have joined in an investigation. No charges have been filed yet.

The Texas Medical Board today suspended the license of child psychiatrist Dr. Charles Fischer, who was fired last week from Austin State Hospital after a state investigation found credible evidence that he sexually abused at least one child patient in his care.

Authorities are looking into additional allegations that he abused at least eight other children over more than a decade.

The panel found that Dr. Fischer, a child psychiatrist at the Austin State Hospital in Austin, has demonstrated a pattern of sexually abusing teenage boys in his care for inpatient psychiatric treatment over a period of nearly 20 years. The Board has received information that there are as many as nine patients who have alleged sexual abuse by Dr. Fischer since the first patient report in 1992.

Dr. Fischer, 59, was employed at Austin State Hospital from December 1990 until his termination on November 14, 2011. He has also been employed as a psychiatrist at the Waco Center for Youth, the Southwest Neuropsychiatric Institute in San Antonio, Lutheran Social Services Residential Treatment Center for Girls and Central Counties Mental Health and Mental Retardation.

The suspension remains in effect until the board takes further action.

Former Lewes-area pediatrician Earl B. Bradley, convicted of raping or abusing 85 girls and one boy over an 11-year period in brutal attacks he recorded and catalogued, received 14 life sentences today. Bradley, 58, plans to appeal his June conviction on the grounds that videos of the assaults were illegally seized from his office complex on Coastal Highway. If the appeal fails, today’s sentence will the seal the doom of the once-respected physician whose crimes rank him among the worst pedophiles in history.

Under Delaware law, Superior Court Judge William C. Carpenter Jr. had to sentence Bradley to life imprisonment without the possible of probation or early release because he was convicted of at least three counts of first-degree rape. After a one-day trial in June, Carpenter also found Bradley guilty of multiple counts of second-degree assault and sexual exploitation of a child. Almost all of Bradley’s victims were patients, prosecutors said.

In seeking the maximum possible sentence for Bradley, chief prosecutor Paula Ryan said today, "Earl Bradley committed unspeakable acts upon those who could not speak for themselves. He deliberately manipulated the parents of these children. He manipulated those who worked with him, and he repeatedly and intentionally --without remorse or hesitation – attacked and sexually assaulted toddlers and nonverbal children. To make indescribable and horrific matters even worse, he videotaped these incidents for his own perverse pleasure, endlessly editing and copying, permanently memorializing his attacks on these children for his own twisted collection."

During the so-called “stipulated trial," Bradley’s lawyers did not contest the authenticity of the videotaped rapes of his young patients, essentially admitting the crimes without actually doing so. A state police detective’s testimony brought victim’s relatives and other court observers to tears. The trooper said the videos show Bradley using mouth-to-mouth resuscitation on a few girls who were “ashen gray” from near-choking and suffocation after Bradley forced oral sex on them. They also show children in diapers screaming as they attempt in vain to escape from their doctor before he rapes them in an outbuilding at his office where he took children for candy and toys, he said. In one case, at his home, the video shows Bradley using nitrous oxide to keep a sleeping 7-year-old girl sedate during his attack, the trooper said.

In the latest chapter of the largest child sex abuse case in recorded legal history, the hospital has reached a settlement, without going to trial, with a plaintiff who goes by the pseudonym of Christopher Doe.

St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center in Hartford has settled a third lawsuit in the case of a doctor suspected of sexually abusing hundreds of children over three decades.

At issue is former hospital head of endocrinology, George Reardon, who used a bogus decades-long growth study to lure countless children and adolescents into his office where he sexually abused and exploited them.

The Hartford Courant reports that a settlement was reached late last week in the lawsuit filed by a victim known only as Christopher Roe 1. Terms weren't disclosed.

Roe is one of more than 90 alleged victims who sued the hospital claiming it failed to prevent the abuse by Dr. Reardon, who died in 1998 without ever being charged.

The first lawsuit against the hospital was settled in May as part of a larger settlement totaling more than $17 million for 32 victims. The second lawsuit resulted in a jury verdict of $2.75 million against the hospital last month.

Dr. Earl Bradley, pediatrician, is charged with raping or abusing more than 103 young victims, including babies. Police have discovered videos of dozens of brutal attacks by the doctor. State legislators, long reluctant to tamper with oversight of doctors, swiftly revamped Delaware’s child protection and medical disciplinary laws after investigators revealed law enforcement and medical authorities had failed to take any action against Bradley, despite repeated complaints about him over a 15-year span. Parents had filed more than three dozen lawsuits for not stopping a man now accused of being one of the worst pedophiles in American history. Bradley’s accusers will have a chance to face him in criminal court, beginning Wednesday, 18 months after his arrest.

The trial, however, is expected to be a brief proceeding before a judge, not a months-long, emotional spectacle before jurors who would have had to endure the videos that police contend show Bradley, his face contorted in anger, forcing intercourse and oral sex on petrified victims as young as 3 months old. Bradley faces 529 counts of rape and related charged dating to 1998. With such a quick trial, which could be anywhere from hours to several days, prosecutors would get their guilty verdict and life sentence. Then the defense could move to an appeal, which would allow the videos as evidence. Should Bradley win an appeal with the Delaware Supreme Court or federal court system, he could get a new trial, which would leave the attorney general with a harder case that would rely not on graphic videos, but on the testimony of child victims, some of whom were allegedly abused several years ago.

Dr. Earl Bradley, pediatrician, who has been dubbed the “monster pedophile”, is in the news again. His trial has been assigned to New Castle County Superior Court Judge William Carpenter, Jr. Bradley’s well-known building with its over-abundance of decorations was not only burglarized recently, but was also recently in the news regarding a planned public auction of some of the “toys” and games”. On April 6, a New Castle County judge approved a class action status. This move will allow victims to combine dozens of civil lawsuits. Judge Carpenter stated that prosecutors may use video files allegedly showing Bradley raping several young girls. Although this evidence may be necessary in court, it may re-open wounds for families who have been trying to heal. Even more alarming may be how close the video evidence was to being thrown out.

Carpenter’s ruling paves the way for prosecutors to present the damning video evidence in court against Bradley, whose trial is scheduled to begin on June 1, 2011. Bradley has been charged with raping or sexually abusing more than 103 girls he treated over a 10-year period. Held without bail since his Dec. 2009 arrest, the doctor, who treated thousands of children in Sussex County, faces life in prison if convicted.

Citing those videos, detectives have written that Bradley, 57, forced girls as young as 3 months old to engage in intercourse and oral sex. Police have alleged that some of the children appeared to lose consciousness or stop breathing during Bradley’s attacks.