Community Corner

Patients Accuse Kaiser Doc of Sexual Assault

Clients of Dr. David Hung Do testify that he assaulted them under the guise of conducting medical exams at Kaiser Permanente Hospitals.

A woman who went to see a doctor in La Palma to get a sea sickness patch testified today that she was in ``shock'' and ``numb'' as the physician slipped his hand down her shorts and molested her.

The testimony came in the trial of David Hung Do, 42, of Riverside, who is charged with three felony counts of sexual battery by fraud involving three
women.

Deputy District Attorney Cynthia Nichols said a fourth woman alleges she was sexually assaulted by Do during an office visit in Los Angeles, and her testimony will be used to corroborate the allegations against the former doctor involving alleged crimes in Orange County.

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Do worked at Kaiser Permanente hospitals and offices in Anaheim and La Palma, and at a Kaiser office in Los Angeles, when he allegedly molested the patients between 2006 and 2008.

``Christina R.'' testified she went to see Do -- whose license to practice medicine was revoked by the state on April 29, 2011 -- because she needed a patch to combat sea sickness for a ride-along she was taking with the U.S. Coast Guard as part of an internship.

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She choked up as she testified that Do was ``very friendly, smiley,'' when he started his exam on July 27, 2007, at the La Palma hospital.

When Do asked her if she had any congestion, she said she had a cough a couple of weeks prior to her doctor visit. Do used a stethoscope to check her
breathing and then started touching her near her arm pit and left breast, the
witness said.

Without explanation and without a glove, Do moved his hand down her shorts and her underwear to touch her groin for up to four seconds, she testified.

``I can only describe it as shock, numb,'' she said of her reaction. ``I was just thinking there's no nurse in the room and he doesn't have a glove on. I wasn't really processing what was going on. I was with a doctor, you know?''

As Do handed her a prescription for the sea sickness patch, he shook her hand.

``I remember that very vividly,'' the alleged victim testified, adding as she began to cry that she could feel the ``moisture'' from her bodily fluids on his hand.

As she was in the pharmacy waiting for her prescription, ``I kept thinking this doesn't feel right,'' the woman said.

She did not call police, but instead called one of her girlfriends and then went over to her boyfriend's home, where she called Kaiser Permanente to file a complaint.

In November 2006, ``Stephanie M.,'' who was 26 years old at the time, had a doctor's visit with Do in an office on Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles.

The woman said she came in for a pap smear, but Do suggested he also do a breast exam, Nichols said.

Without a nurse or assistant present, Do ``started rubbing her breast up and down and in a circular motion,'' the prosecutor said.

``Terra R.'' went to see Do on May 31, 2008. The then-21-year-old UCLA student complained of pain in her knee and an irregular heartbeat, Nichols said.

Do had her put on a hospital gown and then performed a vaginal exam, according to the prosecutor, who told jurors that the doctor was ``acting nervous, shaking.''

During the exam, Do asked the patient ``if being a virgin is a religious choice or a personal choice,'' Nichols alleged.

``Jessica M.'' had a doctor's visit with Do on June 22, 2008, after she was involved in a traffic accident, Nichols said. She complained of back and shoulder pain.

During the examination, he touched her breast and ``manipulated'' her nipples, Nichols alleged.

``Jessica is in shock and she gets mad,'' Nichols said. ``She thinks,`Why is he touching my breast? There's nothing wrong with my breast.'''

She confronted Do and was so angry that she left in tears and went straight to her brother's home, where she called police, the prosecutor said.

Defense attorney John Barnett told jurors that Anaheim police helped shape the testimony of the alleged victims to ``stack the evidence'' against his client.

Barnett told the jury that an Anaheim police detective told Jessica that her allegation of Do touching her breast would not be enough to make a case against the doctor.

``Rather than investigate, he tells her what she needs to say to make a case,'' Barnett alleged. ``We need to stack the evidence, he says.''

Jessica left the doctor visit angry because her mother, who was in the examination room with her, said she did not see Do touch her daughter inappropriately, Barnett said.

``The reason she's upset is because her mom says, `Jessie, I was there and it didn't happen,''' he said.

There's a good explanation for Do's shaky hands during his examinations - he was just beginning his career in the U.S., his attorney said.

Do began his medical studies in his native Vietnam and studied medicine in the U.S. for 18 years before becoming a resident in 2007, Barnett said.

``He's an unseasoned doctor and he's just starting out,'' Barnett said.``He's unsure of himself.''

Christina initially told Kaiser officials that she was not making any accusations against Do -- just that he made her feel uncomfortable, Barnett said. Her allegations evolved when detectives told her Do was a suspect in other molestations, the defense attorney said.

``Now she has a completely different statement'' to police, Barnett said.

Terra lodged her allegations after she learned of Do's arrest in newspaper reports, the attorney said.

- City News Service


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