Agreement bars doctor in abuse case from practicing
By David Abel, Globe Staff
A former Children’s Hospital Boston pediatrician and best-selling author accused of sexually abusing as many as 50 boys will never practice medicine again, according to an agreement he signed today with the medical board in North Carolina, where he has treated patients for more than 20 years.
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“Dr Levine admits that the board has evidence to support the accusation that he conducted inappropriate examinations,” said Thomas Mansfield, legal director of the North Carolina Medical Board. “The result of this agreement is that Dr. Levine will never be able to examine another patient or practice medicine anywhere in the world.”
A lawsuit filed in Suffolk Superior Court last year accused Levine of abusing at least seven boys who came to him for treatment. The suit was filed by an unnamed plaintiff who was 8 years old when the alleged abuse began between 1980 and 1985.
Carmen Durso, a Boston attorney who filed the suit, said dozens of other alleged victims have since claimed to have been abused.
“Dr. Levine has agreed to permanently relinquish his license in the face of allegations by the board that the exams that he performed were not medically necessary, which has been his constant defense against the allegations,” Durso said by telephone. “These are the doctor’s peers, physicians who said he shouldn’t have done this. My clients are very pleased that this has occurred.''
In the agreement, Levine denied doing anything wrong, but the medical board said that it was prepared to present evidence at a hearing that he performed unnecessary genital exams on five patients in North Carolina, each of which was conducted outside the presence of a parent or guardian.
The board was prepared to present testimony that exams “were not medically indicated and were either not documented in the medical record or, if documented, the documentation failed to conform to the standards of acceptable and prevailing medical practice,” according to the agreement.
Alan Schneider, a North Carolina attorney representing Levine, said the doctor “continues to adamantly deny the allegations and maintains that all examinations were medically necessary and performed in accordance with accepted medical practice.”
He said fellow physicians, educators, former patients, and their parents sent letters to the board praising Dr. Levine’s “extraordinary contributions and extolling his revolutionary influence on education and pediatrics.”
Schneider called the agreement “an acceptable resolution” because the medical board proceeding would have been “a major distraction” from Levine’s other work, including his writing, international lecturing schedule, and his new Web-based learning institute.
“He is not practicing medicine and he does not intend to practice medicine, now or in the future,” Schneider said. “There are no findings that he engaged in what has been alleged.”
Last year, Levine voluntarily stopped seeing patients at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine.
Levine was a professor in the department of pediatrics at UNC between 1987 and 2006. Since then, Levine has held an unpaid appointment as an adjunct professor at the university, continuing to see patients twice a month, university officials said.
Levine, who has appeared on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" to promote his books, worked at Children's Hospital between 1971 and 1985, specializing in children with developmental and educational issues.
Levine's Boston lawyer, Edward Mahoney, did not return calls seeking comment. He had previously argued that the doctor is innocent.
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I don't see why treating patients is an issue when he will be in jail. He'll be in jail, right?
Not a good enough punishment for a child molester. Why isn't this man in jail?
Losing his license to practice. Boo hoo. How about being restricted from being near children from the rest of his life?
Children really **don't** matter, at least according to North Carolina.
Why is he not in jail?
This sure sounds like a crime to me.
Perhaps the lack of prosecution has to do with the statue of limitations, which I believe has since been lengthened. It was why the only charge they could get Geoghan for was essentially fondling a kid's butt while helping him out of a swimming pool.
He was later killed in prison, where he was serving time for fondling a kids butt while helping him out of a swimming pool.
commit a felony and you automatically lose your liscense to practice. Besides he's 69 years old.
He better being going to jail, he broke a sacred trust on top of a felony.
Why would somebody with his credential would abuse a kid knowingly that it will scar the the kid for rest of his/her life? Priests (of all religions), doctors, politicians, law enforcement agents, lawyers, Judges, homeless, Parents, teachers and all the others I missed have been arrested for sexually abusing childrens. How many people are we going to put in jails for all the law abiding people to chip in $30-40k/prisoner? Already, US has the largest prison population in the world. Why not spend money on figuring out why they do it? Whats ticking in their head and how to fix it? I am having a hard time putting food on table as it is andbecause
why parents of their abused child go to a lawyer before going to the police? My main concern would be to get this person away from hurting anymore kids and isolated from community until he has been cured if thats possible.
I don't know for sure, but the statute of limitations (time period during which time someone can file a lawsuit) may have expired. From limited info given, looks like some allegations are from 25+ years ago.
why not just take him out to the woodshed...
A lawsuit was filed in Suffolk Superior Court last year. What is the status of that lawsuit and when will the doctor/molestor be returned to MA to face his charges? Do I infer correctly from Attorney Durso's comments that this child molester loosing his medical license is enough of a punishment? Levine's lawyer, Mr. Schneider says the agreement won't distract from this child molester's writing, international lecturing or web site. Are we to believe that no criminal charges will be brought against this guy? What a sad commentary.
He's not in jail for the same reason Cardinal Bernard Law isn't in jail.
er, ah, not what they did was right, but why isn't this story on page one like all the stories about the abusive Catholic priests? And why such a relatively light punishment? And did his 'superior', either the hospital or the medical community, catch any hell for not having supervised this guy like (appropriately) the priests' supervisors?
I was a patient of Dr. Mel from 78 - 88 (both at Children's and down at UNC). Lot's of good about him, but yes he there was at least two times that his actions were inappropriate. I am happy he's no longer practicing, but given that he's 69 it's too little too late.
While I agree with previous comments that he should be in jail, it's not going to happen. Use your common sense. This happened over 20 years ago--there is no way to prove any of the allegations regardless of truth. Giving up practicing medicine ensures he never hurts another child (well, at least in a professional environment) in exchange for their not revealing all the truly gory (and even more reputation slaughtering) details. I.e., best case scenario for both sides.
If a Catholic priest who left the state years earlier could be brought back to face criminal charges because the statute of limitations stopped when he left the state, why isn't the good doctor being returned for trial? Could it be that the Commonwealth's Attorney General doesn't want to hold the Childrens Hospital's administration to the same standards as the Catholic Church administration. Also, the lawyers don't want to have to sue Childrens Hospital and get a bad rap for harming an institution for the actions of a few?
Commenters are asking, "Why isn't Levine in jail?"
The answer is obvious. Nowhere in his job title does Levine have the words "priest," "bishop," or "cardinal."
The truth is that the media and society does not really give a rip about the abuse of children. It's only "reprehensible" if the Catholic Church is somehow involved.
Got it?
Maybe he can become a priest and the Pope can ship him off to the Vatican.
I think the postings here are pretty much spot on.
Selective reporting by the press. Who was this guy's boss?
Why are there no charges against the hospital?
Plenty of kids came forward years latter and spoke against the priests - why can't this happen in this case?
I see the lynch mob is alive and well. Dr. Levine took care of some complicated and difficult patients including kids with encopresis (severe constipation) in which repeated rectal exams were required. He was probably imprudent in not having parents or nurses present for those exams but at that time, "chaperones" were not expected. If Dr. Levine did abuse trust, he deserves to lose his license and not practice further but the situation is fraught with ambiguity. Mr. Corso's accusations are only that, accusations. Dr. Levine has not admitted guilt and has voluntarily relinquished his license. That doesn't assuage those hungry for blood. Children's Hospital was undoubtedly unaware of any possible concerns. The not
Ahh the lynch mob. We don't need the court system because we try and convict people in the press. Who cares about "innocent until proven guilty".
If the accusations are true it is sad and unfortunate for those patients. It is also a sad day for the disability community since Dr. Levine's monumental work that helped so many will be dismissed and that will leave a huge hole in the educational system again.
This blogger might want to review your comment before posting it.
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