A celebrity New York doctor, David H. Newman, has been jailed for two years for sexually assaulting four patients, including ejaculating on one woman’s face while she was sedated.
He was the doctor who had it all. A cushy position at Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan – one of America’s largest and most storied hospitals, having first opened in 1852. Essays published in the New York Times. And a large public profile as a leading advocate for emergency reform. But for all of Dr Newman’s ‘good works’, he was hiding a massive secret. For you see, he was a rampant sex offender, preying on young and vulnerable non-white women.
Dr Newman’s privileged world came crashing down last January, after two women complained to authorities about their treatment at his hands. Soon after, two more women came forward, resulting in the doctor being suspended from his job and then fired once criminal charges were laid.
All four women were assaulted in 2015 and 2016 while being tended to by Dr Newman within hospital walls. All the victims had their breasts fondled by the doctor for no medical reason, including while some were sedated. Like many sex offenders, Dr Newman’s conduct grew increasingly lurid and brazen with each offence.
As Dr Newman was sentenced this week to two years imprisonment, one of those women bravely confronted him and shared with the Supreme Court in Manhattan details of the horror encounter she experienced in January 2016.
Having been admitted to Mount Sinai Hospital for shoulder pain, Aja Newman, who is not related to the doctor, spoke of the terror she felt as Dr Newman molested her while she was sedated. In an attempt to cover up his crime, Dr Newman had further sedated Ms Newman despite a nurse already administering pain medication. What occurred next, is truly horrific.
While under Dr Newman’s care, the doctor began fondling Ms Newman’s breasts before masturbating near her bed and then ejaculating on her face.
Due to the sedation, Ms Newman could not open her eyes or speak, yet she had enough cognitive function to realise what was happening to her.
“I remember thinking, ‘I’m going to die if I don’t get out of here,'” Ms Newman said just moments before the doctor was handcuffed and sent away to spend his first night in prison.
“I have not been able to trust a doctor since, and I never will.”
Ms Newman had allowed her name to be publicly identified through her legal team.
In response, Dr Newman told the court his crimes were “awful and disgusting” and apologised to his victims.
“I’m sorry to everyone involved. I’m sorry to physicians everywhere and patients everywhere,” the doctor said.
Dr Newman had plead guilty last month to one count of first-degree sexual abuse and four counts of third-degree sexual abuse.
A civil case was also launched last year against Dr Newman and Mount Sinai Hospital for compensation for his crimes.
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