Lawsuit alleges sex assault by Maryland doctor

DAVID DISHNEAU
Associated Press

HAGERSTOWN, Md. (AP) — A suspended western Maryland physician at the center of a licensing scandal and facing molestation charges now has been hit with a lawsuit saying that he sexually assaulted a second female patient.

A West Virginia woman is suing Dr. William Dando of Rawlings, Maryland, and his former employer, MedExpress Urgent Care, for more than $1.5 million, according to court records.

The lawsuit says Dando fondled the woman during an examination at a MedExpress clinic in LaVale, Maryland, for a back injury she suffered in a fall in September 2013. She contends MedExpress knew, or should have known, about Dando’s 1987 conviction and incarceration in Florida for raping a woman at gunpoint in her home near Orlando in 1986.

“A reasonable and prudent employer would not put defendant Dando in a position to be alone with female patients,” the lawsuit states.

The AP generally does not identify alleged victims of sexual assaults.

Neither Dando nor his criminal defense attorney, R. Steven Friend, immediately responded to telephone calls and emails from The Associated Press. Court records do not list a defense lawyer in the lawsuit.

MedExpress spokeswoman Kelly Sorice declined to comment, citing patient privacy laws. The Morgantown, West Virginia-based company hasn’t yet replied to the lawsuit filed July 24 in Allegany County Circuit Court.

The lawsuit follows the Maryland Board of Physicians’ suspension of Dando’s medical license in June after he was charged with molesting another woman at the same clinic in April. He denies those charges and faces trial Sept. 3.

State officials are investigating the medical board’s decision to license Dando in 1996 despite his Florida conviction and imprisonment for more than 3 1/2 years.

After news of the rape case surfaced in May, the Maryland medical board began seeking legislative authority to conduct criminal background checks on license applicants instead of trusting them to report serious offenses.

Dando didn’t disclose the nature of the Florida crime on his 1996 Maryland medical license application, writing only that he had been convicted and incarcerated because he had “assaulted someone” while under the influence of alcohol.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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