SAN JOSE
– Donning his long, white lab coat and even latex gloves at
times, a Gilroy doctor accused of sexually assaulting six women
during pelvic exams took the stand in his defense Thursday while
transforming the San Jose courtroom into a mock exam room.
SAN JOSE – Donning his long, white lab coat and even latex gloves at times, a Gilroy doctor accused of sexually assaulting six women during pelvic exams took the stand in his defense Thursday while transforming the San Jose courtroom into a mock exam room.
Complete with an exam table, stirrups, a full tray of medical supplies and a mannequin wearing a green gown, Dr. Raul Ixtlahuac, 41, demonstrated to the jury of seven men and five women how he conducted typical pelvic exams during his nearly 12 years as a family physician at Kaiser Permanente, 7520 Arroyo Circle.
Utilizing a large repertoire of medical jargon, the eloquent-speaking doctor remained businesslike and calm both while answering questions on the stand and while providing demonstrations.
Ixtlahuac even joked about his sloppy handwriting when an overhead projection of one of his charts was shown to the courtroom.
“I treat all of my patients the same way I would treat a family member,” said Ixtlahuac, who throughout the day repeatedly denied sexually assaulting any of the alleged victims. The victims’ view of the doctor during the exams was obstructed by a large drape.
Ixtlahuac is facing up to 14 years in prison for four counts of alleged felony penetration with a foreign object and two counts of alleged felony sexual battery between the fall of 2000 and spring of 2001. Ixtlahuac has plead not guilty to the charges.
Prior to Ixtlahuac taking the stand, several of Ixtlahuac’s long-time female patients testified on his behalf.
During one point of Weinberg’s questioning, Ixtlahuac explained how he always left the room following his pelvic exams to give his patients a chance to dress before discussing future treatments – something not all doctors do because of time demands, he said.
“I like to have my patients dressed when I talk to them,” he said.
“Why?” Weinberg asked.
“Dignity,” Ixtlahuac said.
When Weinberg questioned Ixtlahuac about the exams he conducted on three of the six alleged victims, Ixtlahuac explained the procedure he provided to each victim and firmly stated that he had done nothing improper. Weinberg is questioning Ixtlahuac about the other three victims today.
Throughout the trial, four alleged victims of Ixtlahuac’s testified the doctor penetrated them with his penis during pelvic examinations, and two woman claimed he rubbed them in a sexual manner with his fingers. Each of the victims – ages 25 to 42 – have filed a civil suit against Ixtlahuac and most have done the same against Kaiser.
When questioned on Thursday about a discussion with an alleged penetration victim who testified to finding a condom in the trash can following her September 2000 exam, Ixtlahuac said he thought he had cleared up the misunderstanding with the woman that day. When he returned to the exam room after the 24-year-old had dressed, she confronted him about the condom, but he saw no condom when he looked in the trash, he said, and assumed she had mistaken a latex glove for a condom.
“She sat back and said, ‘It must have just been my imagination,’ ” he said.
When told by his supervisor later that day that the woman was accusing him of sexual assault, Ixtlahuac said “I was stunned.”
Defense attorney Doron Weinberg also questioned Ixtlahuac Thursday about his childhood growing up as the youngest child in a large family of Mexican immigrants in Southern California, his medical schooling and his reputation as a caring family physician.
The defense will also use measurements of Ixtlahuac taken by Dr. Harley Alen Goldberg – a supposed “measurement expert” – to argue that it wasn’t possible for Ixtlahuac to do what the women are alleging, Weinberg said.
Ixtlahuac was arrested in May 2001 and has since been free on a $250,000 bond and placed on administrative leave from Kaiser. His medical license also has been suspended pending the outcome of the trial.
On Thursday, Ixtlahuac arrived at the Hall of Justice in San Jose with his wife and mother.
Ixtlahuac lives in Salinas and received his medical degree from the University of Washington; his residency was completed at Stanford University. He is a native of Southern California.
