Chiropractor Loses License After Accusations Post Falls’ Jeffrey Schwartz Faces Sexual Exploitation Charges

Wed., Jan. 6, 1999

By Brian Coddington brianc@spokesman.com

Allegations of sexual misconduct with several female patients have cost Post Falls chiropractor Jeffrey Schwartz his license.

A Boise hearing examiner appointed by the Idaho Board of Chiropractic Physicians found that Schwartz had abused or exploited six women he was treating at his Post Falls office, said Kirsten Wallace, deputy state attorney general. Schwartz, 51, also was found by the hearing examiner to have committed “a crime involving moral turpitude” against five of the six women, Wallace said.

The allegations of moral turpitude stem from criminal charges Schwartz faces in connection with the women’s claims that he forced them into sexual contact.

Post Falls prosecutors have charged Schwartz with two counts of misdemeanor sexual exploitation by a medical-care provider. Schwartz, through his attorney, has claimed that the statute is “unconstitutionally vague and overly broad” and asked a judge to dismiss the charges. A trial date has not been set.

Schwartz also faces trial later this month on a misdemeanor charge of doing business without a license. The Idaho Board of Chiropractic Physicians suspended Schwartz’s license last summer while the Idaho Bureau of Occupational Licenses investigated the allegations.

Post Falls police detectives began investigating Schwartz last May after a 28-year-old woman said she had been raped during an office visit with the chiropractor. Five other patients, ranging in age from 28 to 49, and a 31-year-old former employee, later came forward with allegations of forced sex acts, improper touching and unwanted sexual advances.

After a three-day license-revocation hearing in September, the hearing examiner recommended that the Idaho Board of Chiropractic Physicians revoke Schwartz’s license. The board pulled Schwartz’s license on Dec. 17.

State law allows Schwartz to appeal the board’s decision. He also can apply at “reasonable intervals” to have his license reinstated, Wallace said.

IDAHO HEADLINE: Accused chiropractor loses license

This sidebar appeared with the story: CHARGES AND COUNTERCHARGES Schwartz faces criminal counts of sexual exploitation by a medical-care provider, a misdemeanor. He claims the charges “unconstitutionally vague.” A trial date has not been set. He also faces charges of practicing without a license.

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