NEW YORK – A gynecologist accused of abusing hundreds of patients over a decades-long career was found guilty of federal sex crimes on Tuesday, a victory for prosecutors who were outraged when an initial prosecution resulted in no prison sentence.
Robert Hadden, 64, of Englewood, New Jersey, was sentenced after less than a day of deliberations a two-week trial in which nine former patients described how he sexually abused them during examinations when they were most vulnerable.
Outside the courthouse, women who were among Hadden’s victims expressed their relief at his conviction after the verdict and said they were excited for him to begin his sentence.
“This is such a victory for all of us,” said Evelyn Yang, whose husband Andrew Yang ran unsuccessfully as a Democrat for president in 2020 and for mayor of New York City in 2022. She said Hadden sexually assaulted her years ago when she was seven months pregnant.
“It also confirms. The jury came back with their verdict so quickly. And he was found guilty on all charges. That leaves no doubt in my mind that he was a serial killer who deserved to be jailed,” she said.
Hadden, who is under electronic surveillance and free on $1 million bail, declined comment as he exited the courthouse.
Maybe he won’t be free for long. Judge Richard M. Berman denied a request by a prosecutor and 10 victims to have Hadden immediately incarcerated, but scheduled a hearing next week to further consider the matter. Sentencing was set for April 25.
His conviction in federal court on four counts of enticing victims to cross state lines to sexually assault them carries a possible decades-long prison sentence.
That’s a much harsher potential sentence than Hadden received when he first pleaded guilty in state court in 2016 to allegations involving a smaller number of women. His plea deal with the Manhattan Attorney’s Office required him to relinquish his medical license but did not require a prison sentence.
“People are confused,” Berman said in court, citing the success Hadden had in avoiding jail. “There’s a feeling that he’s somehow bypassing the process.”
Hadden worked at two prestigious Manhattan hospitals — Columbia University Irving Medical Center and New York-Presbyterian Hospital — until complaints about his attacks ended his career a decade ago.
The institutions have already agreed to pay more than $236 million to settle civil claims from more than 200 former patients.
During the trial, Hadden’s attorneys did not deny that he molested patients. They said his pleadings in state court related to those crimes and that the federal charges that New Jersey and Nevada patients crossed state lines to be sexually abused were unreasonable because he didn’t know where they came from.
After the verdict, Assistant US Attorney Jane Kim argued that Hadden should be jailed immediately because he poses a flight risk and a danger to the community.
To support the prosecution’s case for immediate detention, eight former patients spoke about the lasting damage the doctor had caused them, and Kim read testimonies from two other victims.
One woman said she became a Hadden patient because she was friends with his niece. She said he would talk about his niece even when he was molesting her.
“That belief helps a lot,” said another woman who first became a patient in 1993 and went to Hadden for nearly 20 years.
Another woman said she went to see him when she was 21. She said he prepared her for abuse by telling her he would offer free contraception and acting as her dermatologist, and insisting that she be completely nude at every full-body exam appointment.
A woman who spoke at the hearing said it was the first time she had spoken publicly about her abuse. She said Hadden put his fist inside her for no medical purpose two days before she gave birth.
“The pain that happened that day was more painful than childbirth,” she said. She called him a “sociopath who needs to be behind bars as soon as possible”.
“Get rid of him now!” demanded another former patient.
The last woman to speak said she was a 20-year-old virgin and of orthodox religious faith when she first went to Hadden. She said Hadden was so invasive at her first appointment when she was looking for birth control that she bled.
“I didn’t bleed on my wedding night,” she said.
As the women spoke, Hadden – who wore a mask to protect against the coronavirus – sat next to his wife and occasionally rubbed her arm. At other times he played with his hands.
Hadden’s attorney Deirdre Von Dornum said he would not escape and had a perfect record while incarcerated. She said he also posed no threat to the community.
The Associated Press generally withholds the names of sex abuse victims from stories unless they have chosen to tell their stories publicly, which Yang and others have done.
Following the verdict, US Attorney Damian Williams issued a statement calling Hadden “a predator in a white coat.”
For years he cruelly lured women seeking professional medical care into his offices to masturbate. Hadden’s victims trusted him as a doctor, only to fall victim to his despicable fondness instead,” he said.
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