A gynecologist has been sentenced to two decades in prison after he was found to have sexually abused female patients during his practice, with hundreds of women reportedly having suffered at his hands.
In January, Robert Hadden, 64, was convicted on four counts of enticing and inducing individuals to travel interstate for the purpose of engaging in illegal sexual activity. On Tuesday, Judge Richard M. Berman sentenced Mr. Hadden to 20 years in prison. In addition, Mr. Hadden was slapped with a lifetime of supervised release once he finishes serving the sentence. A fine of $10,000 was also imposed.
Though he was convicted for abusing four women in incidents that occurred between 1993 and 2012, Mr. Hadden’s reported victims run into the hundreds.
At least 245 women treated by Mr. Hadden said they were abused, according to a government report, Judge Berman pointed out. He said that the case involved “outrageous, horrific, beyond extraordinary, depraved sexual abuse” and was like nothing he’d ever seen before.
Mr. Hadden committed the crimes while working at hospitals. He talked to patients about their personal lives during their visits. Once the nurse left the office, Mr. Hadden would fondle and probe them with his hands without wearing gloves. He would also sometimes probe them orally.
The judge pointed out that many patients were in vulnerable situations as they were pregnant. For some, Mr. Hadden was the first gynecologist they visited, and as such, trusted the man.
Hadden’s Sexual Abuse
During trials, several women came forward to describe the horrors they faced. One woman recalled that when a nurse left the room and she was alone with Mr. Hadden, the gynecologist said, “one minute, stay there.”But instead, Mr. Hadden assaulted her with hands and tongue, she said. “I listened, I trusted him. I trusted him … All I could think was ‘How the hell do I get out of here? I have to get out of here.’”
When given a chance to speak in court, Mr. Hadden said that there were many things he wanted to say but was advised by his lawyers to only make a brief statement. “I’m very sorry for all the pain that I have caused,” he said sobbing, according to AP.
The defense attorney Deirdre von Dornum complained that Mr. Hadden’s sentencing was too harsh. “Here you have somebody who has already lost everything, and you’re giving him effectively a life sentence,” she said.
Liz Hall, one of Mr. Hadden’s accusers, dismissed the gynecologist’s expression of regret.
“That was not an apology. He has shown zero remorse or empathy. I think he’s incapable,” she stated.
Bringing Back Attention to the Case
Back in 2016, Mr. Hadden had entered a guilty plea to two New York State charges of sexual abuse. Except for these two cases, Mr. Hadden has denied all allegations leveled against him.In the guilty plea deal, Mr. Hadden received no jail time. His sex-offender status was classified at the lowest level due to which Mr. Hadden was not listed in the sex offender registry in New York.
Mr. Hadden’s case came to public attention in January 2020 when Evelyn Yang, wife of former presidential candidate Andrew Yang, said in an interview that she had been abused by the gynecologist. The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office assigned prosecutors to investigate Mr. Hadden a few weeks later.
