A highly sought-after osteopath says he sexually assaulted two patients, one for an estimated 20 minutes, in a moment of madness and recklessness.
Bernard Michael Rochford’s income was simply turned off when COVID-19 pandemic health directives impacted his Brisbane business, a court has heard.
The 53-year-old was handed a suspended jail sentence, ordered to do community service and pay compensation in Brisbane District Court on Friday.
He earlier pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual assaults committed against longstanding patients during two incidents within 20 days of each other.
Rochford was an established, successful and highly sought-after osteopath who owned a practice in the Brisbane suburb of New Farm, prosecutor Zachary Kaplan told the court.
He touched the women’s nipples during their treatments, stopping almost immediately when the first patient said: “That’s too weird”, the court heard.
The other woman estimated the sexual assault lasted about 20 minutes, Mr. Kaplan said.
“It was not a fleeting touch.”
A concerning aspect was that Rochford was not a person of low intellect, or one who had a difficult upbringing and when confronted with the allegations he did not surrender his practising certificate, the court heard.
“He held himself out to be a safe haven where people who have daughters and sons and families could go and see him,” Mr. Kaplan added, saying his occupation put him at a higher level of moral culpability.
Rochford’s life had been otherwise extraordinarily honourably lived while he had probably tens of thousands of opportunities to offend against women in intimate situations as an osteopath for 25 years, defence barrister Saul Holt said.
The two incidents occurred at times of rock bottom in Rochford’s life following the COVID pandemic when his business fell apart.
“The pressure … led him to do something that as admittedly a highly intelligent man he can only describe as effectively madness, recklessness,” Mr. Holt told the court.
Rochford said the offending was impulsive, reckless and occurred during a period of extreme stress but there was absolutely no justification for what he did, the court was told.
His income was “turned off” during COVID-19 lockdowns, he started drinking and saw the business as a noose around his neck.
Rochford was later found to be in the midst of an adjustment disorder.
Mr. Holt said detection was almost inevitable with the women not likely to keep quiet.
“It was truly an isolated incident,” he added.
Rochford initially denied the assaults and was committed to stand trial before admitting the offending to family and friends, and pleading guilty.
He has surrendered his medical registration and become a truck driver.
Judge Michael Burnett accepted the prospects of Rochford committing further offences are extremely low.
“Your past and unblemished history suggests this is out of character behaviour occasioned in the exceptional circumstances of the day,” he told Rochford.
Judge Burnett sentenced him to 15 months behind bars, fully suspended, for one count.
Rochford was ordered to do 200 hours of community service for the second charge.
He was also ordered to pay $2000 compensation to each woman, with one indicating she wanted the money to go to a charity.
