A military doctor pleaded guilty on Tuesday to sexually abusing dozens of soldiers at Joint Base Lewis-McChord south of Seattle, who had primarily sought his care for pain management. Maj. Michael Stockin, an anesthesiologist and pain management specialist at the base’s Madigan Army Medical Center, faced 52 charges involving claims of abusive sexual contact with 41 victims, the Associated Press reports. Stockin pleaded guilty Tuesday to 36 specifications, or counts, of abusive sexual contact and five of indecent viewing. The group Protect Our Defenders called the Stockin case the largest sexual abuse scandal in recent history and called for a congressional review. Lawyers representing 22 of Stockin’s former patients have also filed Federal Tort Claims Act complaints against the U.S. Army and Department of Defense on behalf of 22 servicemen, claiming the agencies were negligent in hiring, supervising and retaining Stockin.
“Dr. Stockin’s guilty plea and sentencing is an important first step toward justice for the dozens of patients he sexually abused. But the story doesn’t end here,” said Christine Dunn, a lawyer representing the men. “The Army played a substantial role in allowing the rampant sexual abuse to occur in the first place. The time has come for the Army to be held accountable for its negligence. ” JBLM is the U.S. Army’s fifth-largest base. The Madigan medical center is the Army’s second-largest medical treatment facility. Stockin was formally charged in August 2023 with 23 counts of abusive sexual contact. In January 2024, the Army Office of Special Trial Counsel referred 52 charges and specifications, stemming from allegations by 41 male patients he treated between 2019 and 2022. An abusive sexual content charge carries a maximum sentence of seven years, and the indecent viewing charge has a maximum of one year. If the judge ran the sexual abuse charges consecutively, he would face a maximum of 336 years in prison.
תגובות