James Heaps faces five felony counts following October 20 sentencing
Recently jurors convicted James Mason Heaps, an obstetrician-gynecologist formerly employed by UCLA, on three counts of sexual battery by fraud and two counts of sexual penetration of an unconscious person.
On October 20, Jurors found Heaps guilty in connection with the sexual assaults of some of his patients. He was acquitted on three counts of sexual battery by fraud, three counts of sexual penetration of an unconscious person and one count of sexual exploitation of a patient. Jurors could not reach a unanimous verdict on three counts of sexual battery by fraud, four counts of sexual penetration of an unconscious person and two counts of sexual exploitation of a patient.
According to Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón, no decision has been made yet on whether or not to retry the hung counts.
“The trauma Dr. Heaps inflicted on the very people he had sworn to care for is immeasurable.” Gascón said. “I am committed to helping all victims of sexual assault – whether they were victimized by a doctor, school personnel or a Hollywood elite – and encourage them to contact my office’s Bureau of Victim Services if they are in need of services.
A sentencing hearing was set for November 17.
Heaps initially was charged in 2019. A grand jury indicted Heaps last year and the indictment alleges sexual misconduct by Heaps from 2009 to 2018.
Heaps was an obstetrician-gynecologist who worked on a part-time basis at the UCLA student health center from approximately 1983 to 2010, was hired by UCLA Health in 2014 and held medical staff privileges at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center from 1988 to 2018. The charges relate to care he provided to two patients in 2017 and 2018 at UCLA Health. Last year, in response to allegations of sexual misconduct against Dr. Heaps, UCLA investigated his conduct, removed him from clinical practice, informed him that his employment was being terminated (after which he announced he was retiring) and reported him to the Medical Board of California and law enforcement.
As reported by NPR, UCLA has spent around $700 million in settlements for its alleged role in concealing the abuse. Women alleged that UCLA ignored decades of complaints and intentionally covered-up the abuse before beginning to investigate Heaps in 2018, NPR reports.
