Lawsuit Filed Against Doctor Accused of Sexually Assaulting Patient

A fifth former patient has filed suit against a medical doctor and surgeon now jailed and facing charges of  sexual assault.

The lawsuit also asserts that Temecula Valley Hospital, North County ENT Medical Group, and others were negligent in failing to prevent  John Francis McGuire, MD  from sexually abusing e a woman, referred to as Jane Roe #5, while she was unconscious.

He is accused of 26 felony counts including sexual battery and rape involving at least eight patients..

On April 30, 2015, Jane Roe #5 was placed under general anesthesia to undergo a thyroidectomy procedure performed by McGuire at Temecula Valley Hospital.

The woman, who is not being identified because police contend she was a victim of sexual assault, said she tried to deal with the attack privately at first.

"I tried to get over this myself without having going to them, the medical board, or anybody, or police," she said.

She said she came out of the anesthesia and while going to the bathroom, discovered signs she had been assaulted.

"I had a discharge and any woman knows what that discharge is," she said.

Another woman said she was assaulted by McGuire after a nasal reconstructive surgery three years ago at a now-closed Fallbrook hospital.  She also described observing a vaginal discharge, and other indications.

"I had some bruising that I did not have before the surgery," she said.

The civil cases filed against McGuire and the other defendants, including Temecula Valley Hospital include claims of sexual harassment, negligence, gender violence, negligent hiring, supervision, retention, as well as medical malpractice.

"This was a sexual rampage over an extended period of time in which he assaulted and raped several different women that we know of," said John Mittelman, an attorney for Jane Roe #5 and four other women identified by prosecutors as victims of McGuire.

McGuire was arrested for the assaults on Jane Roe #5 and others last August and remains in custody in lieu of $3,000,000 bail.

He had resigned from the Temecula Valley medical staff in June, according to the hospital  In September,  California's medical board suspenced his licenses to practice medicine and surgery.

McGuire's attorney did not respond to a request for comment.  

Temecula Valley Hospital issued this statement:

"Temecula Valley Hospital is committed to providing a safe environment for the care and well-being of its patients. State and federal patient privacy laws as well as the pendency of a legal claim preclude us from specifically commenting on this matter. We can say that the alleged involved physician voluntarily relinquished his staff privileges at Temecula Valley Hospital in June of last year and has not practiced at Temecula Valley Hospital since then."

Editor's Note: This story has been edited to correct the spelling of John Mittleman's name.

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