"There may be other people who voiced complaints and sought help and never got it, got swept under the table."

NOTE from Larry Scott, VA Watchdog dot Org ... Be sure to watch the video of this story at the link below.

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Marine Says He Was Sexually Assaulted At VA Hospital

Nurse Denies Any Wrongdoing

from WISN.com

MILWAUKEE -- He wore his uniform with pride and served his country with honor, but a Wisconsin Marine said when he turned to the veterans' hospital for help, he was sexually abused by a male caregiver.

The 29-year-old Marine first went to police a year and a half ago. The investigation recently wrapped up.

A warning: the description of the abuse he alleges is graphic.

It also embarrasses him. He asked 12 News not to identify him.

Michael is a Wisconsin Marine who served his country for four years -- from Camp LeJeune, N.C., to tours in the Mediterranean.

"My Marine Corps career is one of my most proud accomplishments in my lifetime," Michael said.

Today, he's fighting another battle. He's speaking out to put a stop to a military medical provider he trusted.

"No matter how hard it is to talk about it, how much of a slap in the face it is. In order for him to be stopped and not continue to do this to other people," Michael said.

In August of 2007, Michael headed to the Milwaukee VA Medical Center for treatment of a skin virus that left lesions on his genitals. He saw a nurse in the dermatology clinic.

"He said in order to see the lesions better, the skin had to be pulled tight," Michael said.

"In order for the skin to be tight, he said it's easier if you're erect," Michael said. "He would make it so that you are."

"It was two hands, and it was some weird method that made it seem more medical," Michael said.

Michael said when he left the clinic, he told his wife. They agreed the treatment sounded strange but seemed to make sense. So he returned there for continued treatment. He said the touching escalated. His suspicions cemented when the nurse touched his genitals with his bare hands.

"That's weird to me. I mean, a doctor puts on a glove when they check your heartbeat," Michael said.

Michael said he cried, and when he got home, called a local dermatologist to describe the treatment.

"This is way beyond the scope of normal medical practice is what the doctor told me. He said, 'this is way wrong,'" Michael said.

Michael immediately called Milwaukee police, who investigated. Prosecutors said there wasn't enough evidence at the time to press charges.

So, the VA Medical Center started its own investigation. A year and a half later, the investigator told Michael he'd found about 50 other patients who claimed abuse by the same nurse.

"It's an unusual and very difficult job to deal with," attorney Marty Kohler said.

Kohler represents the nurse, whom 12 News is not naming because he hasn't been charged with a crime. Kohler said the nurse denies any wrongdoing.

"He has to touch the penis... If somebody reacts," Kohler said. "People get embarrassed by that."

"Is there a potential tug or something to get to the infection that he's treating? Yeah, that's the normal course of treatment," Kohler said.

"So it was not fondling?" WISN 12 News reporter Colleen Henry asked.

"No," Kohler said.

As for the dozens of other alleged victims identified by the VA investigator:

"I'm very suspect of anything that they have to say," Kohler said.

WISN 12 News has obtained a letter sent to VA patients inquiring about sexual abuse at the Milwaukee dermatology clinic. It includes questions such as "Did any staff member tell you your genitals needed to be erect to be treated? Did any staff member manipulate your genitals?"

Kohler said the letter is suggestive and taints the investigation.

"So you think he's planting seeds?" Henry asked.

"Oh, yeah," Kohler said.

"What they did was went through the medical records and pulled out names," Michael's attorney, Victor Harding, said.

Michael hired Harding to file a personal injury claim against the nurse and the VA. It's the first step in a lawsuit. Harding said he expects the other patients to join them.

"There may be other people who voiced complaints and sought help and never got it, got swept under the table," Harding said.

"I like the VA, and that's why it's very hard to... It makes it harder to throw up a flag like this because it makes the VA look bad," Michael said.

Michael said his shame at being duped diminished when he learned he may be one of many.

"Are you telling me that 50 people are that gullible? None of them are wise enough to say, 'What the heck are you doing? Stop,'" Michael said.

"It would be better. It would honestly be better to have been forcefully taken advantage of, -- way better because at least then I would have known what was going on and had a chance to fight for myself," Michael said.

The nurse's lawyer said he's treated thousand of patients at military hospitals across the country with no complaints.

The VA declined to answer questions because of the ongoing investigation.

It said the nurse remains a VA employee, but the nurse's lawyer said he is no longer seeing patients. His nursing license is active here in Wisconsin.

There were no criminal charges in the original investigation, but the district attorney is revisiting the case.

The VA investigator took his findings regarding the 50 other patients to the district attorney's office. It told 12 News a decision on criminal charges could come next month.

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TOPICS: veterans, veterans' benefits, VA, Department of Veterans' Affairs, sexual assault, nurse