By SHANNON HAUGLAND
Sentinel Staff Writer
Former Sitka medical doctor Richard McGrath pleaded guilty Monday to sexually assaulting three people under his care in 2018.
At a hearing in the Sitka courthouse, McGrath, 79, entered a plea of guilty to the multiple charges against him under a single consolidated count of sexual assault in the third degree, a class C felony.
Under the agreement he will serve up to two years in prison, although formal sentencing will take place 8:30 a.m. June 12. He had been out on $25,000 bail since his arrest in 2019 in Seattle, Sitka police said.
Superior Court Judge Michael McConahy of Fairbanks accepted the plea agreement at the end of the 45-minute hearing which included statements from the victims and by victims’ supporters.
The judge ordered McGrath to be jailed immediately and he was led out of the courtroom in handcuffs, with victims, their supporters and others watching.
Sitka Police Jail Supervisor Dave Nelson, right, escorts Richard McGrath out of the Sitka Courthouse after McGrath pleaded guilty to third degree sexual assault Monday morning. (Photo by Rob Woolsey)
McGrath was charged with multiple counts of sexual assault in 2019 and the charges were consolidated into the single count to which he plead guilty Monday.
The felony charge was that he “engaged in sexual contact” with three women in 2018, “people whom Dr. McGrath knew were unaware that a sexual act was being committed.”
The terms of his negotiated guilty plea call for McGrath to serve up to two years in prison, be registered as a sex offender, and be barred from ever practicing medicine again. Other conditions may be added at sentencing at the discretion of the judge.
A trial was scheduled to begin Monday, but the plea agreement was reached over the weekend, with McGrath agreeing to plead guilty to the single consolidated count.
Victims and advocates made brief statements about the seriousness of the offenses, pointing out that doctors hold a position of trust with their patients. A victim who spoke at the change of plea hearing said she did not approve of the sentencing agreement because McGrath had violated his position of trust in the community, had many charges against him, and caused suffering to many individuals who were victims of his sexual assaults.
“To be punished by two years in jail at maximum wouldn’t understate the severity of the conduct and impact on the victims,” she told the judge. “I feel this plea bargain does not reflect the seriousness of the offense and would in effect constitute a statement that the court does not take seriously the crimes involved.”
A representative of another of the three victims in the consolidated charge said, “He is a dangerous, sick predator who caused irreparable damage to these women. I would like to ask every man in this courtroom including you, your honor: How you would like this to be handled if it were you who had been violated?”
McGrath was indicted by a Sitka grand jury in 2019 and the case was supposed to go to trial last summer, but a mistrial was declared when attorneys were unable to find enough impartial jurors for a trial.
Victims and families of victims filed a civil lawsuit against McGrath and the City and Borough of Sitka in 2000, charging contact without consent, sexual assault by a medical provider, medical malpractice, assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, fraud, and negligent hiring, supervision and retention. Sitka attorney James McGowan represents those plaintiffs in their suit for damages, and represented them in the criminal case against McGrath. The city is included in the suit because McGrath was employed by Sitka Community Hospital, which was owned by the city at the time of the criminal offenses.
At the change of plea hearing, attorneys and the judge exchanged views on the suitability of the plea agreement.
Bailey Woolfstead, from the state office of special prosecution, said, “There’s not really a way to restore people to how they were prior to a sex offense occurring to them; there’s no way to give them back their trust in authority figures and medical providers. There is no way to take away the pain and suffering they have gone through for years. But there is a way to say we’re going to take actions that are going to allow you to move on and to heal and move forward with your life.”
Reviewing other criteria for sentencing, she noted the way the sentence will work toward reaffirming societal norms, deterrence to others and the perpetrator, and protection of others.
She said she had felt strongly about taking the case to trial, but agreed to the plea agreement because of the risks inherent in a trial and the possibility that the case could be drawn out through appeals. With this plea agreement, she said, there is no appeals process, and “it creates that finality.” She said she is not concerned about her ability to prove guilt in at least some of the charges, and added that the sentence includes an aggravator related to the seriousness.
“It is in fact an aggravated sentence, we are going above the presumptive range,” Woolfstead said.
McGrath pleaded guilty to the consolidated charge, told the judge that he understood what he was pleading guilty to, but did not make a statement to the court. His attorney, John Cashion of Anchorage, said he did not have any comments Monday but would discuss mitigating factors at the sentencing on June 12.
