State Rep. Julie Johnson | Contributed photo
State Rep. Julie Johnson | Contributed photo
A new bill in the Texas House of Representatives aims to plug holes in the justice system that are not only preventing some sexual assailants from paying for their crimes, but placing future victims in danger.
State Rep. Julie Johnson (D-Dallas County) sponsored House Bill 2987, which would increase the penalties for indecent assault by health care providers and repeat offenders. She discussed the bill in a recent post on her official Facebook page.
“I filed this bill after more than 20 women were assaulted by a prominent physician who were then unable to fully seek #justice in their cases,” Johnson said in her post. “While the physician was fired from his job, his medical license was only temporarily suspended and he saw zero jail time due to limitations in current law."
Dennis Doan, a former cardiologist at Heart Center of North Texas, was initially arrested in February 2018 after a patient accused him of groping her during a medical exam, according to coverage by NBC 5.
“This egregious gap in the justice system caused many of the women in this case to decline pursuing charges against him,” Johnson said.
While 22 women contacted Lisa Mehrhoff, Parker County’s victim assistance coordinator, with similar reports, all but two declined to pursue charges when they were told the worst Doan could be charged with was a Class C misdemeanor, which would leave no chance of jail time or record as a sexual offender, NBC 5 reported. Merhoff said the case even motivated one woman to leave Texas altogether, relocating to a state with tougher sexual assault laws.
Yet, while many were silenced in the past, Johnson thanked those who spoke up to emphasize the need for tougher penalties.
“Thank you to all of the women who told their very personal stories to the committee members and the many others who spoke out against their perpetrator,” Johnson said in her post. “And thank you to Chair State Rep. Nicole Collier for setting HB 2987 for a hearing and providing a platform for these women to bring light to this #injustice.”
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