Neurologist due in Philadelphia court on sex charges

Flag of Pennsylvania (Photo By Simtropolitan, Jean-Pierre Demailly (old version) – from the xrmap flag collection 2.7, Public Domain)

PHILADELPHIA — A neurologist accused of sexual misconduct in three states is due in court on misdemeanour charges that he groped women at a Philadelphia clinic.

Dr. Ricardo Cruciani faces a preliminary hearing in Philadelphia on Tuesday morning. Police have charged him with assaulting seven patients in 2016, while he was chairman of Drexel University’s neurology department.

At least 17 women in Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey have come forward to accuse Cruciani of sexual misconduct in encounters dating back at least a dozen years. The accusers have either reported him to police or have retained attorneys to pursue civil claims.

Cruciani’s lawyer has declined to comment.