Deadline for plea offer set in Hamilton chiropractor sex crimes case

Hamilton chiropractor Dr. Stephen Boyd, who is facing 28 sex-related charges for alleged crimes against victims who are former patients and former employees, was back in court Tuesday where a deadline was set for any plea offer.

In September, Butler County Common Pleas Court Judge Dan Haughey set Boyd’s 10-day trial to begin Feb. 21, 2022. Another pre-trial hearing was scheduled for Tuesday.

At the brief hearing, Assistant Prosecutor Lindsay Sheehan set a deadline of Nov. 16 for the defense to make any type of plea offer.

Defense attorney Chris Pagan requested a few more days, but Sheehan said she did not have that authority because the deadline had been set by her boss, Butler County Prosecutor Michael Gmoser. Boyd was in court for the hearing.

Sheehan said there had been no plea negotiations as of this week.

Boyd, who is free on bond, was arrested Dec. 9 after a grand jury returned an indictment against him for allegedly inappropriately touching patients and engaging in misconduct. Boyd has also been the subject of an investigation by the Ohio State Chiropractic Board.

The original indictment accuses the 57-year-old of committing sex-related crimes for decades. According to prosecutors, the original indictment involves crimes against eight victims who were juveniles and young adults in their late teens at the time of the alleged crimes. The alleged crimes occurred between November 1998 and December 2014.

Boyd was first charged with 12 counts of gross sexual imposition, seven counts of sexual battery, four counts of rape, two counts of attempted sexual battery and one count of attempted rape.

In April, a grand jury returned an indictment against Boyd for two new counts of gross sexual imposition, both fourth-degree felonies.

The new indictment alleges charges against a victim who came forward after the initial indictment as the ninth alleged victim, according to prosecutors.

According to the indictment, the new case alleges the crimes occurred between June 4, 2013 and June 3, 2016.

In February, in a deal with the state chiropractic board, Boyd agreed to place his license on inactive status indefinitely, according to documents obtained by the Journal-News.

“Dr. Boyd further agrees that placing his license on inactive status does not forfeit the board’s ability to impose disciplinary sanctions against his license upon any adjudication hearing,” the agreement states.

The Ohio State Chiropractic Board sent Boyd a letter in February 2020 notifying him of sexual misconduct allegations by two patients dating back to 1989 and the early 1990s. Two more patients with allegations as late as 2012 were added to the complaint in June.

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