Prosecutor: Indictment of Hamilton chiropractor involves alleged crimes against 8 teens or young adults

A Hamilton chiropractor has been indicted on 26 sex-related charges following an investigation into claims that he inappropriately touched patients and engaged in misconduct.

Stephen Boyd, 57, was indicted Wednesday on 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, according to the Butler County Prosecutor’s Office.

Boyd was arrested at his home and booked into the Butler County Jail at 2:16 p.m., according to police.

The Ohio State Chiropractic Board sent Dr. Stephen Boyd a letter on Feb. 20 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.

Police said in October they were also investigating claims against Boyd by four patients and served a search warrant at his office in October.

Hamilton Police Chief Craig Bucheit said the department was assisting the chiropractic board and “we uncovered sufficient evident to charge him criminally.”

Butler County Prosecutor Michael Gmoser said the indictment against Boyd includes crimes alleged against eight victims. He said the victims were juveniles and young adults in their late teens at the time of the alleged crimes.

“This is not piggyback prosecution,” Gmoser said, referring to the chiropractic board investigation. “This is something we have undertaken and this is the result.”

The indictment says the alleged crimes took place between 1999 and 2017, with most in the 2000s. Boyd is scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday in Butler County Common Pleas Court by Judge Charles Pater.

Bucheit said there is a possibility of more victims coming forward.

“Some of these allegations go back decades and some are more recent. They range from juveniles to adults, males to females in these alleged incidents.” Bucheit said. “We expect the list of victims to grow due to his arrest and we have set up a dedicated phone line to manage the high volume of calls and inquiries that we expect from former patients.”

That number is 513-868-5811, ext. 1009.

Claims detailed in Ohio State Chiropractic Board and Hamilton police documents include that Boyd inappropriately touched patients’ genital areas, massaged abdominal and thigh areas, took X-rays of genital areas and did other inappropriate touching.

Police seized a desktop computer, an iPhone, numerous X-rays from the past 30-plus years, a box of Polaroid photos, two canisters of film, medical records for the alleged victims and five electronic hard drives when serving the search warrant in October.

Boyd has requested a hearing with the state chiropractic board that is scheduled for Feb. 8, 2021.

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