Former Prof Sued for Child Abuse

After being asked to step out while a pediatrician conducted a typical physical examination for his teenage son, John Doe No. 5—allegedly an anonymous victim of sexual abuse—became overwhelmed with emotion as the dark memories of his own physical examinations as a child came flooding back to him.

This event was the catalyst for a civil suit against the doctor who treated John Doe No. 5, according to the alleged victim’s lawyer. That doctor was Melvin D. Levine, a former Harvard Medical School professor who served as chief of ambulatory pediatrics for 14 years at Children’s Hospital Boston, one of Harvard’s main affiliated hospitals. Levine has been accused of sexually abusing at least seven boys in his care during his time at the hospital, according to a lawsuit filed in Suffolk Superior Court on Monday.

The unnamed plaintiff, now a 36-year-old father, alleges in his complaint that Levine “sexually assaulted, battered, and abused” him during his five years at Children’s for psychotherapy services. He was eight years old when the treatment sessions began.

According to the lawsuit, Levine’s sexual abuse included “numerous acts of genital fondling, masturbation, and other attempted and threatened acts of assault.”

Levine’s lawyer, Edward F. Mahoney, said that Levine has provided pediatric care to more than 15,000 children over 40 years and “adamantly denies” the claims.

“Dr. Levine is distressed about the distorted or misrepresented memories from decades past, and questions the motivations,” Mahoney said in a press statement Monday.

Levine practiced at Children’s from 1971 to 1985.

According to a press statement from the hospital, there were no complaints brought against Levine by any patient or parent of any patient “suggesting inappropriate conduct of any nature” during his time there.

“Children’s Hospital’s most important goal is to protect children’s health and promote their well being,” the statement said. “Our staff is trained and experienced in detecting abuse and mistreatment of children. Such behavior, if identified, is treated with the utmost seriousness and addressed immediately.”

Levine is currently a professor at the University of North Carolina Medical School in Chapel Hill.

The plaintiff’s lawyer, Carmen L. Durso, said that many of his clients who claim to be victims of childhood sexual abuse choose to remain anonymous due to the stigma associated with those who have been abused.

“Because of [society’s] attitudes, it’s somehow unmanly if you’re a man and have been abused,” he said.

Those who come forth to press charges tend to be in their 30s or 40s, around the time their own children reach the age at which they were abused, Durso said.

“Abuse is an unpleasant experience,” Durso said. “The victims are taking that experience, putting it in a little box in the back of their mind, and closing it and not opening it until certain circumstances make it come forth.”

According to the complaint, John Doe No. 5 “was unable to recall and to understand” his past abuse until February 2006. He has been in therapy since and is seeking financial compensation for the damages.

This is the fourth lawsuit filed against Levine for sexual abuse occurring during his time at Children’s. All four lawsuits were filed within the last three years.

Durso, who is also representing the other plaintiffs, said that the process is still ongoing.

Though all the lawsuits have been filed very recently, allegations of Levine’s misconduct were brought to the state’s attention over 10 years ago.

In September of 1993, the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Medicine received a complaint for unprofessional conduct, sexual misconduct, and patient abuse from another of Levine’s former patients.

The patient alleged that on two separate occasions, Levine “placed his hand on [the patient’s] penis, and bounced it from side to side, and up and down.”

According to the statement filed with the complaint, Levine demanded repeatedly that the patient, who was entering puberty at the time, tell him about his wet dreams.

The charge was closed with no further action in January 1995.

According to Russell D. Aims, a spokesman at the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Medicine, closed complaints are still placed in the physician’s permanent record.

Aims said that Levine allowed his Massachusetts license to expire in 1989 and has not been practicing in the state since.

—Staff writer June Q. Wu can be reached at junewu@fas.harvard.edu.