Egyptian dentist pulled more than teeth
Egyptian dentist pulled more than teeth
Date: Friday, June 30, 2006 4:59 PM
<<<<< JOB DESTRUCTION NEWSLETTER No. 1512 -- 06/30/2006 >>>>>
An Egyptian dentist who has practiced in the U.S. for 10 years was pulling
more than just teeth. Recently he was convicted of molesting female
patients. Among other things, he was convicted of groping their breasts,
touching their legs, and becoming aroused while rubbing against them.
None of the articles on this Bakr case metioned what kind of visa he used
but a search of LCAs shows some convincing evidence that he used an H-1B
visa. Since he was working in the U.S. for 10 years, he is either using the
H-1B extension or he obtained a Green Card. There is not enough information
to come to a definite conclusion.
Click on this link to get results for the company he worked for - Western
Dental:
http://www.h1b.info/lca_job_list.php?name=WESTERN+DENTAL+SERVICES+INC&company=Western+Dental&city=&state=&year=ALL
As you can see, Western Dental hires huge numbers of H-1B dentists.
Ahmed Bakr was ordered to pay the women $4.6 in civil damages. There is
only one catch - they will have to go to Egypt to collect the settlement
because soon after Bakr was released from jail on bail he fled to Egypt.
The San Joaquin Superior Court didn't take his passport away because the
judge said that the bail bond was high enough to keep him in the U.S..
I am doing further research on this case, so expect follow-ups to this
newsletter.
***** Some thoughts about the LCA data *****
You will find irregularities as you peruse the LCAs for Western Dental. For
instance, Western Dental hires large numbers of H-1B dentists who get paid
$24,000 a year. I found one that lists a salary of $1,500 an hour.
If $24,000 a year seems too low for a dentist, and $1,500 an hour seems
kind of high, keep in mind that despite those obvious red flags, the LCAs
were approved by the Dept. of Labor. At the recent House Judiciary
Immigration Subcommittee hearing on the H-1B visa program titled, "Is the
Labor Department Doing Enough to Protect U.S. Workers?", the GAO report
claimed that the law is being obeyed 99.7% of the time.
Hmmmmmmmm. Let's consider where Western Dental works into the entire scheme
of things in terms of the almost perfect compliance the GAO claims.
If the GAO is right, either Western Dental is one of the very few of the
0.03% of the companies who are breaking the law, or they are among the
99.7% who are obeying the law. Since the prevailing salary data is derived
directly from the DOL database, you would think that if Western Digital was
breaking the law they would never have been allowed to obtain H-1B visas.
If we are to believe the GAO then we must conclude that at the very least,
the DOL is guilty of negligence, and at worst aiding and abetting
criminals!
What this really shows is that the GAO claim is pure bunk as well as
irrelevant. There are so many loopholes in the labor certification process
that most companies can claim whatever prevailing salary they want - AND
THE LCA WILL BE APPROVED AUTOMATICALLY BY A COMPUTERIZED SYSTEM! This is
just another example that illustrates what a sham prevailing salaries are.
Articles Used
http://www.lodinews.com/articles/2006/06/28/news/1_bakr_060628.txt
Lodi dentist ordered to pay $4.6 million
http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051027/NEWS0102/510270328/1001/NEWS01
Seven more counts against Lodi dentist
http://www.ledger-dispatch.com/news/newsview.asp?c=170925
Lodi dentists bail raised to $500k in battery case
http://www.news10.net/storyfull2.aspx?storyid=13920
Lodi Dentist Charged with Additional Counts in Groping Case
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.lodinews.com/articles/2006/06/28/news/1_bakr_060628.txt
Lodi dentist ordered to pay $4.6 million
By Layla Bohm
News-Sentinel Staff Writer
A Lodi dentist convicted of groping his female patients has now been
ordered to pay $4.6 million in damages to two patients and one woman's
husband.
Ahmed Bakr
And because half a dozen other patients have pending civil suits against
the dentist, he could be ordered to pay much more money.
The patients, however, will probably never see that money because Ahmed
Bakr, 33, is believed to have returned to his native Egypt after resolving
his criminal case in February.
"It's sort of a moral victory against the dentist," said Lodi attorney
Kristina Fleutsch, who received the judgments on behalf of two patients.
"My clients understand that right now they're paper judgments and they
probably won't be able to collect. But they know at least the judge feels
they deserve the money."
On June 16, San Joaquin County Superior Court Judge Carter P. Holly awarded
a woman $1 million in compensatory damages and $1 million in punitive
damages. On May 9, the judge awarded a woman $503,140 in compensatory
damages, her husband $100,000 in compensatory damages and also gave the
husband and wife $1 million each in punitive damages.
The News-Sentinel is not naming the plaintiffs because it does not identify
sexual assault victims.
The $4.6 million judgment is only against Bakr, but his employer at the
time of the gropings, Western Dental, remains involved in the case.
"That's amazing," attorney Jeff Silvia, who represents five other patients,
said of the award amount. "That's definitely going to get Western Dental's
attention."
Fleutsch on Tuesday formally sent copies of the judgments to Western
Dental's attorney, Robert Zaro. A secretary said Zaro was out of his
Sacramento office, and he did not immediately return a message left seeking
comment.
Bakr was arrested in October after one of his patients went to Lodi Police
and said she had been assaulted. The case soon grew as more patients came
forward, and Bakr was ultimately charged with one felony and 12
misdemeanors.
He pleaded guilty in late January to one felony and three misdemeanors and
was sentenced to six months in jail, and given credit for time served plus
a good-time credit during his jail stay. He was soon released from custody.
Judgments against Ahmed Bakr
$503,140 in compensatory and $1 million in punitive damages to a female
patient.
$100,000 in compensatory and $1 million in punitive damages to her
husband.
$1,003,000 in compensatory and $1 million in punitive damages to
another female patient.
In their civil suits against Bakr and his employer, some of the women
accused the dentist of groping their breasts, touching their legs and
becoming aroused while rubbing against them. Some of the patients had
received local anesthetic and were in the midst of dental work when the
assaults allegedly began, according to the suits.
Bakr could not be reached for comment, and civil attorneys said they
believed he has returned to Egypt. His dental license expired in December
and has not been renewed, according to the California Dental Board's Web
site.
He is listed on California's Megan's Law Web site as a registered sex
offender living in south Sacramento, though the site also says he could
have since moved.
Whether the $4.6 million judgment will affect the rest of the civil case
against Western Dental remains to be seen.
"There are two bases for potential liability of (Bakr's) employer: One is
that they did something wrong, that they were negligent in hiring him or in
supervising him," said Lawrence Levine, who teaches medical malpractice law
at University of the Pacific's McGeorge School of Law.
The other base, he said, is "vicarious liability," when the employee's
behavior leads to responsibility on the part of the employer. For instance,
Levine said, if a pizza driver runs into someone, the pizza chain would be
responsible.
"Where it gets hard here is, the more the conduct becomes criminal and
intentional, the more likely it gets outside the scope of liability,"
Levine said.
California defines that issue in broad terms, he said, so litigation in the
Western Dental case could become quite complex.
Contact reporter Layla Bohm at layla@lodinews.com.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051027/NEWS0102/510270328/1001/NEWS01
Article published Oct 27, 2005
Seven more counts against Lodi dentist
LODI -- Seven more counts of sexual battery, one of them a felony, were
added Wednesday to the six misdemeanor charges already filed against a Lodi
dentist accused of fondling his patients.
The number of alleged victims is now nine in the case against Ahmed Bakr,
32. Bakr remains in the San Joaquin County Jail unable to post $500,000
bail. Judge David P. Warner refused to lower Bakr's bail after prosecutor
Brian Short said a bail bondsman saw large amounts of cash and two packed
suitcases in Bakr's bedroom on Oct. 15.
The bondsman was revoking Bakr's $31,666 bail after receiving a telephoned
tip that Bakr, a native of Egypt, had purchased an airplane ticket to fly
from San Francisco to his home country the next morning.
Defense attorney Gregory Davenport said after the hearing that Bakr never
had any intention of leaving the United States and denied his client had
purchased an airplane ticket.
"He intends to stay here and vigorously oppose these allegations,"
Davenport said.
Bakr previously asked Warner to follow San Joaquin County guidelines and
set bail at no higher than $25,000 for the felony charge and less for the
others, and said Bakr would agree to surrender his passport and wear an
electronic monitoring device if lower bail was granted.
Warner said he was concerned that bail might be too high but determined
Bakr posed a flight risk. He said the court will reconsider bail on Nov. 9,
when Bakr returns to court for a hearing to determine if prosecutors have
enough evidence to justify a trial.
The counts stem from 13 instances from April to October in which Bakr
allegedly inappropriately touched his patients at the Lodi Western Dental
office. Western Dental has since fired Bakr.
Bakr is charged with a felony in one of the cases because he made
skin-to-skin contact with a patient's breast while she was restrained and
unable to respond to his alleged touching because of her dental procedure,
Short said.
Warner ordered that if Bakr is released on bail, he is not to practice
dentistry on any women. A state attorney representing the Dental Board of
California attended Wednesday's hearing and told Warner the board has the
option of bringing administrative action against Bakr after the dentist's
innocence or guilt is determined.
Davenport said Bakr has been a resident of the United States for about 10
years, completed his dental training here and has relatives in the area,
including a brother who is a doctor.
Davenport also said a newspaper advertisement published Wednesday that
solicited other possible victims for a civil lawsuit against the dentist
could lead to false reports against his client.
Contact Lodi Bureau Chief Jeff Hood at 209 367-7427 or jhood@recordnet.com
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.ledger-dispatch.com/news/newsview.asp?c=170925
Lodi dentists bail raised to $500k in battery case
Friday, October 21, 2005
A dentists bail was raised to $500,00 on Tuesday after police said he
might leave the country before facing charges of sexual battery of two
patients from Amador County and Lodi, with possibly eight more to come
forward soon.
Ahmed Bakr, 32, was arrested Oct. 8 on six counts of allegedly touching
women in his Lodi dentists chair. His bail initially was set at $31,000
and he posted that to be released from jail. He has denied the charges.
"He was apparently trying to leave the country this past weekend and the
bail bondsman revoked his bond and he is back in custody," said Lodi police
Detective Reba Ridino. "He was arraigned (Tuesday) and his bail is now
$500,000. About eight more victims were located, and new charges are
hopefully going to be added.
"He was arraigned for six counts of sexual battery-misdemeanor for the
first two victims," Ridino said.
An Egyptian national, Bakr has been fired from his job at Western Dental in
Lodi. San Joaquin County Superior Court Judge David P. Warner set a Nov. 17
jury trial for Bakr, who faces up to six years in prison if convicted.
Ridino said Bakr apparently has some patients in Amador County.
The new victims in the case came forward after reading newspaper accounts
of the first two women who complained to police about Bakr.
Police asked anyone who thought they may be one of his victims to call
Crimestoppers at 333-6771.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.news10.net/storyfull2.aspx?storyid=13920
Lodi Dentist Charged with Additional Counts in Groping Case
Written for the web by Elizabeth Bishop, Senior Internet News Producer
A Lodi dentist accused of groping patients faces seven more counts of
sexual battery in addition to the six counts with which he was already
charged.
Ahmed Bakr, 32, is in the San Joaquin County Jail. He has now been charged
with a total of 12 misdemeanor counts and one felony count. Nine women have
accused him touching them inappropriately during dental procedures while he
worked at the Lodi Western Dental office. He has been fired from that
office.
San Joaquin County Superior Court Judge David P. Warner refused to reduce
bail for Bakr after receiving a tip that Bakr had bought an airline ticket
to fly from San Francisco to his home country of Egypt on October 16. A
bail bondsman said he saw large amounts of cash and two suitcases in Bakr's
bedroom.
Bakr's attorney denied his client had purchased the ticket or that he
intended to leave the country. He said Bakr has been a resident in the U.S.
for a decade and has relatives here.
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