LOS ANGELES (AP) — A California appeals court has overturned the conviction of James Heaps, a former campus gynecologist at the University of California, Los Angeles, who was found guilty on sex abuse charges.
In 2023, Heaps was sentenced to 11 years in prison for sexually abusing his female patients during his 35-year career in which he was accused of assaulting hundreds of women. The recent court ruling requires the case to be retried, citing that Heaps was denied a fair trial as it was revealed that his defense counsel was unaware of concerns regarding a juror’s English language proficiency.
The three-judge panel from California's 2nd District Court of Appeal stated that significant issues were raised regarding Juror No. 15 shortly after this individual was seated, including a note from the jury foreman indicating the juror's inability to understand English well enough to fulfill their duties during deliberations.
Heaps had pleaded not guilty to 21 felony counts related to the assaults of seven women occurring between 2009 and 2018. He was convicted in October 2022 of three counts of sexual battery by fraud and two counts of sexual penetration. The jury was deadlocked on some counts, and a judge had previously ruled that Heaps could be retried on those charges.
In their 31-page ruling, the court acknowledged the difficulties in requiring a retrial for a case with multiple victims and the sensitive nature of the medical examinations involved. However, they emphasized that the constitutional right to counsel must be upheld at critical points in a trial, leaving them no alternative but to overturn the conviction.
UCLA has reportedly paid nearly $700 million in settlements linked to allegations against Heaps, indicating the significant impact of the case on the institution.
