Utah gynecologist David Broadbent accused of sexual abuse

More than 100 women have publicly accused the Utah County doctor of inappropriate touching, but this is the first time criminal charges have been filed against him.

Utah gynecologist David Broadbent was charged with sexual abuse on Thursday. Prosecutors accuse him of sexually touching a patient during an examination in 2020.

Broadbent has been accused in civil suits of inappropriately touching more than 100 patients during examinations – but this is the first time the Utah County District Attorney’s Office has filed charges against him. He faces a second-degree felony, which carries a potential penalty of up to 15 years in prison.

Utah Deputy District Attorney Tim Taylor, who is also a spokesman for the agency, said Thursday that police and prosecutors are still investigating and are still considering whether to file further charges against the gynecologist.

The charging documents say one of Broadbent’s patients came to him in 2020 because of a lump in her vaginal area. Broadbent allegedly instructed the patient to undress from the waist down – but when he returned to the exam room after changing, prosecutors say he lifted up her shirt and bra and touched her breasts. He then grabbed her leg “in a way that felt sexual,” prosecutors say, and began a vaginal exam.

A lawyer representing Broadbent in his civil case did not immediately respond to a request for comment. No attorney is yet listed in his criminal case.

At least 49 women have reported to Provo police that Broadbent sexually assaulted them during examinations. Prosecutors have been considering whether to file charges for 18 months. Earlier this month, the county prosecutor’s office received funds to pay a nurse specializing in sexual assault examinations to review prosecutors’ evidence, conduct research and advise prosecutors on what the “standard of care” is during a gynecologist’s appointment.

Many of the women who have come forward to police claim that Broadbent inappropriately touched their breasts, vaginas and rectums during examinations – often without warning or explanation and in ways that made them feel hurt and abused. Other former patients, as well as many of the women who have gone to police, have also filed lawsuits against Broadbent or the hospitals where he worked. In total, nearly 120 women have made allegations of sexual harassment in civil lawsuits.

Broadbent has agreed to stop practicing medicine while the criminal investigation continues. In a separate civil case, Broadbent’s lawyers have said the allegations of sexual assault against him are “without merit.”

The woman whose report led to the charges saw Broadbent in July 2020. A year and a half later, in December 2021, another former patient of Broadbent spoke publicly on the podcast “Mormon Stories,” describing how painful his examination of her years ago had been and how traumatized she was afterward.

After the podcast aired, several women publicly filed civil lawsuits against Broadbent, accusing him of inappropriate touching.

But in September 2022, a judge dismissed the 94 women’s lawsuit when he ruled that it fell under medical malpractice law rather than a civil sexual assault claim, meaning the lawsuit had shorter filing deadlines – and they missed them. The women have appealed the ruling to the Utah Supreme Court and have now been waiting seven months for its decision.