Doctor had trail of troubles before assault accusations exposed past rape conviction
By Scott Dance, The Baltimore Sun | |
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services |
Then 26, English started as a medical assistant for Dr.
She learned more from a departing colleague who texted: "I think you might want to take a look at this." Attached was a link to a news article from Dando's days as a medical resident in
Though the article could be found on the Internet with just a few keystrokes, Dando's criminal past was unknown to state health officials until this spring, when a patient at an urgent care center near
Now, as Dando prepares to stand trial for those allegations, new details from a
That conviction went unnoticed when he applied for a prestigious
"How in God's name does someone like this get a license to practice medicine?" said
Neither Dando nor his lawyer,
Another woman sued Dando claiming a similar assault last year, and health officials say another woman complained Dando touched her inappropriately in January, making at least three allegations of sexual assault in the past year from the 60-year-old's patients at the urgent care center where he worked.
Meanwhile, the Dando case has raised questions about how well the state of
Reforms are being drafted to tighten up a state licensing system that
Regulators never looked into Dando's vague disclosure that he had "assaulted someone." State officials don't know why that happened, though an inspector general's investigation into the matter began in June.
Dando's disclosure was a far cry from his contrite statements years earlier, as he waited for a
"I think that whatever your judgment, it will be less than what I deserve," Dando told the judge at the
Born in 1954 in the western
But he never finished his training there. Although the internship began in
Dando had traveled more than 200 miles from
At
"Who's there?" she asked, according to her account to police.
"You don't know me," Dando answered.
When she screamed, he threatened to hurt her or her daughter. He pointed a gun at her and told her to take off her clothes. When she did it too slowly, he did it for her, she said in the report.
As he raped her, he asked questions, she told police. Where did she work? How old was she? "He stated that I was married and wanted me to confirm that," she said.
"During one of his conversations, I asked him why he had the gun," she wrote in curvy cursive handwriting. "He said it was his security. I asked him what my security was and he said I had none."
He kept the gun aimed at her as he asked for Vaseline, and after hesitating, he went to the bathroom to get it -- and the woman made her escape. She got a glimpse of his face in the bathroom mirror before running down the hallway, screaming for help.
In his rush to flee, Dando left a key piece of evidence on her bedroom floor: his wallet. In a matter of hours, an
At his
State guidelines suggested a prison sentence of 12 to 17 years for burglary and sexual battery with the threat of a deadly weapon. But a guilty plea from a remorseful Dando, a letter of apology he sent to the victim and 41 supportive letters from his relatives and friends prompted the judge to limit the sentence to 10 years.
Dando wasn't imprisoned that long, though. As a sex offender, he was ineligible for parole. But he was a model inmate, with no disciplinary sanctions. He worked as a canteen manager and later an administrative clerk at several prisons, according to
He was a free man on
Within two years of his release from prison, Dando was treating patients as a resident at the
It's unlikely that any background check was conducted when Dando applied and was accepted for the residency, officials at the
Being "of good moral character" is the first qualification
Dando's admission to the
But such an admission should also trigger an investigation before a license is awarded, officials said.
That background check never occurred, a misstep that is now the subject of the inspector general's probe.
Dando's early years practicing did not raise any red flags. He and his wife bought a home on
After a divorce in 2003 -- his wife accused him of adultery and abandonment -- he moved to another part of the town and remarried.
The American Board of Family Medicine certified Dando in 1997, and he held the distinction until
Some patients said he never raised concern.
"He was always very courteous and very nice," said
Others who knew Dando described him as a bohemian free spirit.
Before long, trouble surfaced for Dando.
In 2009, the
Dando maintained his board certification even while on probation because the sanctions did not violate the board's policies, said
About that time, one of Dando's patients died of a prescription drug overdose, according to a wrongful death lawsuit the woman's family filed against him in 2013. The lawsuit alleges that Dando began prescribing narcotics including percocet and oxycodone to the
Dando denied responsibility in a court filing. The trial, twice postponed, is now scheduled for
Dando had meanwhile been contracted to provide breast and cervical cancer screenings for the
Patients and neighbors said they noticed changes in Dando amid the turmoil.
"We thought a lot of him, but at the same time he was getting a little too liberal with some of the medicines he was giving me," said patient Missy Blucher. She said he prescribed as much as 40 milligrams of Valium each day for her post-traumatic stress disorder, and told her he gave other patients more. Typical daily dosages can range from 4 milligrams to 40 milligrams, according to the
In 2011, Dando began expanding his business into cosmetic procedures, but the
Dando filed for personal bankruptcy in October, listing
A new job at MedExpress in LaVale offered a fresh start for Dando last year. The company had expanded rapidly, growing from locations in four states in 2011 to nearly a dozen states this year. As part of its hiring process, it contracted with a third party to conduct background checks of Dando and all employees -- a system it is scrutinizing to see where improvements can be made, spokeswoman
But less than a year after Dando's hire, the company said it fired him when a woman told police he performed a pelvic exam behind a locked door, without a female chaperone present. She was visiting the facility over concerns of an ear infection, Delaney, the woman's lawyer, said. Dando examined the woman without wearing gloves, asking her "if it hurt or felt good," she told investigators, according to a
The board investigation revealed in June that another woman had complained Dando touched her inappropriately. Last month, a third woman made similar allegations in a lawsuit filed in
Soon, state health leaders expect to recommend policy changes designed to close loopholes that allowed Dando to continue practicing medicine in
"While most physicians have the moral character to tell the truth, it's particularly in the cases of individuals who have committed egregious crimes that they may not tell the truth," Singh said. "It almost defeats the point."
Timeline
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