Police arrest former USC gynecologist molested women students

A doctor was charged with sexually assaulting 16 young women over the course of seven years while he worked as a gynecologist at the University of Southern California, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office announced.
Dr. George Tyndall, 71, is accused of sexual misconduct targeting students, especially those of Asian descent, authorities said in a statement released Wednesday (June 26).

Tyndall is accused of sexually assaulting 16 female students at a campus health center. The victims, who range in age from 17 to 29, went to the facility for annual exams or for other treatment, prosecutors said.

Daniella Mohazab, who says the gynecologist assaulted her in 2016, called the arrest "a huge step in moving forward."

"I broke down at work today in tears of happiness that Tyndall is behind bars," said the Filipina American during a news conference with her attorney, Gloria Allred. "I cannot explain how scared I felt walking around with the thought that I could run into Tyndall at any moment, in a grocery store, coffee shop or park."

The alleged incidents occurred between 2009 and 2016, according to the criminal complaint.

When detectives took Tyndall into custody, they found a loaded pistol on him, but arrested him without resistance. Tyndall complained of chest pains to detectives and was taken to a local hospital to be treated.

Once he is released from the hospital, police will book and process him, Moore said. Bail has been set a $2.1 million for Tyndall.

Prosecutors are recommending bail be set at $2.075 million. If convicted as charged, Tyndall faces a possible maximum sentence of 53 years in state prison.

The Los Angeles Police Department has presented 134 crime reports involving the defendant and the investigation remains ongoing, according to a LAPD press release.

In their complaint, prosecutors charged the doctor with 18 counts of sexually penetrating a person while she was unconscious and 11 counts of sexual battery by fraud for touching an “intimate part” of a patient “for the purpose of sexual arousal” and under the guise of a “professional purpose.”

GEORGE DYNDALL

Tyndall's defense lawyer, Andrew Flier, said his client will fight all charges.

"We look forward to proving his innocence," Flier told NBC News.

Tyndall spent about three decades as a USC staff gynecologist, but retired in 2017 after an internal investigation concluded there was evidence he sexually harassed or abused students during physical examinations.

As early as the 1990s, coworkers and patients accused the gynecologist of inappropriate behavior. Coworkers alleged the doctor had been inappropriately photographing students' genitals. Patients and nursing staff repeatedly accused him of "creepy" behavior, the newspaper reported.

Tyndall's questionable behavior is alleged to have gone on for decades until 2016, when a nurse finally turned to the campus rape crisis center, leading to Tyndall's suspension. 

An internal investigation carried out that same year concluded that Tyndall had "violated the university's policy on harassment by making repeated racially discriminatory and sexually inappropriate remarks during patient encounters," USC said in a summary of its findings, published online on May 15. 

Many of his alleged victims were of Asian descent.

Tyndall has denied the allegations and USC has denied accusations of a cover-up.

Nearly 100 women, who said they were sexually harassed or abused by Tyndall, filed a lawsuit in October 2018 against USC. The school agreed to settle the lawsuit in February for $215 million and promised to institute campus reforms on preventing and reporting sexual abuse.

In August, 2018, USC President C. L. Max Nikias stepped down in the wake of the criticism arising from the sex-abuse allegations.

Los Angeles Police Chief Michel Moore told reporters that 12 detectives were assigned to the 18-month investigation. While charges were filed for 16 women, Moore said that more than 350 women stepped forward.

Arraignment will be scheduled for a later date in Department 30 of the Foltz Criminal Justice Center.

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Sunday Read: USC gynocologist targeted Asian women in inappropriate examinations

WARNING: Story contains strong graphic descriptions.

SCREEN CAPTURE / CNN

During a press conference last spring, Daniella Mohazab described her examination by Dr. George Tyndall.

ASAM NEWS

A TOTAL OF 93 WOMEN have joined two new lawsuits against a gynecologist who worked at the University of Southern California for 30 years, reports CNN.
Dr. George Tyndall is accused of inappropriate touching, sexual abuse and harassment. Many of his victims were allegedly Asian.

“He told me that Filipinas are good in bed,” said Daniella Mohazab at a news conference. “He also said that Filipinas are devoted to their partners and they don’t sleep with many people in their lifetime. He asked intimate sexual details about me and then related my answers to my being Filipina and saying I guess that’s because you’re mixed. He had a creepy smile. He told me to undress from the bottom down and he stood there watching while I did so. And he smiled.”

Because many of the women who have come forward are Asian, the Chinese government has been critical of the university’s handling of the case, according to the South China Morning Post. USC regularly recruits in China for applicants and has a significant Chinese population on campus.

“We are aware of the lawsuits. We will be seeking a prompt and fair resolution that is respectful of our former students. We are committed to providing the women of USC with the best, most thorough and respectful health care services of any university.”

In August, Tyndall agreed to the suspension of his medical license until his case could be resolved. He has denied all allegations.

“He firmly believes that when all the facts are known, and experts in the field of gynecology and obstetrics are consulted, it will be determined (that) his examinations of students at USC were for the stated medical purpose, and consistent with the standard of care for such examinations,” Tyndall’s attorney, Leonard Levine said in a statement in July.

The two lawsuits announced Friday are one of many that have been filed in this case.

One of the plaintiffs described as Jane Doe 128 said she saw Tyndall on at least four separate occasions between 2013 until in or around 2016, according to CNN. She claims while forcing his fingers inside her, Tyndall made racist comments about her ethnicity and described characteristics of the vaginas of Asian women.

Jane Doe 128 alleges she asked a USC-employed nurse who was present during her appointments about Tyndall's behavior and whether it was normal, "the nurse dismissed Jane Doe 128's concerns, telling her that Tyndall was "just really friendly." 

Others like Jane Does 112, 113 and 127 also claim there was a USC-employed chaperone in the room who saw everything but said nothing.

In May, the Huff Post reported that former grad student Lucy Chi said in a lawsuit that Tyndall “moved his fingers in and out of her vagina” and “took off his gloves and began squeezing her breasts, fondling her in an atypical way” that was “very different than the way physicians typically use their finger pads to check for any irregularities in a woman’s breasts.
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