Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
A Warsaw physician's conviction in 1995 of child molesting was reversed Monday by the Indiana Court of Appeals.
Dr. Willard Hagenmeyer III was convicted in December 1995 on one count of child molesting and one count of sexual misconduct. He was accused of improperly touching three teenage girls while giving them sports physicals at the Convenience Clinic in Warsaw in October 1994.
Hagenmeyer claimed that he never improperly touched the girls and that he was checking for hernias and pregnancies.
The Appeals Court based its decision on the fact that the jury listened to a tape of the testimony while it was deliberating, and that, even though he asked to be present when the jury heard the tape, Hagenmeyer's request was overruled.
While he was not in the courtroom when the jury heard the tape, a bailiff and court reporter were present. However, Hagenmeyer argued that the bailiff and court reporter were not obligated to protect his interests.
The Appeals Court said that Hagenmeyer's "forced absence from the courtroom gives rise to a presumption of prejudicial error."
"The Court of Appeals hung its decision on a hypertechnical issue that does not touch on the truth or the merits of the conviction," Kosciusko County Prosecutor David Kolbe said this morning. "We are still satisfied that the jury was correct in its decision."
Kolbe said he hopes the state takes the case to the Supreme Court.
In a prepared statement, Hagenmeyer said he was "greatly relieved by the overturning of this wrongful conviction." He said he was targeted because he is a physician and that he has "the capacity to forgive others who were taken by the sensationalism and misinformation in this matter."
After a four-day jury trial, Hagenmeyer, 38, was sentenced to 18 months in prison for the Class D felony sexual misconduct charge and received a four-year suspended sentence for the Class C felony child molesting.
In May 1996 Hagenmeyer asked for permission for a public defender to appeal his convictions. His request was granted by Senior Judge Richard Sand.
Hagenmeyer was released from prison Aug. 27, 1996, and his license to practice medicine was reinstated with restrictions in October. He was told he could practice only on patients who are age 18 and older, and he must have someone else present in the room when examining women.
Any changes on the license restrictions are up to the Indiana Medical Licensing Board now that his conviction has been overturned.
At the time of his trial, Hagenmeyer was on probation from a 1994 Noble County conviction for abuse of controlled drugs.
