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Multiple lawsuits filed against former Bluffs Pediatrician

News

September 21st, 2014 by Ric Hanson

Thirteen families have joined a civil lawsuit against a former Council Bluffs pediatrician who was sentenced Aug. 15th to 10-years in prison for possessing child pornography. The Daily NonPareil reports the families assert in the lawsuit Dennis Seaborn Jones allegedly recorded videos of the patients’ private areas during his examination of the patients. The lawsuit also names Methodist Physicians Clinic, where the former pediatrician practiced.

Court documents showed Jones possessed an estimated 1.2 million images of child pornography and 9,300 videos of child pornography. Included among the files were videos of 24 to 30 patients made secretly by the then-doctor using a pen camera. Jones allegedly shot the videos during what he purported to be necessary medical examinations, done without the consent of the patients, the children’s parents or Methodist Physicians Clinic. At his federal sentencing Jones admitted to recording the videos at the clinic, saying he planned to use them for educational purposes.

On Aug. 20, Fourth District Court Judge Richard Davidson found Jones guilty of lascivious acts with a child, a Class C felony, for actions involving a 5-year-old girl. Jones was sentenced to 10 years on the charge, which will be served at the same time as the federal sentence.

Attorney Randy Shanks, who’s representing the families in the civil suit, said the matter is in the discovery phase, with both sides requesting documents and other evidence from each other. In the court filing, the plaintiffs request punitive damages.