Former Valley Mental Health therapist Philip J. Wyckoff admits having sex with a patient but denies she was under hypnosis at the time and denies it was rape.
"Nobody questions he acted inappropriately as her therapist, and he is remorseful about that," said Wyckoff's attorney, Ross C. Anderson. "But no way was it rape."Wyckoff, 54, says the woman seduced him for purposes of extorting money through a civil lawsuit.
Prosecutors allege Wyckoff sexually assaulted the woman after putting her under hypnosis last May 1 at the West Valley offices of Valley Mental Health, which contracts with Salt Lake County for psychiatric services.
The Holladay man was charged with rape and forcible sodomy. Because the Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office contracts with Wyckoff's former employers for victim and witness counselors, the case was referred to the Utah Attorney General's Office.
Meanwhile, the patient has filed suit in 3rd District Court against Wyckoff and Valley Mental Health.
Last week, another patient filed a similar suit claiming she was sexually molested during therapy sessions. No charges have been filed in that case, but an investigation is continuing, prosecutors said.
Wyckoff denies touching the second woman in a sexual manner, Anderson said.
The first woman had been seeing Wyckoff for about three years for personal and family problems when she began to suspect Wyckoff was making sexual contact with her during hypnotic-relaxation sessions, according to charging documents filed in 3rd Circuit Court.
The woman said that after the May 1 session, she recalled Wyckoff performing sex acts and then having sexual intercourse with her, charges state. She went to a hospital and tests confirmed the presence of seminal fluid.
When West Valley police confronted Wyckoff, he denied any sexual contact with the woman. When detectives said the semen contained no spermatozoa, Wyckoff, who had a vasectomy, changed his story. He said the sex was consensual and denied the woman was under hypnosis.
In a countersuit filed last week, he alleged the woman slandered and inflicted emotional distress upon him. Wyckoff also says the woman set him up for monetary gain.
Wyckoff alleges that the woman came to his office wearing "provocative underwear and carrying herself in a provocative manner." The woman unzipped his pants and they engaged in consensual sexual intercourse, he says.
At the time, Wyckoff was an administrator with Valley Mental Health and had practiced with the facility for 22 years. He has a doctorate in marriage and family therapy. He is married.
Wyckoff resigned July 19 when his superiors were informed of the allegations. His attorney said Wyckoff has agreed to a temporary suspension of his counseling license. Other action may be taken by licensing officials.