AMERICAN FORK — After the judge threw out an early morning motion to decide the case from the bench, an American Fork chiropractor took the stand in his own case and testified about the medical validity of his procedures.
Grant Hildreth, 45, testified Wednesday in American Fork's 4th District Court, where he's charged with six felonies of forcible sex abuse for allegedly touching female patients in a sexual manner at his Alpha Life Chiropractic in American Fork — charges he vehemently denies.
"Did you, in fact, assault these women?" Hildreth's attorney, Carolyn Howard asked him Wednesday.
"I never assaulted these women," Hildreth said immediately. "If I did, I wouldn't be here, I would be taking the plea deal, not sitting here defending myself."
"Did you intend to sexually arouse these women?"
"Not whatsoever," Hildreth said.
Using his wife as a "patient," Hildreth explained the various adjustments, including an anterior rib adjustment — a treatment one victim complained about after the first allegations surfaced.
He wrapped his arms around his wife from behind, and showed the jury how he would insert his thumb between the ribs.
The patient would then lean back into him, and gravity and his hands would help pop the rib back into place with less trauma than adjusting in a supine position, he said. Sometimes he would do this over the clothes, but to be most effective, he said he would slip one hand under the robe.
"As far as doing the adjustment, skin on skin, that's the best way, that's what they've taught us in chiropractic school, the best way to adjust without slippage, causing the least amount of pain or trauma while adjusting them."
He freely admitted that he may have brushed by one of the victim's breasts, which is nearly unavoidable working in that area.
"I always explain to my patient what I'm going to do," he said. "If you're uncomfortable about what I do, let me know, there's other ways to do it."
At one point in his testimony, Hildreth explained to the jury that his license had been revoked in Idaho because of a concern over how he represented a previous criminal conviction on a licensing application.
Attorneys talked with Judge David Mortensen in chambers and argued for several minutes about what questions could be asked regarding a previous felony conviction for sex abuse in Montana in the early 1990s.
On cross examination, prosecutor Alex Ludlow asked one or two questions about the Idaho license, but spent several minutes asking about a police investigation during the time Hildreth lived in Louisiana.
"Why did you get an attorney?" Ludlow asked.
"Because there was an investigation," Hildreth said, and added he wanted to cover all his legal bases. "I didn't know what it was about."
Hildreth testified someone contacted him to get patient records, he freely gave them, got an attorney but never heard anything else.
In another vein of questioning still on cross examination, Hildreth testified that he never initiated any pelvic treatment with the alleged victim, who was also his former receptionist.
He said she came to him numerous times asking for help diagnosing and treating an infection, which he agreed to do. He also agreed to check her breasts for oddities at her request. He now freely admits the pelvic exam was a bad choice and out of his scope of practice, but continues to deny it was sexual in nature.
"She never said (to stop)," Hildreth said. "She knows me so well. She's seen the way I interacted with patients ... all she would have had to say (is 'stop'), 'I don't want that.' I had no other reason to be in there other than to help her."
Hildreth testified he was only trying to help the woman who was having financial difficulties and could not afford a doctor.
Charlyn Bronson, a licensed massage therapist who worked for Hildreth for two years testified Wednesday morning that touching the buttocks during some treatments was not unusual — another procedure an alleged victim complained about.
"If your pelvis is out of line, your whole body will be out of line," Bronson said. "(If) one part of your buttocks is not loose ... it can (cause) all sorts of havoc."
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