Healthcare worker sentenced to prison for assaulting a vulnerable patient

The man has been sentenced to prison for a year and a half for abusing his position to obtain sexual intercourse against the patient’s will, writes NRK.

The assaults for which he has been convicted occurred on one and the same night shift in the summer of 2023.

The defendant pleaded not guilty when the case against him was heard in Møre og Romsdal district court and denied that there had been physical contact between him and the patient.

The judgment states, among other things: “The court completely rules out that it was a case of an incipient love relationship or the like. By his conduct, he unduly took advantage of a superior relationship. In its evaluation of the evidence, the court has relied on the victim’s statement in court. The victim’s explanation is credible. In court, she explained herself in detail, but also soberly, about the course of events.”

The judges believe that the woman’s explanation in court is supported by other evidence in the case, including DNA tests of her underwear.

The court emphasizes that the woman was “highly” vulnerable due to her illness, rules out that it was a budding love affair or the like and states that the defendant’s behavior improperly exploited a relationship of superiority.

The judges have also emphasized that the acts were committed in the evening and at night, when there was only one other employee present in the department. “That it was committed at such a time reinforced the victim’s insecurity and powerlessness in the situation,” the judgment states.