New lawsuit follows separate accusations against Dr. Andy Yongde Zhu by Medical Board of California

DIXON, Calif., Oct. 23, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — In a lawsuit filed today, three Solano County, Calif. women accuse a local medical clinic of ignoring sexual abuse of patients by a doctor formerly employed there, according to their attorneys at Ikuta Hemesath LLP.

The women – Jane Doe 1, Jane Doe 2 and Jane Doe 3 – allege that Andy Yongde Zhu, M.D. abused them during physical examinations in at Dixon Family Practice in Dixon, Calif. The lawsuit alleges sexual battery, medical malpractice, sexual harassment, and gender violence, among other causes of action. The defendants in the lawsuit are  Zhu, and Community Medical Centers, Inc. (“CMC”), doing business as Dixon Family Practice.

Jane Doe 1, Jane Doe 2 and Jane Doe 3 are represented by Vanessa N. Raven, Benjamin T. Ikuta and Nicholas J. Leonard of Ikuta Hemesath LLP, of Santa Ana, Calif.

The lawsuit alleges: “This case involves a medical clinic… whose management chose to allow one of its employee doctors to inappropriately fondle the breasts of and molest young female patients in a terrible pattern of patient abuse… [CMC] knowingly allowed Dr. Zhu to continue to molest young female patients between 2014 and 2020, until finally a 16-year-old victim sought help from law enforcement…The years of sexual abuse by Dr. Zhu were allowed to happen for years while CMC turned a blind eye and allowed it to happen.”

Jane Doe 1, Jane Doe 2 and Jane Doe 3, who were between the ages of 18 and 26 when the incidents occurred in 2014 and 2015, reported them to CMC and no action was taken, the lawsuit alleges.

The lawsuit follows the filing of allegations against Zhu by the California Attorney General’s Office on behalf of the Medical Board of California on August 2, 2023, accusing Zhu of sexual exploitation and sexual misconduct.

Attorney Vanessa N. Raven, of Ikuta Hemesath LLP, said, “The courage of Jane Doe 1, Jane Doe 2 and Jane Doe 3 should be acknowledged. Reporting sexual abuse allegations is difficult enough, but for them to be ignored, as they were, is deeply troubling. The question remains: How many victims of abuse are out in the community? For that reason, our investigation continues.”

Jane Doe 1 said, “For years I wondered why Zhu was simply allowed to behave this way, but the state medical board investigation this year was good news. Now, with our lawsuit, I’m now hopeful the justice system will finally address this terrible situation. For everyone who endured this abuse, we deserve to be heard.”

The case is Jane Doe 1, Jane Doe 2, and Jane Doe 3, vs. Community Medical Centers, Inc., doing business as Dixon Family Practice; Andy Yongde Zhu, M.D.; and Does 1 through 50, Inclusive, Case No. CU23-04854 in the Superior Court of the State of California for the County of Solano.

Media Contact: Erin Powers, Powers MediaWorks LLC, for Ikuta Hemesath LLP, [email protected], 281.703.6000.

SOURCE Ikuta Hernesath LLP