RI Massage Therapist Surrenders License Months After Felony Assault Conviction
Thursday, May 02, 2024
A massage therapist in Rhode Island was arrested in 2022 on a sexual assault charge — and later convicted on an amended charge of "felony assault" in 2023.
Now, he has just surrendered his license, nearly two and half years after the reported incident occurred.
According to the Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH), Michael Dorval, who had been licensed to practice massage in the state since 2011, was the subject of a complaint in 2022 by a patient who alleged he sexually penetrated her during treatment.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTDorval was originally arrested on a felony sexual assault charge — to which he pled not guilty.
The charge was later changed to simply "felony assault," to which he pled no contest, and was granted a suspended sentence and probation.
RIDOH says that Dorval's license had been immediately suspended following the complaint; but due to negotiations with his legal team — they had decided not to revoke his license at the time of his conviction.
RIDOH Order
The consent order signed this week by Dorval and RIDOH says the complainant had alleged the following:
“On or about January 6, 2022, during the course of providing professional massage therapy services, [Dorval] inserted his fingers in the vagina of Patient A,” wrote RIDOH.
“In connection with the conduct at issue in the complaint, Respondent entered a plea of nolo contendere to a charge of felony assault and battery,” RIDOH continued, regarding Dorval's arrest.
Court records show that in September 2023, the original sexual assault charge against Dorval was changed "by consent" to "felony assault," to which he pled nolo.
Dorval had been represented by attorney John Grasso; the state prosecutor was Amy Dodge Murray.
He was given a suspended sentence by Judge Linda Rekas, and also given three years probation, and a no-contact order with the victim.
In surrendering his massage license this week, RIDOH wrote that Dorval “wishes to resolve this matter without an administrative hearing and voluntarily agrees to enter into this Consent order to surrender his license.”
The order goes on to state “nothing shall prohibit the Respondent from re-applying of licensure at a later date.”
“Because respondent has been convicted of felony assault, any such decision to grant licensure shall be made with the complete discretion of the Board consistent with RI General Laws,” wrote RIDOH.
RIDOH Responds to Questions
“Michael Dorval has not been practicing since 2022. He was issued a summary suspension in June of 2022, within days of us receiving a complaint about a sexual assault. (That summary suspension is available here),” said RIDOH spokesperson Joseph Wendelken, was asked for comment by GoLocal.
“In terms of your question about someone continuing to practice after a felony conviction, the statutory language is different for different license types. For massage therapists, the regulations do give the Director the authority to revoke a license after a felony conviction,” said Wendelken. “In the case of Michael Dorval, his health professional license was summarily suspended (meaning that the licensee is immediately prohibited from practicing and cannot practice until further order from RIDOH) before he was convicted of a crime.”
"The summary suspension was the most stringent, immediate measure available to the Director in June of 2022. We cannot immediately revoke someone’s license. They are entitled to due process before a revocation. The person’s license was summarily suspended, meaning that there was no longer a health or safety concern because he could not practice. We then let the legal process run its course, which is typical in cases like these. Once there was a conviction, we revisited the issue of his licensure," said Wendelken.
"After the conviction, with this person still legally prohibited from practicing massage therapy, we were negotiating a disposition with his attorney," said Wendelken. "A revocation at that point would have involved a hearing, which always carries risk. As you noted in another email, there was a change in the charges against this individual. The voluntary surrender was the outcome that we worked towards. "
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