Virginia doctor pleads no contest to assaulting assistant
ARLINGTON, Va. - A northern Virginia doctor, whose employee accused him of abusing her, pleaded no contest to assault and battery charges Wednesday inside an Arlington County District Court.
Dr. Haroon Rashin's one-year sentencing was deferred, but the judge ordered him to do 50 hours of community service outside the medical profession. He's also not allowed to come in contact with his former assistant, Whitney Grant, and is required to take an anger management course. If he does not comply, Dr. Rashid could face up to 12 months in jail.
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Virginia doctor caught on camera allegedly assaulting employee
A northern Virginia doctor is accused of assaulting one of his own employees, and now he is facing criminal charges.
"Dr. Rashid's ‘no contest' plea is the first instance of accountability by Dr. Rashid for his violent and inexcusable attack on my client," said Justin Fairfax, Grant's attorney. "Dr. Rashid's out-of-control temper and outrageous and violent conduct were captured on video by Ms. Grant and witnessed by several other people, including waiting patients. A doctor's office is the last place anyone would expect to be assaulted and battered, especially at the hands of the doctor himself. Others awaiting medical care who witnessed Dr. Rashid's violent conduct recorded the event, called for emergency help or fled for the office in fear."
"No one should be treated the way my client (Ms. Grant) was treated in a doctor's office or any place else," Fairfax added.
Grant, according to her attorney, has suffered severe and lasting physical, psychological, financial, and emotional harm due to the assault.
The argument between Dr. Rashid and Grant unfolded at the Vista Medical Center located at 320 23rd Street in Arlington. It allegedly started after Grant asked her former boss how to properly move a patient onto a table.
"I didn’t expect to be treated like that, especially at work. And he’s not only my employer, he’s also my personal physician, so that really just added insult to injury," Grant told FOX 5 in an exclusive interview before the sentencing.
Her attorney says she plans to file a civil lawsuit related to the assault and battery charges Dr. Rashid pleaded no contest to.