Geneva doctor charged in 2012 St. Charles sexual assault
A Geneva doctor who recently had his license suspended because of accusations of inappropriate relationships with patients was arrested at his practice Tuesday on rape charges.
Mark G. Lewis, 55, formerly of St. Charles and now of the 200 block of Blackberry Drive, Geneva, is accused of raping a woman in November 2012, according to Kane County prosecutors and court records.
He faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted of the most serious charge of aggravated criminal sexual assault.
Prosecutors said Lewis was arrested at about noon at his Geneva practice.
Bail on his arrest warrant has been set at $250,000, meaning he must post $25,000 to be released while the charges are pending. If he is released he cannot consume alcohol and must surrender his passport.
His next court date is July 25.
Lewis is accused of sexually assaulting a woman Nov. 16, 2012, in St. Charles while she slept at his former home on the 0-99 block of Squire Lane.
The woman sued Lewis last year in civil court and the case was settled out of court this spring.
In the lawsuit, the woman, who the Daily Herald is not naming because she may be the victim of a sexual assault, said she woke up at about 4 a.m. to find Lewis next to her with his shirt off.
The woman, whose pants had been removed, was told by Lewis that she had urinated in the bed and he removed her clothes, according to the suit.
The woman suspected she'd been assaulted and went to the police. She was a patient of Lewis' and was sleeping at his home because her boyfriend's mother was romantically involved with Lewis, the suit states.
“On Nov. 16, 2012, the defendant Mark G. Lewis, M.D., engaged in unwanted and inappropriate sexual contact with plaintiff as a result of the physical intrusion or invasion of a sexual nature amounting to assault and battery,” the lawsuit argued. “The aforesaid touching was not part of any standard physician evaluation, examination, diagnosis or treatment and was while the plaintiff was sleeping.”
Efforts to reach Lewis' attorney Tuesday were not successful.
On June 26, the Illinois Department of Professional Regulation suspended Lewis' license for “sexually inappropriate conduct with multiple patients of his practice as well as inappropriate prescribing of controlled substances to numerous individuals.”
Cadence Health also suspended Lewis' doctor privileges at Delnor Hospital July 2 when it became aware of his suspension.
In May 2007 a local doctor, who Lewis had formed a 50-50 corporation with, sued him to dissolve their corporation, according to court records.
Dr. Susan Hamada, who formed a corporation with Lewis in March 2002, wanted a judge to dissolve their corporation. Hamada was in charge of day-to-day operations and personnel; Lewis was in charge of finances, and any check issued required both their signatures, the suit stated.
Hamada accused Lewis of siphoning company money into a private bank account she did not have access to, and refusing to let a third party accounting firm handle their finances. The litigation also said Lewis in 2006 insisted a woman who was a patient of his be hired as a member of the office staff.
“Upon discovering that a romantic relationship existed between Lewis and (the patient/employee), Hamada objected to Lewis having an intimate relationship with a member of the office staff and demanded that Lewis cease such relationship immediately,” the lawsuit stated.
Lewis refused and within 90 days, Hamada sought to have the woman fired for unsatisfactory job performance, but Lewis blocked that move and also withheld Hamada's pay for several months, the lawsuit stated.
Hamada, records show, voluntarily withdrew her lawsuit in January 2008 with the option to reinstate it later. In August 2008, she pushed to undo the dismissal and impose sanctions upon Lewis, but Judge Michael Colwell denied that motion.
Hamada no longer works with Lewis. A message left at Hamada's office was not immediately returned Tuesday.