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Doctor Accused Of Fondling 2 Charged With Battery

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By TODD LESKANIC

The Tampa Tribune

Published: June 4, 2008

NEW PORT RICHEY - A local doctor accused of inappropriately touching female patients now faces criminal charges.

The Pasco-Pinellas State Attorney's Office has charged Gunwant S. Dhaliwal with two counts of misdemeanor battery, a crime punishable by up to a year in county jail.

Dhaliwal, 46, of Trinity, is accused of fondling the breasts of two women who were in his offices in February and May of 2007. The women's names are being withheld by the Tribune because of the nature of the allegations. Both are plaintiffs in separate lawsuits against Dhaliwal filed in Pasco-Pinellas Circuit Court last year.

The lawsuits are pending.

"I just think it's a step in the right direction for both of my clients to receive justice for what they've been through," said their attorney, Michael Feiner.
Dhaliwal operates the Gulf View Walk-in Clinics in New Port Richey, Holiday and Spring Hill. He is board-certified in internal medicine and opened his practice in 1993. State records list his license as active and show no disciplinary record. Dhaliwal also holds staff privileges at hospitals in Hudson, Spring Hill and Tarpon Springs.

A woman who answered the phone at Dhaliwal's Spring Hill office on Tuesday referred calls to Clearwater lawyer Joe Tsombanidis, who represents Dhaliwal in the civil cases.

"Dr. Dhaliwal denies the civil claims and the criminal charges, which are all related, and we're going to defend these claims in court," Tsombanidis said. He declined to comment further.

Dhaliwal's troubles have only worsened since the two Pasco County women came forward with their allegations. In April, a woman in Hernando County filed a lawsuit against him with almost identical allegations. Dhaliwal has not been charged criminally in that case.

A third Pasco woman who filed suit against him last year voluntarily dismissed her case in March. Feiner said he could not comment on the reasons for the dismissal because he no longer represents her.

These are not the first times Dhaliwal has had to defend himself against claims of inappropriate touching. In 2001, two former employees filed separate lawsuits against him - one in federal court, one in state court - saying they were subjected to unwanted touching while working for Dhaliwal. Both women settled their cases in 2002.

A 31-year-old New Port Richey woman filed a report with police in 2001, saying Dhaliwal grabbed her breasts while he was examining her. That woman didn't file a lawsuit, and the report didn't lead to charges.

Reporter Todd Leskanic can be reached at (352) 521-3156 or tleskanic@tampatrib.com.

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