Case dismissed against Corpus Christi OB-GYN accused of sexually assaulting 14 women

Ashlee Burns and Chase Rogers, Corpus Christi Caller Times
·2 min read
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The case against a Corpus Christi OB-GYN accused of sexually assaulting more than a dozen women was dismissed Monday after evidence was allegedly lost by the Nueces County District Attorney's Office.

Three women accused Dr. Juan Villarreal, 71, of sexual assault between November 2015 and February 2018. He was later accused of assaulting a total of 14 women between 2002 and 2018.

The Nueces County Courthouse in Corpus Christi on June 15, 2022.
The Nueces County Courthouse in Corpus Christi on June 15, 2022.

Villarreal's defense attorneys, Lisa Greenberg and Ron Barroso, confirmed the case dismissal Monday afternoon. Court documents show the case was dismissed based on the Richard Miles Act, which requires law enforcement to turn over all evidence.

Barroso praised the judge’s ruling dismissing the case, telling the Caller-Times the “appropriate thing was done” in light of the missing evidence.

“They didn't notify us; we found out through an independent source. It was not until (prosecutors) were confronted that they admitted that they were looking for evidence that they couldn't find,” Barroso said. “That was big.”

Nueces County District Attorney Mark Gonzalez said prosecutors plan to appeal the judge’s ruling.

“We will be respectfully appealing the decision,” he said in a written statement to the Caller-Times.

Villarreal practiced in South Texas for more than two decades before his medical license was indefinitely suspended in February 2019, Texas Medical Board records show. As of Dec. 30, 2022, the regulatory board considered Villarreal delinquent due to nonpayment.

Barroso said Monday's ruling could be a bullet point in a recent petition seeking the removal of Gonzalez as district attorney. Filed last month by a conservative activist, the petition seeks removal on the grounds of "incompetency, official misconduct, and failure to give bond."

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This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Case dismissed against OB-GYN accused of sexually assaulting 14 women