2/1/2008

in

Pharmacist pretending to be gynecologist gets off scot-free.

ray anderson

The Associated Press is reporting that, in Springfield, Mass., charges are being dropped against a local pharmacist accused of pretending to be a gynecologist and then sexually assaulting women.  
  
Nicholas Creanza is accused of luring women into the back room of his pharmacy for medical exams.  
  
Last May, the Supreme Judicial Court ruled that, under a 50-year-old state law (that needs to be changed yesterday), assault can't be considered rape if consent is obtained through fraud or deceit. Rape must be by force and against the will of the victim, the justices said.  
  
That decision/law is based on the case of a Westfield, Mass. man who impersonated his brother and raped his brother's girlfriend in a darkened room.  
  
Jack St. Clair, Creanza's attorney, says his client has denied the charges from the very beginning, and plans to return to work at the pharmacy.  
  
It's truly sad to think that such laws still exist in this day and age.