Monday, November 13, 2006

Psychiatrist charged in sex case

As seen in this report

A Wauwatosa psychiatrist has been charged with having repeated sexual contact with one of his patients.

Charles Michael Grade, 43, faces three counts of sexual exploitation by a therapist, a felony punishable by up to 12½ years in prison. County jail records indicated Friday evening that Grade was in jail and that no bail had been set.

Grade has been a licensed psychiatrist since 1991, according to state records. He did his residency at the Sinai Samaritan Medical Center and is listed as a consulting psychiatrist at the Marquette University Counseling Center.

He was arrested Wednesday, just hours after what a criminal complaint charges was his third sexual contact with the same patient. Grade's practice is listed at 1220 N. Dewey Ave. He lives in Milwaukee.

According to the complaint filed Friday, Grade had sex with a female patient shortly after she began seeing him in June 2005. She saw him as a patient once a month from then forward, the complaint says, and she told detectives that they had sexual contact "during a number of their therapy sessions," including occurrences in early October and again Wednesday.

The complaint also indicates Grade spoke with a detective Wednesday evening and admitted "a sexual conversation . . . that he knew was inappropriate," and touching his patient, that day.

This raises interesting questions, such as:

- What contact has Grade had with Marquette students?
- Has Grade ever been allowed to be alone with Marquette students?
- What is the hiring process and depth of psychological evaluation of Marquette counselors, not to mention staff in general?

Has there been an ongoing problem at the Marquette University Counseling Center?

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