Former Michigan Medicine pediatric doctor Mark Hoeltzel pleaded no contest to two counts of criminal sexual conduct on Jan. 7 following his 10 year sentencing for enticement of a minor in December, according to an MLive report.
The sexual conduct charges, of second and fourth degree, have an agreed sentence of 5 to 15 years, and 13 months to 2 years respectively. Both state and federal sentences will run concurrently according to the Hoeltzel’s attorney Joseph A. Simon.
Hoeltzel was initially under investigation for a two year sexual relationship with one of his female patients, who was 17 years old when she initially sought care from Hoeltzel.
According to a statement by Marschall Runge, executive vice president of medical affairs and Michigan Medicine CEO, Hoeltzel was immediately terminated from Michigan Medicine upon discovery of the investigation in December 2017.
“These are very disturbing and serious allegations, and we have reached out to our patients to inform them of concerns related to Dr. Hoeltzel, offer resources and provide them with a way to report any concerns,” Runge wrote.
Hoeltzel also had his medical license revoked after it was found he had created a fake Facebook account to engage in conversations with young girls. The investigation found over 300 child pornographic images, some of which had been derived from these Facebook conversations.
Hoeltzel pled guilty to the child exploitation charges in December of 2018, leading to his 10 year prison sentence.
This is a developing story. Please check back at michigandaily.com for more information.