More Accusers Want Prison for Yang's OB-GYN

Robert Hadden avoided prison with a plea deal
By Bob Cronin,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 15, 2020 11:30 AM CST
Women Accuse Yang's OB-GYN of Abuse, Call for New Trial
Evelyn Yang said in an interview last month that her Robert Hadden sexually abused her while she was pregnant.   (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

More than 40 women have accused a New York OB-GYN of sexual abuse since Evelyn Yang—whose husband, Andrew, withdrew from the Democratic presidential race this week—said publicly that she is a victim of Robert Hadden. And they're not happy with the way prosecutors handled his case. The women plan to join a civil suit against Hadden. That will make the total of plaintiffs about 70, CNN reports, including two who were 15 and 16 when they say they were abused. But the women also want a new prosecution. Hadden cut a deal with the Manhattan district attorney's office, pleading guilty to two assault counts and avoiding a prison sentence. "I want justice served," said Emilia Heckman, one of the accusers who stepped forward recently. "He's raped, molested all these women and nothing's been done and that makes me furious."

There are also calls to investigate the way Cyrus Vance's office handles the prosecution of sex crimes. Arguing that Hadden's deal reflects a pattern in the treatment of wealthy, white male defendants, the women's caucus of the New York City Council demanded Vance resign. His prosecutors had once recommended that Jeffrey Epstein be given the lowest possible sex offender status, per the New York Times. After the judge refused, Vance called the request a mistake by his staff. Vance also asked that Hadden be given the lowest offender status, and the judge this time agreed. "It is not a one-off," one of the plaintiffs in the Hadden suit said. Vance defended the decisions in both cases. "I think it is inaccurate to suggest that our office is easy on men of privilege because we have charged, with very serious misconduct, many men of privilege," he said. (More Cyrus Vance Jr. stories.)

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