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Former MGH medical assistant sentenced for sexually assaulting patients
Damien Knighton, 41, of East Boston, will serve nine to 12 years for sexually assaulting four patients by conducting unauthorized genital and rectal exams.
A former medical assistant has been sentenced to nine to 12 years in state prison for sexually assaulting four male patients at a Massachusetts General Hospital care center, the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office announced Friday.
Damien Knighton, 41, of East Boston, was found guilty earlier this month on six counts of indecent assault and battery on a person over 14. Knighton was arrested in January 2023 after a patient reported that a medical assistant at the Massachusetts General Hospital Back Bay Health Center on Commonwealth Avenue had sexually assaulted him. Following that report, others came forward with similar claims that Knight had conducted unauthorized genital and rectal exams after their physicians had seen them.
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Judge Debra Squires-Lee said four of the charges were “of the most egregious character” because they involved penetration of the victims.
“The defendant used his position and status to facilitate commission of the offenses. The use of his position as a medical assistant to commit these crimes caused the victims additional emotional and psychic pain. They trusted the defendant and that trust was abused,” Squires-Lee said.
One of the victims read an impact statement in court and two other impact statements were read by Assistant District Attorney Rita Claire Muse.
“The last two-plus years have taken a toll on me both personally and professionally,” one of the victims said in court. “The level of embarrassment, shame, anger and guilt I have felt are at a level I never thought I could feel. I am a very private person and the fact that I had to stand up here and show my face and admit this happened has been the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do in my life.”
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After listening to the victim impact statements, Squires-Lee said: “I’m just going to tell you three things. You’re brave, the shame is not yours. You were misled, you were lied to, you did not deserve what happened to you. And third, you will heal with love and support.”
“The jury heard the voices and the stories of these victims and returned the right verdict, and Judge Squires-Lee today sent an understanding and compassionate message to the victims while handing down an appropriate sentence to the defendant. I thank these victims for their courage in coming forward with what happened to them,” Suffolk District Attorney Kevin Hayden said.
Knighton’s sentence will be followed by three years of probation and lifetime banishment from the medical field in Massachusetts, according to the DA’s office. He must also register with the Massachusetts Sex Offender Registry Board.
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