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Back in August, I wrote about a Boston Doctor who was arrested on a Hawaiian Airlines flight for allegedly exposing himself and masturbating in front of a 14-year-old girl. A criminal complaint has charged him with “lewd, indecent and obscene acts while in the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States.” If convicted, this would have carried a penalty of up to 90 days in prison, up to one year of supervised release, and up to a $5,000 fine, but the doctor was recently found not guilty.
The New York Post reported that Dr. Sudipta Mohanty, 33, of Cambridge was arrested in August related to an incident that happened on a flight from May 2022. Mohanty was flying from Honolulu Daniel K. Inouye International Airport (HNL) to Boston Logan International Airport (BOS) on Hawaiian Airlines flight HA90. According to the charging documents, he was seated next to a 14-year-old girl who was traveling with her grandparents.
Mohanty allegedly used a blanket to cover himself up to his neck while he bounced his leg up and down. The teenager then allegedly observed the blanket on the floor while Mohanty was openly masturbating. When Monhanty went to the lavatory, she quickly moved to an open seat and told her family what happened after arriving in Boston. Law enforcement was also called.
A judge cleared Dr. Mohanty of any wrongdoing this week after a three-day trial in Boston federal court. After being indicted in September, the doctor opted for a bench trial, which means he appeared before a judge without a jury. According to The New York Post, prosecutors said they were disappointed with the case’s outcome.
Claudia Lagos, the doctor’s lawyer, said in a statement:
Dr. Mohanty is a talented and dedicated medical doctor. He has absolutely no history of wrongdoing whatsoever. The last six months have been a bizarre nightmare for him, and he is relieved this is finally over so that he can rebuild his life.”
Anthony’s Take: When this first surfaced, it seemed pretty damning for the doctor. But, he had his day in court and was found not guilty. Hopefully, all involved will be able to move forward.
(Image Credit: Beth Israel Lahey Health via The New York Post.)
(Featured Image Credit: Hawaiian Airlines.)
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6 comments
I’d like to know what was presented in court by both sides. Either he did as described or the plaintiffs really got it wrong.
His name was smeared. He should have been put on trial but his name withheld.
if he didn’t do it, he should counter sue the family that accused him. False accusations can have a serious damage for people but often it is not well pursued. I was once falsely accused of gender harassment by a lady who was jealous and it was a night mare. In the end, my supervisor said, just to clear things off and not have it on my record, I had to apologize (in person to her) for something I didn’t do at all. I still remember the bitter and sad feeling of that time, especially her winning and happy face. I felt sad for her as well. I have quite a few colleagues who have been falsely accused and got cleared but the process with HR will just break you down. Some families were separated. Luckily,
my apology was enough for her, probably she knew that her argument had no ground. What is also sad is that the real predators at my previous place never got any severe punishment even though everyone knew what was going on.
A white girl accusing a minority of a sexual act that didnt happen – that never ever happens in America right?
The bench trial makes this more muddled. I have to wonder if the defendant had lawyers who decided that their client was guilty and would be found so in a jury trial but if it was up to a judge on purely legal grounds he would more likely elude conviction. This has nothing to do with his ethnicity but the legal recourse he chose.
And what happened to Emmett Till had nothing to do with his ethnicity either.