Madsen
A Franklin chiropractor has been charged with four counts of sexual battery involving patients.
Erik Romer Madsen, 59, who operates Mountain View Chiropractic & Wellness Center on Sloan Road, was arrested Nov. 15 and released after posting a $10,000 bond.
Madsen was also charged with four counts of assault on a female. Both charges are misdemeanors.
“I am innocent,” Madsen said by phone on Monday. “I haven’t retained a lawyer yet. Until I do, that’s all I can say.”
Franklin Police Chief David Adams said the investigation is continuing and that more charges are possible.
“We’ve had at least seven people file complaints so far,” Adams said, confirming that the alleged victims were patients at Mountain View Chiropractic. “We’ve been investigating for several months, and we’ve been working with the district attorney’s office from the get-go.”
North Carolina criminal code describes sexual battery as “sexual contact with another person by force or against the will of the other person [or if the other person] is mentally disabled, mentally incapacitated or physically helpless.”
Both charges – sexual battery and assault on a female – are class A1 misdemeanors punishable by a maximum jail term of up to 150 days.
Madsen’s first court appearance is set for Jan. 8, 2020 in district court.