Army gynecologist took secret videos of patients during intimate exams lawsuit says

ppp news AlertsppThere are no new alerts at this timeppAt least 25 women have been contacted by Army criminal investigators after they found photos and videos on Dr Blaine McGraws devices a military official told NBC NewsppAn Army gynecologist took secret intimate videos of a patient under his care at Fort Hood in Texas according to a lawsuit filed MondayppThe lawsuit says that the woman is believed to be one of scores who were preyed upon by Dr Blaine McGraw and that Army leadership had allowed him to continue practicing despite receiving sexual misconduct complaints dating back years ppBy doing so the Army gave cover to a predator in uniform says the lawsuit which was filed in Bell County District CourtppMcGraw has been suspended and is under investigation by the Army Criminal Investigation Division or CID according to a statement on Fort Hoods media center website It said potentially affected patients would be contacted by the investigatorsppAt least 25 women have been contacted by Army criminal investigators after they found photos and videos on McGraws electronic devices showing female body parts a military official told NBC News The lawsuit says the allegations against McGraw also include inappropriate touching crude remarks and performing unnecessary proceduresppThe woman filed the lawsuit under the name Jane Doe to protect her identity She is married to an active duty service member with more than 20 years in uniform according to her lawyer Andrew Cobos He said hes representing more than 45 women who have approached him with claims against McGraw ppUpon information and belief investigators recovered thousands of photographs and videos from his phone taken over the course of multiple years depicting scores of female patients many of whom remain unidentified the lawsuit saysppThe plaintiff in the case learned about the covertly recorded videos last month when she received a call from Army investigators asking her to come in for an interview the lawsuit says They informed her that McGraw had secretly filmed multiple female patients during their appointments the lawsuit saysppDuring the subsequent meeting the CID investigators presented to her several frame grabs taken from videos recovered from McGraws phone images that unmistakably depicted her body during an examination that took place three days earlier the lawsuit says ppThe investigators told her that McGraw had recorded nearly the entirety of her final appointment including both the breast and pelvic examinations without her knowledge or consent the lawsuit saysppOnce the interview was over the investigators gave the woman a pamphlet containing the phone numbers of various Army departments She left the meeting disoriented and disarrayedppShe sat in her parked car and cried the lawsuit says Her sense of safety had been shatteredppIn a statement to NBC News the woman said learning that she had been filmed without her consent left her feeling violated exposed and afraidppIts a wound that doesnt heal she added How can anyone feel safe again when the very institution meant to protect them becomes the source of their traumappDaniel Conway an attorney for McGraw said in a statement that the doctor has been fully cooperative with the investigationppWeve expressed to the government our concern that plaintiffs attorneys are holding press conferences citing inaccurate information apparently learned from government sources Conway added At this point its best to let the investigation complete before we commentppThe Army referred to the statement released by Fort Hood which was posted to its website Oct 28 ppIt said the CID launched an investigation within hours of a patients allegations against this former medical provider Fort Hood officials are contacting all of the doctors patients and providing them with the number for a dedicated call center to answer any questions the statement addedppIn a subsequent statement provided to NBC News after this story was published Fort Hood said the doctor was suspended on Oct 17 the same day it learned of a patients allegations and leadership met with the patient personally ppIn addition to the criminal investigation from Army CID multiple additional investigations are underway to examine all facets of the issue including systems clinical processes policies and other areas the statement added These investigations are intended to ensure that the rigorous standards in place were followedppCobos said hes also planning to file a federal claim against the Army ppMajor Blaine McGraw used his uniform and his position as an Army doctor to prey on the very women who trusted him for care Cobos said in a statement The Army received repeated warnings and still chose to protect its reputation instead of the safety of its service members their wives and their daughtersppThis isnt the first time the Army or officials at Fort Hood have been accused of ignoring or downplaying reports of sexual harassment or misconduct ppOne of the most highprofile recent cases involved an Army specialist based at Fort Hood named Vanessa Guillén After she was killed by a fellow soldier in 2020 an Army report found that the 20yearold soldier had been sexually harassed by a supervisor but unit leadership took no action ppBefore he began practicing at the Texas base McGraw treated patients at Tripler Army Medical Center in Hawaii beginning in 2019 according to the lawsuit One of his female patients there filed a complaint alleging that he had secretly recorded her pelvic examination on his cellphone the lawsuit saysppRather than investigate or remove him from patient care McGraws chain of command dismissed the complaint laughed it off and allowed him to continue practicing medicine the lawsuit saysppIt accuses McGraw of preying on his patients in various ways In one case McGraw induced the labor of a pregnant patient against her wishes the lawsuit says In another he told a patient during an examination that her vagina looks pretty touched her sexual organs for no medical reason and made sexually suggestive remarks according to the lawsuit He referred to that patients clitoris for instance as her happy spot the lawsuit saysppThe allegations represent the tip of the iceberg in a widening scandal that has left scores of military wives and daughters violated voiceless and searching for answers the lawsuit says ppBefore she met with CID investigators the military spouse said in her lawsuit she had been seen by McGraw about seven to eight times She went to the Carl R Darnall Army Medical Center where he practiced for treatment of pelvic pain hormone irregularities and concerns about uterine health the lawsuit saysppAfter one procedure performed under sedation McGraw made a comment about seeing all of her tattoos which existed on parts of her body that he had no reason to look at according to the lawsuit In another instance McGraw made an inappropriate comment to her during what should have been a routine breast exam the lawsuit says ppYour surgeon did a great job your breasts look great he said according to the lawsuit ppThe lawsuit says it was during a separate appointment on Oct 14 that McGraw managed to film the womans body parts without her consent ppWhile in the exam room McGraw pretended to receive a call from a nurse and then placed his phone in his breast pocket camera facing outward and recording the lawsuit saysppMcGraw performed a pelvic exam and then went on to perform a breast exam even after the woman said she had no such concerns All the while McGraws camera was recording her body the lawsuit says ppIn her statement to NBC News the woman said shes hoping her lawsuit will bring about meaningful change inside the Army ppWalking into the exam room I trusted the military hospital to care for me just as it had so many times before she said I never imagined that trust would be broken in such a profound wayppIm asking for accountabilitynot only from the provider but from the Army itself she added We deserve to be seen to have our voices heard and to be protected Moving forward I want to see real safeguards in place to ensure that this never happens againppCourtney Kube is a correspondent covering national security and the military for the NBC News Investigative Unitpp 2025 NBCUniversal Media LLCp