Thursday, Aug. 14, 2003 | 9:41 a.m.
A man who worked as a nurse at Sunrise Hospital was arrested early Wednesday by Metro Police after a tourist from Louisiana accused him of fondling her while she was being treated for dizziness and nausea after drinking too much at a Strip nightclub.
Richard Alvarado, 50, was charged by the Clark County District Attorney's Office with three counts of open and gross lewdness in connection with the alleged incident on July 27.
Alvarado worked at Sunrise Hospital through a contract with his employer, Around the Clock Nursing, according to the police report. After the alleged victim accused Alvarado of touching her inappropriately, he was removed from duty at the hospital, Cheryl Smith, spokeswoman for Sunrise, said.
"It's important to remember that these are allegations," Smith said. "We are fully cooperating with the authorities and we believe this is an isolated incident."
This is the second time this summer that a Las Vegas hospital employee has been accused of sexual misconduct.
In June, a woman accused Eduardo Licon, a radiological services assistant at University Medical Center, of sexual assault. Another woman came forward in July with similar allegations.
In the Alvarado case, the woman had been transported by ambulance to Sunrise after having several drinks at a bar inside Mandalay Bay then feeling ill, according to a Metro arrest warrant obtained by the Sun.
Alvarado and the woman were alone in an examination room for about three minutes, other employees told police.
After Alvarado undressed her, the woman told police she felt a "massage of my breasts" and thought, "This guy is a pervert," but dismissed it because she thought he was a doctor, the report says.
Then the woman said Alvarado grabbed her hand and put it on his crotch, the police report says. She pulled away and he did it again, she told police. The woman said she sat up and began to scream.
Several nurses came into the room and the woman told them what happened.
According to the police report, the nurses told the woman that "it was a serious allegation, and that he has never had any complaints (lodged against him) before." They explained that Alvarado was simply trying to put monitors on her body.
The woman's friend, who was summoned to the examination room, asked a security guard to call police. When officers arrived at the hospital, they were told Alvarado had been sent home.
The nurses who were on duty told police they didn't believe the woman's story, the report says. One of the nurses said when she entered the room in response to the woman's screams, Alvarado had an oxygen probe in one hand and his other hand was on the bed railing.
When a detective questioned Alvarado about the allegations a few days later, he said he had nothing to do with the alleged incident. The report said "it appeared to be a very meek denial."
Alvarado explained that the woman sat straight up and began screaming after he placed a pulse oximeter on her finger, the report says.
The detective asked Alvarado if he would be willing to take a polygraph test and he said he would think about it. He never got back to the detective, and the report says he "appeared very aloof and nonchalant" and said he thought the investigation would lead to him being cleared.
Alvarado, who was being held in the Clark County Detention Center on $9,000 bail, has his first court appearance this morning.
Open and gross lewdness is a gross misdemeanor carrying a penalty of a year in jail on each count, authorities said.
Asked if Sunrise has a policy regarding hospital employees and patients of the opposite sex being alone together, Smith said: "I'm not at liberty to answer that question."
Smith said Alvarado, who had worked at Sunrise for several years, passed the extensive background checks the hospital requires of all employees and contract workers.
The allegation against him "shouldn't reflect on the quality of service provided at Sunrise or the quality of our employees," Smith said.
The investigation is continuing. Lt. Jeff Carlson of Metro's sexual assault unit is asking anyone who feels they might have been victimized by Alvarado to call police at 229-3421 or Crime Stoppers at 385-5555.
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