Doctor accused of sex assault out on bail
Author: Michele Henry
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A pediatrician once suspended from practising medicine for inappropriately touching a patient was released on bail yesterday after facing new charges of sexually assaulting an 8-year-old girl.

Dr. Eleazar Noriega, who has an office at Yonge St. and Davisville Ave., was released on $100,000 bail after his arrest Saturday. The 63-year-old is accused of assaulting a girl during an exam Wednesday and faces charges of sexual assault and sexual interference.

Noriega, formerly an assistant professor of pediatrics at the University of Toronto, smiled at relatives as he entered court yesterday.

Justice of the Peace Kevin Madigan released the doctor into the custody of his wife, Lucy Noriega, with conditions. He is forbidden to practise medicine, or to have contact with his accuser or anyone under 18 unless accompanied by his wife and must stay away from pools, schools and playgrounds.

Defence lawyer Jennifer McKendry echoed what Noriega's friends and relatives said yesterday, that the doctor is a "soft-spoken, gentle and lovely man."

"He's the nicest guy you'd ever want to meet," she said.

At a College of Physicians and Surgeons disciplinary hearing in 2003, Noriega pleaded no contest to charges of engaging in "the sexual abuse of a patient," and was suspended from practising medicine for 18 months but was later acquitted.

Starting June 1, 2009, residents will be able to find out if doctors in Ontario have any malpractice judgments or criminal convictions against them – thanks to an investigative series by the Star last year.

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