Press Association
PSYCHIATRIST JAILED FOR SEX ATTACKS ON PATIENTS
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A psychiatrist was jailed for three years today for a series of sex attacks on his teenage patients. For more than ten years the victims of Gordon Maden, 58, were too scared to report him because they were convinced no-one would believe them. But he was finally trapped when he abused a younster while another patient spied on them through a half open door. Hospital authorities launched an inquiry and suspended Maden. Today his 30-year long career came to an end when he was jailed after being convicted of ten charges of indecent assault on young men he was treating for drug addiction or behavioural problems at hospitals in Burnley and Rossendale, Lancashire. \”These young men were sick and vulnerable to exploitation\” Maden, of Hargreaves Drive, Rawtenstall, Lancashire, was told by Mr Justice Holland at Manchester Crown Court. \”But they all had one reasonable expectation – that they could, and should, put their trust in the medical staff and in you. \”You exploited your authority to fondle patients for your sexual gratification and with the belief there would be no complaint, but I accept the assaults themselves were not the most serious kind to come before the courts.\” Throughout a two-year investigation Maden, a churchgoer, maintained his innocence, claiming he was the victim of liars and a plot to cause trouble for him.