KANSAS CITY, Mo. — An Oak Grove chiropractor charged with sexually assaulting multiple patients – for nearly 40 years -- at his clinic has died, the KSHB 41 I-Team confirmed.
Last September, the Jackson County Prosecuting Attorney's Office charged David B. Clark, 70, with five counts of statutory sodomy and one count of sexual abuse.
According to the probable cause statement, Clark allegedly assaulted patients between the 1980s to at least 2021 – specifically targeting Amish patients who traveled from across the country to see him.
Clark’s obituary said he died on Jan. 14 from heart failure. It also said that “being a a naturopathic doctor, he attracted local Amish patients, and gradually the news spread about this kind, gentle doctor who treated his patients with honesty and dignity.”
Court documents, however, paint a different picture.
They allege he used his job as a chiropractor "to make or attempt to make his victims believe that the sexual abuse he inflicted on them was appropriate and medically necessary."
The abuse reportedly happened for decades – with Clark urging his patients to make follow-up appointments on set time lines.
Court documents state Clark targeted patients who were Amish and unlikely to have experience with medical care and/or sexual education.
For those victims, Clark may have been their first encounter with a doctor, and many didn't immediately realize his so-called medical treatments were sexual abuse.
The probable cause statement alleges that during patient examinations, Clark conducted excessively long breast exams on multiple patients. Court records also allege Clark used his hands to touch female genitalia “and a witness who is also a doctor stated there is no medical purpose for that.” In most cases, Clark made sure no one else was in the room with him and the victim.
Four minor female patients and one adult female patient were among the "dozens of victims abused by Clark," according to court records.
The I-Team reached out to the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office for comment about Clark’s death. We have not yet received a response.
Clark also faces a civil lawsuit in Jackson County, filed by two Amish women and former patients. The lawsuit alleges Clark also sexually assaulted them when they were patients at the clinic.
"My clients are extremely disappointed the criminal case against David Clark can no longer move forward," Kansas City attorney Jill Kanatzar said in a statement. "They are grateful to the FBI and the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office for investigating and criminally charging Clark with the sexual abuse he committed."
She added: "Fortunately, the civil judicial system allows them and other victims to seek justice for the trauma Clark caused over many years. We intend to continue to vigorously pursue this case and hold David Clark and his clinic responsible, in spite of his death. "
The Missouri Board of Healing Arts suspended Clark’s license for two weeks in 1990, and he was on probation for two years.
His license was active through February 2025.
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