NJ OB-GYN accused of inappropriately touching 2 patients

A New Jersey obstetrician gynecologist is accused of inappropriately touching at least two of his patients, officials said.

The State Board of Medical Examiners temporarily suspended the license of Bruce Pierce, an obstetrician gynecologist who practiced at the Delaware Valley OBGYN & Princeton Midwifery in Lawrenceville, New Jersey. Investigators said Pierce inappropriately touched two longtime female patients during exams in 2023.

Resources for victims of sexual assault are available through the National Sexual Violence Resources Center and the National Sexual Assault Telephone Hotline at 800-656-4673.

The first victim told investigators she had been Pierce’s patient since the mid-1990s. She said Pierce conducted a normal breast, pelvic and rectal exam on her in the presence of a female chaperone in January 2023. The victim said Pierce then dismissed the chaperone and asked her if he could repeat the exam.

When the woman asked why that was necessary, Pierce allegedly told her, “sometimes things change as we get older” and that he wanted to “double check things to be sure.” Pierce then inappropriately touched the woman during the second exam, investigators said.

The woman said she left the office feeling violated and knew something about the second examination wasn’t right. After speaking with family members and a work supervisor, she reported the incident to Lawrence Township Police and filed a complaint with the State Board of Medical Examiners. She also said the experience negatively impacted her life and her emotional health.

The second alleged incident occurred in December 2023. The victim told investigators she scheduled an appointment with Pierce after experiencing pelvic pain. After undergoing an ultrasound with a lab technician, the woman was taken into an examination room where she was met by Pierce, investigators said.

Pierce told the woman her ultrasound looked fine and asked her if she wanted a female chaperone while he examined her, according to investigators. The woman declined the chaperone, telling investigators she trusted Pierce, who had been her OB-GYN for more than 20 years and had even delivered her child. She also said that chaperones had always been present during past exams.

As Pierce examined the woman, he inappropriately touched her until she asked him to stop, investigators said. The woman said Pierce called her on her cellphone about two hours later asking if she was okay. She told investigators she was still upset over what occurred and ended the call quickly, indicating she was “okay.”

The woman said she then sent Pierce another text message two days later, telling him her feelings of shock had turned to “fury and disgust.” She told Pierce his behavior was “unprofessional and unacceptable” and accused him of abusing “her good faith.” She also told Pierce she would not use his practice ever again and expressed concern over him possibly engaging in similar misconduct with other patients, investigators said.

“Okay, I’m so sorry, I upset you. It will never happen again I do value our 20 plus year doctor patient relationship. Thank you for not making it public,” Pierce allegedly texted the woman in response. “My career will be over, and I don’t know what I would do. I hope you can forgive me. This will never happen again. I understand that you are leaving the practice, but I hope you will reconsider and give me one more chance.”

The woman then reported the incident to the State Board of Medical Examiners. The woman also told investigators the incident caused her significant distress as well as distrust in health care professionals.

During a hearing before the State Board of Medical Examiners on Nov. 13, 2024, attorneys with the New Jersey Division of Law’s Professional Boards Prosecution petitioned for Pierce’s license to be temporarily suspended, arguing that allowing him to continue practicing would present a “clear and imminent danger to the health, safety and welfare of the public.”

The Board then filed an order of temporary suspension.

“We found each patient’s testimony to be credible, chilling, and compelling,” the Board wrote in its Order. “[Pierce] engaged in conduct, which is entirely antithetical to medical practice, and runs wholly afoul of all physician’s obligations to do no harm to their patients. That conduct unquestionably presents a continuing and immediate danger to any and all of [Pierce’s] patients. There are no measures short of a full, immediate temporary suspension of license that we could craft which would adequately protect [Pierce’s] patients from such egregious conduct.”

While Pierce’s license has been temporarily suspended, officials have not yet revealed if he will face criminal charges.

Any patient who believes they’ve been treated inappropriately by a license health care professional can file an online complaint with the State Division of Consumer Affairs on their website or by calling 1-800-242-5846 or 973-504-6200.