A Florida dental assistant was recently found not guilty of sexual battery against a patient, Fox13 Tampa Bay reported Jan. 19.
Edwin Alvis was accused of assaulting a patient while she was under anesthesia during a procedure at Tampa Bay (Fla.) Institute of Oral Surgery in 2019. Mr. Alvis denied the incident happened. However, detectives determined that Mr. Alvis' DNA was on the patient's breasts.
Mr. Alvis' defense team argued that the DNA was found on the patient because Mr. Alvis placed patches on the patient before her surgery to monitor her heart rate. The defense team also argued that anesthetic drugs used for conscious sedation can cause hallucinations.
The jury handed down a non-guilty verdict about three hours later, the news station reported.