A jury on Tuesday heard dramatic testimony from a mother who had her AIDS stricken young daughter treated by a La Mesa man who claimed to be a doctor with a cure for HIV.
Keith Allen Barton, 52, was actually no physician and was impersonating another doctor with his same name, according to prosecutor Gina Darvas.
The mother tearfully testified how she paid $18,000 for an unusual treatment to Barton, but her 9-year-old daughter was hospitalized and got worse before she died in 2010. She testified she asked Barton to refund her money while her daughter was in intensive care.
“He started yelling at me over the phone,” said the mother, who was only identified as Lisa in court.
“I couldn’t believe he didn’t have compassion for my little girl. He had no concern for my daughter,” she said tearfully.
Barton is on trial for six counts of practicing medicine without a license, two counts of grand theft, attempted grand theft, and false personation. He has pleaded not guilty.
Barton is accused of impersonating a real physician who had his same name and practiced in Berkeley as a specialist in treating HIV. That doctor was no longer in private practice and worked as a medical consultant to a company.
During the mother’s tearful testimony, Barton slumped down in his seat and crossed his arms in a defensive manner.
The mother told Barton she never used the “cellular dendritic therapy” on her child which involved getting blood drawn, submitting it to some process, and then re-injecting the same blood back into the body. She said he told her to go to any laboratory to have it done.
In that conversation, Lisa said Barton told her he was not licensed in California, and she said she knew he was licensed because she researched his name on the Internet. Barton told her that doctor in Berkeley had a different middle name.
“He would always say what a good Christian man he was. Something wasn’t right about it,” said Lisa. “He talked a lot. It was very high pressure.”
The jury and San Diego Superior Court Judge Amalia Meza got to hear Barton’s own voice in court, courtesy of recorded phone calls made by Robin Hollis, an investigator with the Medical Board of California.
Hollis was the first witness and testified she sent him a fake diagnosis in e-mail that she had colon cancer. He charged her $8,760 for the same treatment offered to the girl with AIDS, she said.
“God sends me people. People show up at my place for one reason or another,” said Barton in a recorded telephone call. “You’re here because God led you here…I care about you.”
“I’ve been doing this for 25 years. I will take you by the hand and go through it,” said Barton on tape.
“I’m very worried about you. You have a life threatening illness,” said Barton. “My schedule is full but I will make time for you. Forty-five percent of my patients are doctors and their families.”
The jury listened to the tape and followed along with a transcript.
Barton put off meeting the investigator, saying he had been evicted from his La Mesa office and he didn’t currently have another office. During the same conversation, Barton also said he had “a whole heart team” at his disposal.
Barton’s attorney, Patrick McCoy, gave a brief opening statement and asked jurors to “look past the emotion” and evaluate each witness. McCoy said some patients were “desperate people.”
“Was he treating or suggesting treatment?” said McCoy.
Deputy District Attorney Gina Darvas described Barton as “a snake oil salesman” in her opening statement. Darvas said Barton accompanied a couple to Tijuana where the wife had all her teeth removed as treatment for an immune disorder. She said the treatment didn’t work and the couple paid $16,000.
The investigator kept pressing Barton as to where could they meet since he lost his office. Barton finally agreed to meet her at a Coco’s restaurant in San Ysidro on Jan. 8, 2013.
Hollis testified she gave a $8,700 check to him at that meeting—and he was promptly arrested after accepting the check. Barton remains free on $100,000 bond.
