After deliberating only four hours, a jury Jan. 10 convicted a La Mesa man of six counts of practicing medicine without a license after he claimed he could cure HIV and cancer with unusual and expensive treatments.
Keith Allen Barton, 52, was also convicted of two counts of grand theft, attempted grand theft and false impersonation of a real physician in Berkeley with his same name. Barton showed no reaction to the verdicts.
Barton was remanded into jail immediately by San Diego Superior Court Judge Amalia Meza on a motion by Deputy District Attorney Gina Darvas who said he was a flight risk and dangerous to the public.
“Treating people who have life threatening illnesses with ineffective remedies is a dangerous practice,” said Darvas. “He prescribed treatments for people who were harmed.”
Darvas said Barton faces between 7-10 years in state prison. Meza set sentencing for Feb. 10. He may be ordered to pay restitution to his former patients, who said they believed he was a licensed physician who used alternative or natural treatments.
Barton’s attorney, Patrick McCoy, unsuccessfully urged the judge to allow him to remain free on $100,000 bond. McCoy said Barton had showed up at all of his court appearances and he denied he was a flight risk or dangerous.
“I’m going to remand Mr. Barton. No bail,” ruled Meza.
The eight woman four man jury did not wait around after the verdict to talk to the attorneys or media. The jury acquitted Barton of one count of false impersonation with an investigator with the Medical Board of California.
The trial began Jan. 6 with testimony from several of Barton’s patients who had seen his Internet advertisements and some even found the medical license online from the other physician with his same name.
The real physician, Keith David Barton, who is now a medical consultant, testified he did not know the defendant and had never seen him before.
McCoy presented no defense witnesses and his client did not testify. McCoy argued that Barton merely suggested treatment, but did not act or prescribe medical treatment.
The mother of a 9-year-old girl who died from AIDS in 2010 testified tearfully how she paid $18,000 to Barton for “cellular dendritic therapy,” but she never got to use it. While her daughter was in intensive care at a hospital, she told jurors she called Barton for a refund.
“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.
During the mother’s tearful testimony, Barton slumped down in his seat and crossed his arms in a defensive manner. He muttered to himself during many of the key witnesses’ testimony.
Lisa testified her daughter took supplements from Barton for many months without getting better. She said her daughter also became ill from the AIDS antiviral medications, which is why she sought Barton as an alternative to the medicine.
The mother said the treatment for her child involved getting blood drawn, submitting it to some process, and then re-injecting the same blood back into the body. She said Barton told her to go to a lab to have it done, and he admitted to her that he was not licensed in California.
“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.”
Douglas Light testified he paid Barton $16,347 to help his wife. He testified the couple went with Barton to a Tijuana clinic, and all of his wife’s teeth were removed as part of the treatment for an immune disorder in 2010.
Light said his wife became worse with this treatment.
Though he didn’t testify, the jury got to hear Barton’s own voice in court which was recorded by Robin Hollis, an investigator with the Medical Board of California.
Hollis testified she sent him a fake diagnosis in an email stating 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.”
Barton put off meeting the investigator, saying he had been evicted from his La Mesa office and he didn’t currently have another office. Hollis kept pressing Barton as to where they could meet and he finally agreed to meet her at a Coco’s restaurant in San Ysidro Jan. 8, 2013.
Hollis testified she gave an $8,700 check to him at that meeting – and he was promptly arrested after accepting the check.
