BC Psychologist Richard J. Freeman Ordered to Have Chaperone Present with Female Patients Following Sex Complaint; Has 1998 Criminal Sex Conviction

April 12, 2022

A Metro Vancouver psychologist with a criminal record for sexual assault has had his practice limited once again because of a complaint alleging he crossed boundaries with a female patient.

Richard Freeman must now have a chaperone present whenever he sees female patients in his role in the psychiatry department at Royal Columbian Hospital in New Westminster, according to a recent public notice from the College of Psychologists of B.C.

He's also agreed not to see any female patients in his private practice, to restrict his physical contact with patients to "salutary handshakes" and to limit his use of text messages and email to communicate with female patients, the notice says.

The restrictions are the result of a complaint from someone who saw Freeman for an outpatient assessment and alleged he "crossed professional boundaries," according to the College.

The college's inquiry committee wasn't able to come to a definitive conclusion about the complaint, but the notice says Freeman agreed to the limits on his practice to address the patient's concerns.

CBC News has reached out to Fraser Health, which operates the hospital, for comment.

This is the second time in the last decade that Freeman has agreed to these types of restrictions on his work.

A similar undertaking in 2012 placed him under supervision, restricted him to seeing only male patients in his private practice and barred him from physical contact with clients.

He has previously been suspended from practice entirely because of his criminal history.

Lack of regulation means B.C. therapist can treat patients despite sexual misconduct complaint

Freeman was convicted of sexual assault in 1997 for groping a 19-year-old patient who went to see him for treatment of anorexia.

He was originally convicted of sexually assaulting three patients, but two of those convictions were later overturned by the B.C. Court of Appeal, according to newspaper reports at the time.

According to a notice posted by the college in The Province newspaper in 1998, Freeman agreed to a three-year suspension from practice for professional misconduct after he was found guilty.

Source: Bethany Lindsay, “Hospital psychologist with sex assault history subject to new limits on treating women,” CBC News, Apr. 7, 2022, URL: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/hospital-psychologist-with-sex-assault-history-subject-to-new-limits-on-treating-women-1.6412768