Patient in Agony : Fake Dentists Get Jail After Woman Hurt

Two brothers were sentenced to jail Thursday for practicing dentistry without a license after subjecting a woman to hours of agony as they hammered a plastic mold out of her mouth, pulled two of her teeth and drilled four others.

Oscar Moran, 23, of Van Nuys and his brother, Marvin, 24, of Los Angeles, were sentenced to 6 months and 3 months in jail, respectively. But because of crowding at the Los Angeles County Jail, they were given until Jan. 9 to find an acceptable halfway house, where they would be allowed to leave only for work, Deputy City Atty. Ruth Kwan said. Otherwise, they will serve their terms in the jail.

They were ordered to reimburse Patricia Cook for the $3,450 she must pay for a licensed dentist to fix the damage. In a plea-bargain, the brothers in June pleaded no contest to misdemeanor charges of practicing dentistry without a license.

Los Angeles Municipal Court Commissioner Joseph Spada placed the brothers on 3 years probation, during which they must submit to inspections without search warrants to ensure that they are not practicing dentistry. They must pay $3,250 to the state Board of Dental Examiners and Los Angeles Police Department for investigative expenses.

Toothache Treatment

Cook, a 23-year-old Sylmar apartment manager, went to Oscar Moran on Jan. 12 for treatment of a toothache. She had heard about Moran from her brother, who met the man at a carwash. Moran told her brother that he was a dentist from El Salvador who needed work, she said in an interview last March.

When she went to see Moran, Cook said, he told her that he was working from his North Hollywood apartment--he has since moved--because he “didn’t have too much money to open an office.” Moran advised her that she needed four crowns and that he would do the work for $500, City Atty. James K. Hahn said. She gave him a $200 down payment, and the procedures began.

“After giving her eight injections of painkiller, Moran pulled two teeth--a front tooth and a molar--and drilled four others,” Hahn said. “Then he used several different molds in a series of unsuccessful attempts to get an impression of her front teeth.”

The woman repeatedly questioned Moran about the treatment and complained of pain, but he replied, “I know what I’m doing,” Hahn said.

“Moran finally put a plastic mold over her front teeth in another attempt to get an impression of her teeth and left the room,” Hahn said. “By the time he got back, the plastic had hardened, and he couldn’t get it off.”

Moran hammered on the mold and struggled for an hour to remove it. “Meanwhile, the painkiller had worn off and the woman was in agony,” Hahn said.

Moran phoned his brother, who owns a dental laboratory but is not a dentist. He came to the apartment and worked for another hour before finally getting the mold off, Hahn said.

The woman complained to authorities, and an undercover investigator contacted the two brothers and arrested them after they agreed to perform dental work on him.

Kwan said an appointment book seized by investigators showed Oscar Moran had about 50 patients.

Cook, who was in court Thursday, was “very relieved because she knows that she’s going to be getting some money to fix her teeth,” Kwan said.

Larry Ballard, chief of enforcement for the Board of Dental Examiners, said the board receives about 50 complaints a year of unlicensed dentistry. “I’m sure that there is a lot going on that we’re not aware of,” he said.

Victims are often poor and recent arrivals to the country who do not know where to complain, he said.