THOUSAND OAKS : 2 Men Face Loss of Medical Licenses

A Thousand Oaks psychologist and a Thousand Oaks acupuncturist face possible revocation of their state licenses after the state attorney general’s office filed charges with the state medical board against them.

Psychologist James Otteson, 49, was accused in May of sexual misconduct, according to state records. Acupuncturist Lawrence T. Lu, 79, was accused of having been convicted of two separate crimes, state records show.

Otteson declined to comment Wednesday afternoon. Lu could not be reached for comment, and an assistant said he recently left Thousand Oaks for China.

Otteson is accused of initiating a sexual relationship with a patient on Sept. 30, 1984, the day he terminated the patient’s therapy, according to the records.

According to the accusation filed with the Medical Board of California, Otteson also cut the therapy short without addressing the patient’s suicidal tendencies or “traumatic history.”

Lu’s professional license is under scrutiny after the state board was notified that he has been convicted of two crimes, state records show. The first conviction was in March, 1980, in Santa Barbara for grand theft for stealing men’s clothing from a Fed Mart, according to state records.

The second conviction, in July, 1989, was for assault and battery of his wife, according to state records.

Otteson’s license was issued in 1981 and Lu’s in 1978.

Such formal accusations usually follow one to two years of investigation by the state board, said Hattie Lovato, an analyst for the board’s discipline coordination unit. The board issues licenses to practice medicine in the state of California.