Psychiatrist Pleads Not Guilty to Molestation

An 80-year-old psychiatrist has pleaded not guilty to charges that he drugged and molested a teenage patient three years ago, a prosecutor said.

Burnell Forgey was arraigned Tuesday in Newport Beach, along with James Lee Crummel, 54, who also pleaded not guilty to the same charges, according to Deputy Dist. Atty. Stephanie Daemon.

Crummel, a convicted child molester, is being held in San Bernardino on charges that he molested two other teenagers; Riverside County authorities have charged him with the murder of a 13-year-old Costa Mesa boy who disappeared in 1979.

Newport Beach police arrested Forgey earlier this month, alleging that he and Crummel sexually abused a 16-year-old boy at the condominium they had shared in Newport Beach.

Forgey and Crummel are accused of forcing the youth, who had been living at a home for troubled youths, to have sex on several occasions from December 1994 to May 1995. Both men have been charged with 16 counts of sodomy and having oral sex with the teenager, according to court records.

A pretrial hearing for both men has been set for June 5; a preliminary hearing has been set for June 9 to determine if they should stand trial on the charges.

Crummel was living with Forgey in the Newport Beach condominium last year when Megan’s Law was invoked and neighbors learned of his presence. The ensuing outcry eventually pushed both men from the city.