State pays ex-inmate $175,000 to settle abuse claim

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – The state of Oregon has agreed to pay $175,000 to a former inmate who claimed she was sexually abused by a prison doctor during a 2013 gynecological exam.

The Oregonian/OregonLive reports (https://goo.gl/zz5Z7h ) the lawsuit, filed in 2015 in U.S. District Court, was settled earlier this year.

The suit named 58-year-old Dr. Robert Snider, along with other members of the Coffee Creek Correctional Institution staff, including the medical director and chief medical officer.

Snider continues to work for the Department of Corrections. In February, after the case was settled, he was assigned to what the agency called a new telemedicine program where he “delivers medical care to inmates through videoconferencing technology.”

Corrections spokeswoman Betty Bernt says the new assignment wasn’t a result of the settlement.

Snider didn’t respond to newspaper emails seeking comment.