CONWAY — Attorneys chose a jury Monday to hear the sexual assault case of Dr. Robert Rook, a Conway physician.
Rook, 63, is charged in Faulkner County Circuit Court with six counts of sexual assault in the third degree and 10 counts in the second degree. The charges all involve female patients.
The jury consists of seven women and five men. Alternates include two women and two men.
A police affidavit filed in September 2016 indicated that the accusers were of various ages. One woman said she turned 18 on the October 2015 day she saw Rook for treatment of acne. Another woman with a history of psychosis was older than 65.
According to the affidavit, more than one patient spoke of the ease with which they said Rook prescribed narcotics, including opioids. One woman, for instance, said he had prescribed her hydrocodone, Xanax, an anti-depressant and Adderall, a drug used to treat attention-deficit (hyperactivity) disorder and a sleep disorder.
Many women came forward after reading about Rook's first arrest in June 2016, the affidavit indicates. One patient talked with police after she told another physician about her alleged ordeal, and that physician contacted authorities.
