Competency of former Frederick pediatrician accused of sexual abuse debated at hearing

Jun. 24—The competency of a former Frederick pediatrician set to stand trial for nearly 160 counts of sexual abuse was called into question in a hearing Wednesday.

Ernesto Cesar Torres, 70, faces numerous sex offense and child sexual abuse charges alleged to have occurred between 1980 and 2019, online court records show. He's currently being held at Spring Grove Hospital.

In Frederick County Circuit Court Wednesday, experts in psychiatry opined on whether the delusions Torres reportedly has of an "evil black witch" affect his ability to stand trial. One expert testified Torres is competent to stand trial, while another disagreed.

Torres' competency was called into question over a year ago after criminal indictments were handed down in May and December of 2019. The December indictment alleged there were 19 victims who were minors at the time of the offenses, the News-Post previously reported. In addition, he was convicted in 2019 of fourth-degree sex offense of an 18-year-old female patient in another case — a case that has been appealed.

After he was evaluated by the Maryland Department of Health, a judge determined on April 21, 2020, that Torres was incompetent to stand trial in the open cases, and he was hospitalized, court records show.

During his hospitalization, Torres' incompetency was recently called into question and another hearing was scheduled, according to court officials.

Wednesday's roughly seven-hour hearing centered around Torres' alleged belief that a malevolent witch emerged from a painting in his home and took ahold of his life.

"He's got a woman in a picture controlling him," Dr. Christiane Tellefsen said. "That's just bizarre."

Tellefsen, who was called by defense attorney Margaret Teahan, testified Torres is not competent to stand trial. She believes Torres has delusion disorder, a clinical definition he "fits perfectly," she said. Tellefsen is on the academic staff at the University of Maryland and Johns Hopkins University schools of medicine.

Torres reportedly bought a painting depicting a woman to hang in his home after his only child's unexpected death, Tellefsen said. Torres reportedly told doctors the "witch" from the painting came to him in a dream and wanted him to "mate" with her. In the delusion, Torres' refusal of the woman brought vengeance, and since then she's been responsible for negative events in his life, Tellefsen said. He's allegedly gone to lengths to rid himself of this entity, reportedly paying people to come from Florida to perform banishments, according to Tellefsen.

She testified that Torres believes he can't get a fair trial because the "witch" has influence over the judge, alleged victims and possibly the prosecutors.

"His thinking about this case is informed by his mental illness," Tellefsen said.

The prosecution called psychiatrist Dr. Danielle Robinson of the Maryland Department of Health, who said she also had conversations with Torres about these delusions but came to a different conclusion.

"[The delusion] does not inform everything he does or thinks about the case," Robinson said, noting he's been working with his attorney.

She and Tellefsen also spoke to the value he places in spiritual practices, tarot, Chinese fortune telling and meditation. Tellefsen said these practices were ones he chooses to participate in, whereas his relationship with the "witch" is one where he is not in control.

Robinson described Torres' belief in the "witch" as unusual, but not to the extent that he is not in touch with reality otherwise.

"Dr. Torres is very intelligent," Robinson said, and has an "excellent" understanding of the legal system in addition to awareness of the allegations against him.

Torres' medical license is suspended, according to the MarylandBoard of Physicians' online portal.

Tellefsen suggested Torres is capable of speaking coherently about the case and other matters until the "witch" comes up in conversation.

Robinson alleged Torres spoke of the victims' accusations as a "he say, she say" situation and suggested the Me Too movement was at play. The prosecution suggested these are rational thoughts of a defendant accused of such allegations.

While Robinson believes Torres has delusions, she found they do not prevent him from being able to work with his attorney to defend himself. She deemed him competent to stand trial.

Robinson and Tellefsen said they believe Torres genuinely thinks his delusions are real to him.

Prosecutor Tammy Leache, of the Frederick County State's Attorney's Office, in her closing remarks, argued evidence showed Torres has the competence to understand the court proceedings around him, despite what delusions he may have. Teahan told Judge Julie Stevenson Solt she as a defense attorney is obligated to bring the matter to the court, but she did not think it'd be appropriate for her to argue for or against a particular decision.

Solt told the attorneys she would need time to make a decision and would issue an opinion in the future. No date for another hearing was set Wednesday.

Follow Mary Grace Keller on Twitter: @MaryGraceKeller

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