BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) – A UVM doctor accused of inappropriate behavior with a child appeared in court on Tuesday.
Emotional during most of the 5-minute arraignment, Christopher Manfred, 43, of Underhill, pleaded not guilty to one count of lewd and lascivious conduct with a child. Court paperwork reveals the child was a young girl that he knows.
“These are serious charges. Today was just the arraignment. He pled not guilty and the case and the investigation will continue,” Washington County State’s Attorney Michelle Donnelly said.
Police allege that Manfred touched the girl inappropriately multiple times.
“The information as it alleges this went on for over a year,” Donnelly said.
Court documents show the investigation began over a year ago when Manfred’s wife told police she found messages on her husband’s phone about sexually explicit fantasies with young children and photos of teen girls performing sex acts.
Police say the victim later described to a social worker how Manfred had touched her private parts.
Manfred was released on conditions. If convicted, he faces up to two years in prison.
He had no comment leaving court.
Manfred was most recently employed as an anesthesiologist at the UVM Medical Center in Burlington. We reached out to check on his employment status and had not yet heard back when this story was published.
Before working at UVM, Manfred held a similar job at the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, New Hampshire, but left there after having his license suspended in 2017 for being caught diverting medicine for his personal use. His license was reinstated in 2018 after he agreed to undergo treatment and monitoring.
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Vt. doctor accused of lewd and lascivious conduct with child