Humberto Perez Galvez, a sleep center technician in Port St. Luicie, was adjudicated guilty of battery on a female patient on April 6, 2023. Prior to his arrest on these charges, Humberto Perez Galvez was employed as a technician at Treasure Coast Sleep Disorder in Port St. Lucie, Florida. The Port St. Lucie Police received a sexual assault complaint in April 2022 from a woman reporting she was assaulted by Perez Galvez at the beginning of a sleep study.
In open court, with attorneys by his side, Humberto Perez Galvez changed his plea from not guilty to no contest on April 6, 2023. After hearing victim impact statements from the victim and her mother, Humberto Perez Galvez was adjudicated guilty by the judge. He was sentenced to 120 days in jail, one-year probation, community services, restitution, and court costs and fines. He is also ordered to have no contact with the victim or her family.
The arrest affidavit states that Humberto Perez Galvez began flirting with the female patient in the room before she was hooked up to the machine for testing. Perez Galvez reportedly asked the victim for her phone number, asked if he could take off his shirt, and asked the victim if he could lie down with her. The victim claims she did give him her cell phone number and said he could remove a shirt, as he was wearing two shirts, and lie down by her, as she thought it was a part of the sleep test. Perez Galvez then touched and licked the victim’s breast without her consent, according to the arrest affidavit.
As Perez Galvez lay next to the victim, he began touching her breasts. The victim told him to stop, according to law enforcement records. He then lifted her shirt and touched her more, even licking her breasts. He then tried to slip his hand between her legs, but she grabbed it and told him to stop. Perez Galvez then left the room. The victim believed the incident was recorded because the sleep study requires cameras, but the cameras were not yet turned on. She was afraid Galvez would hear if she called the police, so she texted her mother about what happened, and she called the police.
When asked about what occurred, Perez Galvez stated that he believed she wanted sexual contact because she was laughing and never said no. He then confirmed her report of the sexual contact, and he was arrested on April 6, 2022. He was initially charged with felony sexual battery, but the charges were changed to misdemeanor battery. It is unacceptable, immoral, and unlawful for any healthcare professional to touch a patient in a sexual manner.
Horowitz Law represents the abuse survivor in this case. But this is not the first time that a sleep aid technician has been criminally charged with sexually assaulting a female patient in Florida. In 2019, Andrew Chickoree was convicted of sexually assaulting a female patient at a sleep center in New Richey, Florida. Horowitz Law represented that abuse survivor as well. Horowitz Law has filed numerous sexual misconduct claims against healthcare providers who committed sexually assault at hospitals, private practices, rehab centers, and other healthcare facilities. If you have been a victim of sexual assault or sexual battery under the care of a healthcare provider, or if you know someone who has, please contact our law firm at (888) 283-9922 or send an e-mail to sexual abuse lawyer Adam Horowitz at [email protected] for a free consultation.