Attorney General Bob Ferguson announced that Eldon Leinweber, a former physician’s assistant from Waterville, has been sentenced by a Douglas County Superior Court judge. Leinweber received the maximum sentence of 364 days confinement and one year of community custody for sexually assaulting multiple female patients. He will serve six months in jail followed by six months of electronic home monitoring.
The prosecution, led by the Attorney General’s Office, charged Leinweber with engaging in sexual contact with female patients at a local medical clinic in exchange for prescribing narcotic medications. The women involved had admitted to being addicted to narcotics and reported inappropriate touching and invitations to locations away from the clinic where assaults occurred.
One victim stated, “If that’s the only way he’s going to give me the prescriptions, then I guess I gotta do it.”
In February, Ferguson filed three criminal charges against Leinweber: second-degree rape, third-degree rape, and indecent liberties. Before trial, Leinweber pleaded guilty on September 23 to two gross misdemeanor counts of fourth-degree assault with sexual motivation and solicitation to commit unlawful possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver. The plea was supported by all survivors who communicated with the Attorney General’s Office.
The Medicaid Fraud Control Division's prosecutors argued for a one-year jail sentence and an additional year of community custody. Leinweber has surrendered his medical license.
Ferguson commented on the case saying, “We expect medical professionals to take care of us, not take advantage of us. I’m proud of my team for working to deliver accountability for these offenses and justice for the survivors.”
Leinweber was licensed as a physician’s assistant providing services at a Soap Lake clinic. Allegations surfaced in 2019 regarding his provision of narcotic pills in exchange for sexual favors from patients.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant Attorneys General Nick Carter and Rachel Sterett with concurrence from the Douglas County Prosecutor. Under state law and Washington State Constitution provisions, the Medicaid Fraud Control Division has concurrent authority with county prosecuting attorneys for such cases.
Funding for Washington's Medicaid Fraud Control Division comes primarily from a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services grant totaling $10,873,316 for federal fiscal year 2025. The remaining funding is provided by state Medicaid fraud recoveries amounting to $3,624,436.