Army Maj. Michael Stockin, 38, is a doctor charged with molesting soldiers and veterans during medical appointments at Madigan Army Medical Center at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington. He faces 47 counts of abusive sexual contact. (Abner Guzman/U.S. Air Force)
An Army doctor charged in one of the military’s largest sexual abuse cases is expected to plead guilty during a hearing scheduled for early next year, according to the service.
Maj. Michael Stockin, 38, is charged with molesting 41 soldiers and veterans during medical appointments at Madigan Army Medical Center at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington. He faces 47 counts of abusive sexual contact and five for wrongfully viewing another person’s private area.
The guilty plea was posted on the Army’s online court docket. But the court listing does not state to which charges Stockin will plead guilty, and his attorney and Army officials declined to provide further details.
Robert Capovilla, Stockin’s attorney, confirmed Friday that a plea agreement had been reached between Stockin and the Army. He had previously said his client would fight all accusations before a jury.
A court-martial for Stockin is scheduled to begin Jan. 7 and will be held with only military judge, according to the docket. Military Judge Col. Larry Babin has overseen the case since Stockin’s arraignment in February.
If convicted of all charges, Stockin could face a maximum penalty of more than 300 years in jail — effectively a life sentence.
Stockin, an anesthesiologist and pain management specialist, arrived at Lewis-McChord in June 2019 and the charges accuse him of criminal behavior that began three months later. Patients told investigators that Stockin would touch their private areas under the guise of medical necessity.
Army Maj. Michael Stockin, an anesthesiologist and pain management specialist, arrived at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., in June 2019. (MDedge News)
Stockin is also locked in civilian court case with his former wife, who filed for divorce in 2022. She also requested a protective order last year to block Stockin from their children, according to Pierce County, Wash., court records. She has accused Stockin of having a problem with alcohol and a “history of physical and sexual abuse to his family.”
Eighteen service members and veterans have also filed administrative claims seeking in total $90 million against the Army, accusing the service of not doing enough to prevent Stockin from harming patients. The Army did not remove him from treating patients immediately upon receiving complaints in February 2022, according to the filings.
The administrative claims, all filed under pseudonyms by the law firm Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight, state Stockin abused more than 100 patients and more could be out there who have not chosen to come forward.
Stockin holds medical licenses in Nebraska and Washington and both appear in good standing, according to online state records. He attended Vanderbilt University School of Medicine and graduated in 2013 – the same year he joined the Army.
He deployed to Iraq from October 2020 to February 2021. Other assignments include Tripler Army Medical Center in Honolulu from June 2013 to July 2014 and Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., from July 2014 to July 2019.
Stars and Stripes reporter Gary Warner contributed to this report.
