Retrial will be sought for former Juneau chiropractor accused of sexual assault, prosecutor says
- Mark Sabbatini
- Sep 23
- 2 min read
Updated: Sep 23
Jury deadlocked on most charges against Jeffrey Fultz; which charges will be brought again still being determined
By Mark Sabbatini
Juneau Independent
A retrial will be sought against a former Juneau chiropractor after a jury deadlocked on most of the charges he was facing after being accused of sexual assault by a dozen women who were his patients, a co-prosecutor of the case said Tuesday.
Jeffrey Fultz was acquitted Sept. 4 of two counts of sexual assault and a mistrial was declared on 12 related charges where the jury could not reach a verdict. Krystyn Tendy, a prosecutor in the case, told Judge Larry Woolford during a status hearing at the Juneau courthouse on Tuesday that which charges will be brought again is still being evaluated.
"We’re still in the process of determining what a retrial will look like in terms of counts and complainants, but we are planning on retrying the case," she said.
Fultz was tried on charges stemming from alleged actions at a clinic, including "nonconsensual sexual contact" of patients between 2014 to 2020, according to police records. He testified during the trial he was providing legitimate treatment to his accusers.
He was indicted in April of 2021 and surrendered his state chiropractic license in May of that year due to "sexual misconduct."
The jury spent eight days in deliberations after a six-week trial before declaring it was unable to reach a verdict on 11 charges of sexual assault and one of sexual harassment. Jurors acquitted Fultz on two other sexual assault charges.
Tendy, in an interview after the hearing, said the length of the evaluation process is due to the number of patients and charges involved.
"The primary decision over the past couple of weeks has been the overarching question of if the case would be retried, and that was a decision that we have been able to make," she said. "In terms of what exactly a retrial will look like that is something that will be an ongoing evaluation process in consultation with the victims, and reviewing the details of the first trial to make sure that any case that we are putting forward gives us the best chance of obtaining justice for all of the individuals involved in the case and for the community as a whole."
Among the other matters to be determined is who will represent Fultz in future proceedings since his current attorney, James Christie, is withdrawing from the case. A representation hearing is scheduled at noon Sept. 30.
Christie, who took part in Tuesday’s hearing remotely, declined to comment afterward on why his representation of Fultz in the case is ending.
• Contact Mark Sabbatini at editor@juneauindependent.com or (907) 957-2306.
