A Wichita man has been sentenced to over 33 years in prison for the rape of a hospital patient and the attempted rape of two other patients.

20-year-old Miguel Rodela pleaded guilty in September to assaults on three patients at Ascension Via Christi St. Francis hospital.  The assaults took place on June 15th and Rodela was posing as a nursing student so he could get into patient rooms.  The victims were a woman in her 70s, a woman in her 80s, and an incapacitated woman in her 40s.

Rodela also pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor counts of battery.  A Sedgwick County judge sentenced him to 401 months in prison.

Three lawsuits have been filed against Ascension Via Christi over the incidents, claiming a lack of security for patients.  The Hutton & Hutton law firm in Wichita released a statement on behalf of the three victims:

This outcome reflects the dedication and effectiveness of our criminal justice system in holding wrongdoers accountable for their actions. The family is extremely thankful to the Wichita Police Department, and especially the work of Detective Seth Creighton.

While this marks a significant step towards closure for the victims and their families, it is important to acknowledge that the journey to justice is multifaceted. Our clients are in the midst of a legal action against Ascension Via Christi St. Francis, asserting that the hospital bears responsibility for failing to protect against the harm they suffered and for the institutional failures that allowed such a tragedy to occur.

We continue to conduct our investigations, gather evidence, and work with our experts as we move our cases forward.

Our primary focus is to ensure that the victims and their families receive the justice they deserve, and hope that the necessary changes are implemented to prevent similar incidents in the future. We look forward to resolving the cases against the hospital.