Mexican native pleads guilty to practicing dentistry in Chesterfield without license

Credit: Jose A. Hernandez


By Mark Bowes
Published: June 29, 2011

A Mexican immigrant who practiced dentistry without a license on his Chesterfield County property for at least five years pleaded guilty Tuesday to illegally performing invasive dental procedures in 2005 and 2007.

Jose A. Hernandez, who speaks little English, entered his pleas in Chesterfield Circuit Court with the help of an interpreter. Judge T.J. Hauler then convicted Hernandez, 54, of the two felonies and set sentencing for Oct. 3.

He faces up to five years in prison on each count and the possibility of being deported by federal authorities after a separate immigration hearing.

"His immigration status is totally jeopardized," noted the judge, who learned that Hernandez holds a post-graduate degree in dentistry from the University of Mexico and was a licensed dentist in his home country for 20 years.

Hernandez apparently couldn't transfer his credentials to the U.S. or obtain a dentistry license in Virginia because of his uncertain immigration status. Court papers indicate he has been living here with his family illegally.

According to a summary of evidence, the Virginia Department of Health Professions notified Chesterfield authorities in January about Hernandez performing substandard dental work on a female patient, who had a molar pulled in 2007.

Investigators learned that the patient, who was unidentified, suffered medical complications and, after lingering pain, went to a Cross Over Ministry health clinic in January for relief. The clinic discovered she had a piece of broken tooth still lodged in her gum from the 2007 procedure, Chesterfield prosecutor Dennis H. Duncan told the court.

Officials there contacted state authorities.

Duncan said the woman heard about Hernandez "through the grapevine" and used his services twice — in 2005 and 2007 — with him giving her injections both times. She paid him $90 for the first procedure and $45 for the second, both in cash and without any paperwork, Duncan said.

The woman told authorities that Hernandez performed both operations in a trailer behind his home that was set up like a dental office. "He has never been licensed to practice in Virginia," Duncan said.

Hernandez and his family live on a 1.7-acre plot of land they have owned for seven years in the 7900 block of Hull Street Road, court papers say. The land includes a renovated 1940s-era home with two outbuildings.

According to his lawyer, Hernandez also operated on the same site a dental-appliance repair business, for which he has a valid business license from Chesterfield County. That business, called LA Dental Lab, has been licensed since 2004, a county official confirmed.

Most of the dental equipment police seized from his property in a February raid was for his legal business, said his attorney, Samuel P. Simpson.

The judge on Tuesday asked Hernandez about his educational background and asked whether he had inquired about what he would need to do to become a licensed dentist in the U.S.

Simpson said his client was on a waiting list of 17 years to obtain permanent residency here.

After the hearing, Simpson said Hernandez had contacted a local university when he first arrived about 11 years ago and was told he couldn't take classes or transfer his credentials until his immigration status was resolved.

"He had an established dental practice in Mexico City and was fully licensed in his profession," Simpson said.

Hernandez was originally charged with three felony counts of illegally performing invasive dental procedures and three misdemeanor counts of practicing dentistry without a license in 2005, 2007 and 2010.

Prosecutors dropped one felony and one misdemeanor count during a preliminary hearing in April because the victim told authorities she couldn't positively identify Hernandez. Prosecutors also withdrew two misdemeanor counts because they essentially overlapped the felony charges for the same years.

Police said Hernandez catered to clients with no health insurance. Simpson said most of Hernandez's clients were Hispanic and came to him because he could speak Spanish.

Court papers say Hernandez has been living in the Richmond area 11 years with his wife and two children, apparently illegally. Simpson said Hernandez moved his family to the U.S. to escape the "lawlessness and violence" in Mexico and to be closer to his brother, who lives in California.

Now a felon, Hernandez's future here is in doubt.

"The existence of this on his record would probably ruin his chances of getting licensed in the U.S.," Simpson said.


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