Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist Falsely Accused a Doctor of Sexual Assault

 A Former Deaconess employee drops lawsuit, says she falsely accused doctor of sexual assault. Rebecca Blair who in a civil lawsuit said she was sexually assaulted by a local doctor, has agreed to publicly apologize, pay him an undisclosed amount of damages and dismiss her legal case admitting she made false statements and allegations.

She is a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist, formerly employed by Deaconess, resigned her job in March 2019 because of the alleged harassment, according to her lawsuit against Dr. Nirmal Joshi filed in Warrick County Circuit Court. Joshi is employed as an anesthesiologist by Deaconess, practicing at both Deaconess Midtown in Evansville and Deaconess Gateway in Warrick County.

The Courier & Press did not identify Blair in its original reporting about the lawsuit, consistent with its policy not to identify victims of alleged sexual assault or abuse unless they consent. Blair agreed to releasing a written, notarized public apology withdrawing her claims when she settled the lawsuit. 

In it, Blair apologized for having made unfounded and false statements and allegations that Dr. Joshi sexually and physically attacked me or ever threatened to do so. In the apology, Blair says she received no money for the statement and dismissing the lawsuit, which she said was done freely to attempt to undo the damage I have caused, and in fact, am paying an undisclosed sum to Dr. Joshi.

Blair's attorney, Jared Thomas, said an agreement had been reached to dismiss both her lawsuit and Joshi's countersuit. When asked about her apology, Thomas said he had no comment on it.

Josshi's lawyer said  that this case is probably the craziest thing  ever come across in his career. "It was completely made up, crazy set of circumstances. Joshi denied Blair's allegations when her lawsuit was filed in 2019. At the time, Blanton told the Courier & Press that Deaconess investigated Blair's allegations and found they were unsubstantiated.

A Deaconess spokeswoman said at the time that its investigation lasted nearly two months and included witnesses interviews, reviewing security camera footage and electronic sign in and out records. Blanton said Deaconess' investigation proved Joshi was not physically nearby at the time of some of the instances Blair alleged.

Blanton said Blair agreed to mediate the lawsuit when confronted with law enforcement records showing she made similar complaints against a man who she went to anesthesia school with in Illinois over seven months in 2017.  Blanton obtained the records as part of her work representing Joshi.

The Courier & Press compared them to the allegations detailed in Blair's lawsuit and found similarities. In both instances, Blair said she was sexually assaulted multiple times, physically harmed, threatened and harassed. 

The investigation in the Illinois case effectively ended in September 2017 after investigators reported Blair told them she did not want to press charges against anybody and that she did not want to be contacted about it anymore.