Ottumwa chiropractor agrees to stop practicing after being charged with misdemeanor assault of child

Philip Joens
Des Moines Register

An Iowa chiropractor charged with assault after allegedly having inappropriate contact with a child has agreed to stop practicing. 

Dr. Bruce E. Lindberg, 63, who operates a chiropractic office in Ottumwa and had a license active through June 30, made the agreement this month with the Iowa Board of Chiropractic.

He was charged April 18 with assault, a simple misdemeanor, after an alleged incident Feb. 16 with a 10-year-old at his practice. A lawsuit filed by the child's parents in May says Lindberg took the child into a private room, where the alleged inappropriate contact occurred. 

The child, who did not have an appointment scheduled, was there with a family friend whose child was being treated, according to the lawsuit, which seeks mental health services to deal with "trauma" related to the incident and damages to compensate the family.

Lindberg received probation and was required to register as a sex offender in July 1990 after pleading guilty in Monroe County to two charges of indecent contact with a child and two counts of indecent exposure.

A lawsuit filed by the mother of the victims in that case alleged that in the spring of 1989 Lindberg sexually abused two children in Albia.

Lindberg was sentenced to six years probation, which ended in July 1996, according to the Iowa Department of Corrections. His chiropractic license was suspended in March 1991 and eventually reinstated. 

Philip Joens covers public safety, city government and RAGBRAI for the Des Moines Register. He can be reached at 515-443-3347 at pjoens@registermedia.com or on Twitter @Philip_Joens.