Chiropractor who advertized himself as 'Christian' charged with raping, assaulting patients
An Indiana man who advertised himself as a "Christian chiropractor" is facing several criminal charges as at least eight former clients have accused him of rape and sexual assault.
Roc Byrd, 61, of Danville, who worked as a chiropractor for Cornerstone Chiropractic in Avon, is facing one felony count of rape, five felony counts of sexual battery and four misdemeanor counts of battery, the Indianapolis-based Fox 59 reports.
He is accused of raping a client, touching clients inappropriately over and under their clothes during appointments without consent and pressing his genitals up against multiple patients.
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Byrd identified himself as a practicing Christian and reportedly began each of his chiropractic appointments by praying with clients.
Byrd was arrested and initially charged with rape in September in relation to an alleged crime that occurred in November 2022. Byrd was accused of inserting a finger inside a female patient without her consent. He reportedly told the victim that he thought that is what she wanted.
In the following months, after media coverage of his initial charge, several former clients came forward and accused Byrd of touching them inappropriately during appointments.
"It was so gradual. … I feel so stupid now," one victim told Fox 59.
Many victims told investigators they wrestled for a long time with Byrd's violation of their bodies because some couldn't fully understand what had happened during their visits with him, court documents suggest.
Some of the victims said they put their trust in Byrd because he presented himself as "a Christian Chiropractor."
"He was a Christian, or so he said, we talked about it," one victim told Fox59. "Doesn't compute, right?"
Byrd was first contacted by police in November 2022 following the first allegations that were reported.
Some of the alleged victims who recently came forward shared that Byrd assaulted them in early 2023, months after he was made aware of the police investigation.
"Roc Byrd did not fear these allegations enough to stop assaulting his patients," an investigator stated when filing for the new charges.
A victim filed a lawsuit against Byrd and Cornerstone Chiropractic last December.
Byrd has been released on bond since posting bail in October. He has a pretrial conference set for April 25.
Nicole VanDyke is a reporter for The Christian Post.
