PHOENIX — A former nurse charged with sexually assaulting an incapacitated woman who later gave birth at a long-term care facility in Phoenix will appeal a court order requiring a test to determine if he has HIV or other sexually transmitted diseases.
Court Commissioner Roger Hartsell issued a Feb. 27 order requiring Nathan Sutherland to take the test and rejected a request Tuesday to reconsider the requirement.
Sutherland attorney Edwin Molina argued the test would violate his client's protections against unreasonable searches and seizures.
Molina says authorities have no probable cause to believe Sutherland has a sexually transmitted disease.
Authorities say Sutherland was working as a nurse at Hacienda HealthCare when he raped the 29-year-old victim. Phoenix police served a search warrant for the DNA of male Hacienda Healthcare employees after the birth. Investigators discovered a match between Sutherland and the baby.
He pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Sutherland has since given up his nursing license.