Florida therapist who tried to seduce 19-year-old rape victim telling her she’s ‘extremely hot’ surrenders his license
PALM HARBOR, FLORIDA: A Florida therapist surrendered his license after he was accused of trying to seduce a teenage rape victim he was seeing.
Stephen C. McGinley, a mental health counselor in Palm Harbor, told the victim, 19, she was "extremely hot" and that "I want to make love to you, girl... slowly," according to an emergency suspension order (ESO) issued on his license obtained by the Miami Herald.
The ESO also alleged that McGinley, 55, who has been licensed to practice in the state since 1999, touched the 19-year-old sexually while slow-dancing with her during one of their sessions.
The victim lived in Tampa with her family. She began seeing a counselor in Salt Lake City, Utah, where her family lived previously, after being raped in high school and her first week of college.
When they moved to Tampa, she began therapy with McGinley at The Brain Enhancement Institute in Palm Harbor and would go on to have 12 therapy sessions between February and April 2019, according to the ESO.
Things began taking a turn for the worse from the fourth session, on March 2, when McGinley started sharing personal information with her. He reportedly told her how he was dating a 19-year-old lady who was a "stripper" to cope with his ongoing divorce.
He then became "flirtatious" with the victim and started telling her she was "beautiful" and "hot." He also told her he wanted to take her out to expensive restaurants and would sit close to her on the couch instead of sitting in a separate chair.
In April, he started exchanging personal text messages and calls with her and expressed that he wanted to "hang out" with her but would "lose [his] license and get arrested" because she was his patient.
He also started calling her "baby," and told her she was "extremely hot." He told her that he had fantasized about her and that he enjoyed flirting with her.
He then became physical with the 19-year-old during a session on April 15, with the ESO stating that he started dancing with her.
While dancing, he allegedly "began to kiss her," "placed his hands under [her] sweater and cupped her breasts," "grabbed her buttocks and place his hand between her legs, touching her vagina through her pants," and "took [her] hand and placed it on his penis."
On April 16, he told her in a text that he was "feeling horny," that he had her "memorized" and that her stomach was "tight" and he loved it.
But the girl did not respond, and the same night she called her former therapist and told her about her interactions with McGinley.
The therapist then informed her parents about the 55-year-old's inappropriate conduct.
Two days later, she reported him to the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office and provided copies of her text message conversations with him.
The same day, her parents also filed a complaint with the Florida Department Of Health.
In an interview around a week later with the police, McGinley admitted to the offenses.
In its ESO against him, the Florida DOH wrote, "Mr. McGinley repeatedly violated the psychotherapist-patient relationship by attempting to engage the patient in sexual activity both during and outside of their therapy sessions, and by actually engaging the patient in sexual activity during a therapy session" and that he had "committed an egregious violation of the psychotherapist-patient relationship."
A week after the Florida DOH issued the ESO on McGinley's license on July 11, he submitted a "voluntary relinquishment pending board action."
According to his current license status, he is retired.