A Paragould gynecologist pleaded innocent to five counts of voyeurism Friday in Greene County Circuit Court and will be tried in September, a news release said.
Paul Becton, 68, is accused of photographing a woman without her consent during an April 1 examination at Becton Women's Clinic in Paragould.
He was released from jail a day later after posting a $500,000 bond set by Greene County District Court Judge Dan Stidham, 2nd Judicial District Prosecuting Attorney Scott Ellington said.
Paragould police said a woman told authorities that while Becton was performing an examination on her, she saw in the reflection of a glass frame that he was taking pictures of her with a cellphone. The woman, who has filed a civil lawsuit against him, said that when she turned around, Becton hurriedly put his phone in his pocket.
She accused him in her lawsuit of conducting a "somewhat suggestive" examination of her inner thigh and lower back.
Curtis Hitt, a Paragould attorney representing Becton, did not return a telephone message Friday.
After an investigation conducted by Paragould police and the Arkansas State Police, Ellington sought an arrest warrant for Becton on April 10.
U.S. marshals found the gynecologist at the Fortune Inn and Suites in Newport about 7 p.m. April 16 -- an hour after he and his wife, Carol Becton, checked into the motel. Authorities found Becton by tracking calls made though his cellphone.
Circuit Judge Brent Davis received Becton's innocent plea Friday. He set a pretrial hearing date for Sept. 2 and scheduled a jury trial to begin in Paragould on Sept. 15. Circuit Judge Barbara Halsey will preside over the trial.
State Desk on 05/31/2014