Beverly Hills Anesthesiologist Pleads Not Guilty To Murdering Patient, Another Doc
BEVERLY HILLS (CBSLA) – An anesthesiologist pleaded not guilty Thursday to murder in the death of a 71-year-old plastic surgery patient in Beverly Hills this fall.
Stephen Kyosung Kim, 53, is charged in the Sept. 26 death of the patient, Dr. Mark Greenspan, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.
Kim pleaded not guilty to a single count of murder at his arraignment Thursday in Los Angeles County Superior Court and remains free on bail. Kim was arrested Wednesday by Beverly Hills police.
While working at the Rodeo Drive Plastic Surgery Center in Beverly Hills, Kim allegedly administered medicine to sedate Greenspan before surgery, according to the District Attorney's Office.
Kim is accused of injecting himself with an unknown drug during the procedure, then allegedly giving Greenspan a lethal dose of Demerol while the patient was in a recovery room, according to the D.A's Office. Soon after being administered that dose, the D.A. alleged Greenspan went into cardiac arrest and died.
If convicted as charged, he faces up to 25 years to life in prison.
Kim's next hearing is scheduled for Jan. 25. He is out on bail.
KCAL9's Rachel Kim (no relation to the suspect) spoke to the alleged victim's sister by phone Thursday.
"I am really raw," says Linda Resnick, "I truly am. My brother is such a deep loss to me."
She said it's also a big loss to his patients.
"He loved what he did," she said, "And so many of his patients are going to miss him. He worked for 38 years [at seven different offices] in Southern California."
For now, his sister can only mourn his loss. "It's just painful, very very painful," she said.
Keeping her focused is believing her brother's death will not be in vain.
"I do believe justice will prevail," she said, "I miss him really terribly."
Kim reached out to Dr. Kim but he did not return her call.
(©2017 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)
