A former UTMB Health cafeteria worker has been sentenced to 10 years in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice after admitting he sexually assaulted a hospitalized cancer patient in her bed at UTMB Health's Clear Lake Campus in Webster. The attack happened in late October 2023, according to court records, and the prison term was handed down in Harris County on Tuesday following an investigation that led to charges in November 2023.
Court records and sentencing
Harris County court records show that 30-year-old Cristian Daniel Cruz Herrera pleaded guilty to one count of sexual assault and, on Jan. 20, received a 10-year state prison sentence to be served in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, as reported by Click2Houston. Court filings reviewed by the station list a single sexual assault charge and document the plea and disposition. Prosecutors first charged Herrera in November 2023 after the patient reported what had happened.
What happened in the hospital
According to court documents and earlier reporting, the woman, a cancer patient being treated for low potassium, told investigators that Herrera delivered her lunch around noon on Oct. 26, 2023 and assaulted her after she asked him for help getting to the restroom. She said she called for a nurse once he left and later dialed 911. Court records indicate Herrera admitted the conduct to investigators before he was charged, according to Click2Houston. "My pleas for help were ignored and I was treated like a criminal myself," the survivor told the station.
Employer and hospital response
UTMB confirmed the assault and said the contract worker was immediately removed once his admission surfaced, and Sodexo, which runs food service at the campus, said it fired him, according to reporting by hospital horror coverage. UTMB told reporters it would review its sexual assault reporting procedures and refresh staff training where needed after the incident. Available reports indicate that neither UTMB nor Sodexo has released new statements specifically tied to the sentencing.
Legal context
In Texas, sexual assault is defined in Penal Code Section 22.011 and prosecuted as a felony. A conviction is a reportable offense and can trigger registration obligations under Chapter 62 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, according to the statutes maintained by the state Legislature. See Penal Code §22.011 and Code of Criminal Procedure Chapter 62 for the statute language and registration rules.
Aftermath
The survivor has said the assault will permanently change how she seeks medical care, and earlier reporting detailed her belief that hospital staff brushed her off when she tried to report what happened, according to earlier hospital horror coverage. Advocates and patient safety observers have pointed to the case as a stark example of why hospitals need clearer vendor policies and stronger training to protect vulnerable inpatients. With sentencing now complete, authorities and hospital officials say reviews are still underway into how the assault was handled and whether policy or practice changes are necessary.
