A 70-year-old orthopedic and spine surgeon at the Medical University of South Carolina has been arrested and charged with second-degree assault and battery after security cameras allegedly captured him striking a coworker. Charles Alan Reitman, who holds senior leadership titles within MUSC's orthopaedics department, was taken into custody by MUSC Public Safety and later released on personal recognizance bail.
According to the Post and Courier, an arrest affidavit placed the alleged incident at around 11 a.m. on August 31, 2026, and says Reitman struck the victim with an open right-hand strike to her buttocks while she was bending over conducting work activities. Per the warrant, the strike caused emotional distress and minor physical injury to the victim, and officers reviewed the incident on surveillance footage at the scene. Reitman was charged on September 3, 2026. He was released on personal recognizance bail, which requires payment of a fee only if he fails to appear for court.
Who Is Charles Alan Reitman
MUSC Health lists Reitman as a professor and vice chairman of the Department of Orthopaedics and co-director of the MUSC Spine Center, according to his provider profile on getcare.muschealth.org. The South Carolina licensing board lists him as the supervising physician for physician assistants and an advanced practice nurse. MUSC Health describes him as having extensive experience in program development and mentoring.
Reitman began his career as a physical therapist in Sacramento, California, before graduating from Baylor University School of Medicine in 1995, per the Post and Courier's reporting. He went on to complete an orthopedic surgery residency and spinal surgery fellowship at Baylor College of Medicine, a training path also confirmed by his MUSC Health profile. In 2003, he became chief of orthopaedic surgery at the trauma center at Ben Taub Hospital in Houston and served as the department's interim chairman for two years, the profile notes, before MUSC recruited him to Charleston in 2015.
MUSC Health's profile adds that Reitman has more than 100 peer-reviewed publications to his name. A 2024 profile from Orthopedics This Week reported that he received the North American Spine Society's 2024 David Selby Award for his contributions to spine surgery, and that he has been a member of the society since 2001. That same profile said he taught and served as director of residency education in Houston for 11 years before his move to Charleston.
Licensing And Employment Questions Remain
The South Carolina Board of Medical Examiners lists no disciplinary actions against Reitman and shows he holds an active South Carolina medical license, the Post and Courier reports. The board's records list him as practicing at the Ralph Johnson VA Medical Center, but a VA spokesman told the paper that Reitman is not employed at or practicing at that facility. MUSC did not immediately respond to the paper's inquiry about Reitman's current status, leaving his present employment standing unresolved.
Per public index records cited by the Post and Courier, Reitman is scheduled to appear in Charleston County General Sessions Court for a routine hearing in mid-February. Tom Corwin is a health reporter for the paper.
