Plastic surgeon goes before judge in hit-and-run case

01:14 PM CST on Monday, March 14, 2005

By Reggie Aqui / 11 News

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HOUSTON -- Prominent plastic surgeon Dr. Mark Gilliland made his first court appearance Monday after a hit-and-run accident that left two young women hospitalized.

KHOU

Mark Gilliland is charged with intoxication assault and failure to stop and render aid.

Gilliland is charged with intoxication assault and failure to stop and render aid. He is out on a $10,000 bond and planned to return to work after Monday's hearing.

Police say the plastic surgeon lost control of his Mercedes, ran up a sidewalk and struck two pedestrians last Wednesday in the Galleria area.

The driver left the scene without stopping. A witness wrote down the license plate number and police later arrested Gilliland at his nearby high-rise. Officers say he failed a field sobriety test.

The victims, producers with "Animal Planet," were in town shooting a TV show with the Houston SPCA.

Joanna Moore, 31, and Amanda Holland, 33, were critically injured. Both women remain hospitalized. Moore is in serious condition and Holland has been upgraded to good condition.

"Right now our first concern is the health and recovery of Miss Moore and Miss Holland. We hope that their recovery is going well and wish them the best," said Matt Hennessy, Gilliland's attorney. ""We are still investigating our side of the case, and we will provide those facts in court when the time comes."

If convicted, Gilliland could get up to 10 years in prison and lose his medical license.

Gilliland was arrested on drunken driving charges last year and pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of reckless driving. In 1998, the Texas State Board of Medical Examiners put him on probation for prescribing drugs such as Valium and diet pills to family members. He was diagnosed with "opiate dependence" and was treated by an addiction specialist.

The director of the State Medical Board wouldn't comment directly on the Gilliland case. But he said called the circumstances "horrible" and said such a case is usually cause for an emergency hearing.