Sumner rehabilitation counselor charged, license surrendered after kissing patient
Sumner police allege a counselor at a rehabilitation facility forcibly kissed one of his patients in March 2019.
Robert E. Cerka, 50, worked as a counselor at the Royal Life Treatment Center in 2019.
Cerka has been charged with with fourth-degree assault with sexual motivation. His pretrial hearing is scheduled for Jan. 14 in Sumner Municipal Court.
He has pleaded not guilty, according to court documents.
The former patient was assigned Cerka as her counselor from March 17 through April 1, 2019, during which time he bought the patient gifts, the police report said.
“Cerka then progressively turned the conversations to a sexual nature and asked her about dating him,” the police report said. “Cerka was said to be exhibiting ‘grooming’ behaviors and would frequently pull her out of group sessions to have one on one time with her.”
The former patient, then 22, told police she felt uncomfortable but was unable to tell her parents because the only calls she was able to make to them were while she was being monitored in Cerka’s office. Her sessions were increased to twice a day.
After a counseling session in late March, Cerka got up from his desk and followed her to the door. He cornered her between the door and the closet and kissed her, the police report said.
The following day she told Cerka she was not comfortable with the kissing, and he told her the same thing. After the kiss, the former patient told police Cerka attempted to intimidate her from reporting his behavior by telling her about his military accomplishments and how he can find people and hurt them.
Fifteen minutes after she was discharged from the facility, he sent her a waving emoji on Facebook Messenger, the police report said.
Cerka has been investigated by the Washington State Department of Health. There are three cases against Cerka, all of which have been closed, Gordon MacCracken, spokesperson for the state health department said in an email.
The News Tribune made a public records request for the cases in October. The Washington State Department of Health has estimated a response will be given in February.
According to a state database on medical licenses, Cerka surrendered his three licenses in 2019: Substance Use Disorder Professional Trainee Certification, Counselor Agency Affiliated Registration, and Marriage and Family Therapist Associate License. Enforcement action was taken against all three licenses, the database said.
“He agreed never to reapply or to resume practice in Washington,” MacCracken said.
The state also lodged a complaint against Royal Life Treatment Center for failure and lack of diligence over the patient’s care, according to police documents.
The Royal Life Treatment Center and Cerka’s attorney did not respond to requests for comment.
