GIG HARBOR, Wash. (Court TV) — A former nurse practitioner in Washington state pleaded guilty to assaulting his mistress and forcing abortion pills inside her at a plea hearing Friday.
David Coots pleaded guilty to assault in the second degree with domestic violence, tampering with a witness and assault in the fourth degree with sexual motivation. He was sentenced to 12 months and a day in custody, followed by a year of community custody. He was also ordered to have no contact with the victim.
David Coots appears in court Friday, July 11, 2025. (Court TV)
Court documents revealed Coots and the victim met in January 2023 when she went to his office for an appointment as a patient. The victim told police she had a positive pregnancy test a year later. Days after the positive test, she claimed Coots inserted a pill inside her without her knowledge while having consensual sex. She went to the emergency room after finding a “white round pill on the toilet paper the size of an Altoid.” She immediately texted Coots and asked what it was, to which he eventually told her he “put four pills inside her” that “cause miscarriages,” stated a probable cause affidavit. The victim went to the emergency room, where a rape kit was performed.
MORE | Nurse practitioner accused of rape, giving mistress abortion pills
The woman filed a protection order against Coots. He was arrested on March 11, 2024, after violating the conditions when he showed up where she was staying with gifts and a letter. He was later released on a $500,000 bond and ordered to wear an ankle monitor, which he was permitted to remove last month, according to The News Tribune.
Coots had previously pleaded not guilty to second-degree assault, third-degree rape, tampering with a witness and five counts of violation of a court order.
At Friday’s hearing, the victim said coming forward has been “humiliating,” and she lives in fear for her and her child’s safety. The victim detailed their relationship, saying Coots relentlessly pursued her, and she eventually gave in, not knowing he was married. She said once she found out he was married, he presented her with what she later figured out were fake divorce documents.
When she found out she was pregnant, the victim said she gave Coots the option not to be involved in the pregnancy, but instead he was “thrilled.”
In describing the assault, the victim said she was shocked and devastated at the realization of what had been done to her while at the hospital. She also detailed multiple instances of Coots trying to contact her after the miscarriage, including Melissa Coots attempting to pay her off.
The victim begged the judge not to fall for Coots’ “act,” calling him manipulative and dangerous.
Coots’ defense told the judge that it’s their belief the victim was not pregnant when she went to the emergency room, and his actions did not cause a miscarriage, while acknowledging what he did was “unthinkable” and “completely out of character.”
Coots himself then addressed the court, saying he took full responsibility for his actions, letting “fear and desperation guide (him).” He thanked his defense team and prosecutors and apologized to the victim and his family.
Coots’ wife, Melissa Coots, pleaded guilty to a charge of attempted witness tampering and was given a two-year deferred sentence last summer.
