MISSOULA — The Montana Board of Dentistry revoked the license of a Missoula dentist following reports of sexual assault.
Two women accused dentist Ronny Rodriguez of sexual assault and misconduct while they were employed at his practice, Dental Care of Montana.
The Board revoked Rodriguez’s license in June and ordered that he be prohibited from practicing dentistry in Montana.
But this prohibition does not go into effect until August 6, 2025, to allow for Rodriguez to transfer patients and phase out his practice.
The revocation comes after two former employees accused Rodriguez of misconduct to the Montana Board of Dentistry in 2024 and 2025.
In response, Rodriguez reached an agreement with the Board to surrender his license, conceding that the Board had reason to find his conduct unprofessional. Records from the Montana Board of Dentistry detail the accusations.
One claim centers around a night in August of 2023, when Rodriguez invited a new employee for dinner and drinks after work. According to Board documents, the woman reported that after multiple alcoholic drinks, Rodriguez roughly touched her underneath her clothes and tried to kiss her while making sexual remarks.
The woman was upset and told Rodriguez that she did not want it to happen again, declining an invitation to go out again, according to the documents. In his agreement with the Board, Rodriguez denied the accusations, but acknowledged that there was enough evidence to find he was acting in an unprofessional manner.
The documents detail a second incident, one week after the first, when Rodriguez joined two female employees and two others out for drinks. The group continued drinking at a Missoula strip club, where one female employee ended up alone with Rodriguez. According to the documents, the woman was heavily intoxicated when Rodriguez drove her back to the Dental Care of Montana office, “where he subjected her to sexual acts without her consent.”
Rodriguez, in the Board records, denied having sex with the woman without her consent. He did, however, acknowledge having sexual contact with his subordinate. In the agreement, Rodriguez admitted that the Board has enough evidence to find his conduct unprofessional.
“I was unprofessional in my conduct, as I admitted to the Montana Board of Dentistry, and I am very sorry for that,” Rodriguez said in a statement to MTN, which can be found in full below. “While I don’t agree with or admit to all the accusations that have been made, my unprofessional conduct was unacceptable and does not reflect how I have conducted myself throughout my dental career.”
The accusations were reported to the Board, which only considers Rodriguez’s dentistry license, not whether or not a crime was committed. MTN reached out to the City of Missoula Police Department, who said the case was not reported to them.
“We currently have received no reports,” Missoula Police Department spokeswoman Whitney Bennett said.
Without a report from a victim, law enforcement cannot investigate or take any actions, she said. Bennett stressed that, while it is very hard for many survivors to come forward, it is the only way for law enforcement to get involved with a case. She urged people to report crimes and check out Missoula’s resources, like the Crime Victim Advocate Program.
Rodriguez provided the following statement to MTN News:
“I was unprofessional in my conduct, as I admitted to the Montana Board of Dentistry, and I am very sorry for that.
While I don’t agree with or admit to all the accusations that have been made, my unprofessional conduct was unacceptable and does not reflect how I have conducted myself throughout my dental career.
As part of this agreement with the dentistry board, I will be surrendering my dental license, and I am phasing out my involvement with Dental Care of Montana. I plan to follow through on the requirements to regain my license outlined by the dentistry board, and I look forward to being able to resume practicing dentistry.
Again, I take responsibility for my actions, I have accepted the penalty issued by the Montana Board of Dentistry, and I plan to always conduct myself professionally going forward.”
