Married Man Accused of Sneaking Abortion Pills Inside Body of Pregnant Mistress During Sex Can Remove Ankle Monitor

• David Coots, a Washington state nurse practitioner, is accused of secretly administering abortion pills to his mistress during sex leading to assault and rape charges
• Despite the serious allegations against him, Coots obtained an esthetician license and was allowed to remove his electronic ankle monitor
• The alleged victim expressed fear for her safety if the monitor is removed, and Coots remains under court orders to avoid contact with her ahead of his next hearing on June 6

A Washington State nurse practitioner who is accused of forcing abortion pills inside his girlfriend during sex has been allowed to remove his electronic home-monitoring device so he can start a business. 

David Coots, 43, of Gig Harbor, Wash., was arrested on March 11 after being charged with second-degree assault, third-degree rape and tampering with a witness, according to charging documents previously obtained by PEOPLE. 

He was a nurse practitioner at MultiCare Gig Harbor Medical Park until his license was suspended in April 2024 by the state Board of Nursing, The News Tribune reported.

The alleged victim was a patient of Coots’, a married father of five who is accused of persistently pursuing a romantic relationship before beginning an affair with her last year, according to the charging documents. 

In January, when the woman learned she was pregnant, she said Coots was “overly supportive” when she told him, per the charging documents. But on at least two occasions, the woman believes that Coots tried to induce an abortion. 

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Coots allegedly prescribed misoprostol pills to himself and slipped four of them into the woman’s body during sex, according to the court documents. 

Melissa Coots, David’s wife, pleaded guilty in June 2024 to attempted witness tampering for offering to pay off the girlfriend – with a $2,000 payment – telling her that if she told police, it would ruin her life, as well as David’s, according to the charging documents. 

On Feb. 5, David was allegedly “relentlessly” messaging the woman until approximately one minute before officers served him with a protection order, authorities said, per the charging documents. He also allegedly contacted the woman and left gifts and flowers outside her home; he was arrested for allegedly violating his protection order. 

Coots recently obtained an esthetician license by the Department of Licensing on April 11, the outlet reported, citing court documents. Coots’ new business would help people with “cystic acne, alopecia, rosacea and hyperpigmentation,” The News Tribune reported. 

The Department of Licensing told the outlet in a statement, “State law doesn’t require a criminal background check for cosmetology licenses, but the application asks a person to attest or self-report if they have been convicted of a crime and he checked no. Now that we know the serious nature of the charges against him, his esthetician license is under review.”

The alleged victim told Judge Stanley Rumbaugh that Coots’ ankle monitor has given her peace of mind, The News Tribune reported. “I don’t know how to explain how terrifying it is,” she said, adding that if the monitor comes off, she and her daughter would leave the state. “That’s how afraid I am of him coming to my house,” she said.

Coots can remove his ankle monitor on May 14, per the outlet. He is still not allowed to contact the woman. Coots’ next hearing is tentatively scheduled for June 6.

If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go to thehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.

If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, please contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or go to rainn.org.