David Hanson, 44, a former chiropractor from Batavia, Illinois, was sentenced on Tuesday, November 10, to 60 years in prison for secretly recording more than 180 of his patients — including children — as they undressed at his practice, Hanson Family Chiropractic. Hanson had pleaded guilty in September to producing child sexual abuse material and disseminating child sexual abuse material, both Class X felonies, according to the Kane County State's Attorney's Office.
Source: Chicago Focal
Kane County Circuit Judge D.J. Tegeler imposed 30 years on each of the two counts, to run consecutively — a combined 60 years. The Chronicle reported that the term was an agreed sentence between prosecutors and the defence. Hanson will receive credit for 370 days already served in the Kendall County Jail and must register as a sex offender for life.
Source: Chronicle Media
A sentencing hearing dominated by the victims
The hearing at the Kane County Judicial Center ran for more than two and a half hours, most of it given to patients describing what the secret recordings had done to them. More than 50 victims either addressed the court or submitted written statements, Kane County State's Attorney Jamie Mosser said, according to the Chicago Focal. The Chronicle reported that victims said the taping — of mostly women and some children, the youngest aged three — left them feeling humiliated and unable to trust other medical personnel. Judge Tegeler told Hanson from the bench: "If I could take off this robe and they let me sentence you, I'd give you every single day of 1,330 years," referring to the maximum exposure Hanson had faced before the plea agreement.
Source: Chicago Focal
Prosecutors say the full scale of the recording may never be known: while investigators documented more than 180 patients, the State's Attorney's Office has said the case may have involved hundreds of victims in total.
Source: Chicago Focal
How the case was built
Hanson was arrested and charged on November 6, 2025 (case 2025-CF-2638), after an investigation by the Batavia Police Department and the Kane County State's Attorney's Office. Investigators say he used hidden cameras in a room used for red-light and near-infrared light therapy to record patients as they undressed or were unclothed, and that some of the recordings were shared online. Prosecutors said he was also found to have possessed and shared child sexual abuse material not connected to the chiropractic office, and that he was the sole suspect in the case.
Source: Rockford News First
On February 20, 2026, a Kane County grand jury indicted Hanson on 66 counts of child sexual abuse material offences and 10 counts of unauthorized video recording — 76 counts in all. Of the 66, sixteen were related to material depicting victims from his chiropractic office, Rockford News First reported. At his March 12, 2026 arraignment, Hanson pleaded not guilty and was told he faced between 268 and 1,331 years in prison if convicted on all charges, according to the State's Attorney's case page. On September 3, 2026, he pleaded guilty to the two Class X counts — producing and disseminating child sexual abuse material — and Judge Tegeler set sentencing for November 10. Each Class X felony carries six to 30 years in Illinois.
Source: Kane County State's Attorney — Hanson case page
Hanson's guilty plea resolved the 76-count indictment without a trial. The two counts he pleaded to each carried a maximum of 30 years, and the agreed, consecutive 30-plus-30 structure produced the 60-year term the judge imposed on Tuesday. One case summary reported he is eligible for day-for-day sentencing credit under Illinois law; the exact release calculation rests with the Illinois Department of Corrections.
The civil cases widening beyond the criminal one
The criminal sentence does not end the matter. Kane County court records show multiple civil lawsuits against Hanson and his now-shuttered practice are ongoing. The Chicago firm Romanucci & Blandin, which says it represents multiple victims — including three generations within one family — said on November 10 that its civil investigation is continuing. Another victims' firm, Dixon Law Office, said in September that the civil effort would extend to Hanson's corporate entities, insurers and others it alleges enabled the recording. Those civil claims are allegations that have not been decided by any court.
Source: Romanucci & Blandin statement (Nov 10, 2026)
What happens next
Hanson will be transferred into Illinois Department of Corrections custody to serve the 60-year term, with his 370 days of jail credit applied. If he is ever released, he must register as a sex offender for the rest of his life. The civil lawsuits in Kane County will proceed separately, and the State's Attorney's Office has kept a public case page for victims and former patients seeking information.