A Carnelian Bay chiropractor faces felony charges for alleged sexual abuse involving several of his patients.

Steven Eugene Clifford, 48, was arraigned Tuesday in Tahoe City. The charges include eight counts of sexual battery; four counts of felony sodomy with a person under 14 years or with force; two counts of forcible oral copulation; single counts of sexual penetration/foreign object with force and assault with a deadly weapon other than a firearm; and a single misdemeanor charge of child molestation.

Clifford, a Kings Beach resident, was arrested Jan. 25 on suspicion of sexual battery for allegedly touching a female patient’s breasts during a chiropractic treatment last October.

The patient, Kim Mares of Incline Village, came forward in January and has recently gone public about the incident to help her in “a healing process” and to warn others.

“I think there are lots of other victims of Steven,” Mares said. “It is very, very important for them to come forward in order for the healing to start. They need to start talking about this, as I have, in order to get closure.”

Mares, who appeared at Clifford’s arraignment, said she had no idea that other charges would be leveled.

“I was appalled to hear these other charges against him,” she said.

The other charges were brought by Placer County Deputy District Attorney Christopher Cattran after further investigation.

According to Placer County sheriff’s Sgt. Jeffrey Granum, Clifford was not present at Tuesday’s arraignment. Attorney Barry Jones entered a “not guilty” plea on all 17 counts. A status conference was set for March 11.

Granum has requested that patients and former patients who believe that they may have been victims of inappropriate sexual contact by Clifford telephone the Placer County Sheriff’s Department at (530) 581-6300. Clifford was released on $10,000 bail for the initial charge brought in January.

Clifford has faced earlier allegations of inappropriate contact with a patient. The Oregon state board of chiropractic examiners suspended his license for 30 days in 1995 and placed him on probation for one year. The board’s final order states that inappropriate contact with a female patient took place three years earlier.

Through reciprocal agreement between Oregon and California, Clifford’s censure followed him when he moved to the Tahoe area, and appears on state records. According to Kathy Hayes, program manager of the enforcement unit for the California Board of Chiropractic Examiners, a potential revocation of Clifford’s California license was held for a one-year probation period in early 1999, soon after he returned to California from Oregon. Hayes said she was contacted about Clifford by the Placer County Sheriff’s Department last January and was already taking steps that could revoke his license.