Dr. Roland E. Clark was born on August 1, 1911, in the United States and trained as a medical doctor. At some point in his early adult life, he gained licensure to practice medicine in the state of Michigan. For years, Clark operated in the Detroit and Oakland County areas and maintained a medical office in Farmington Township. He appeared to be a respectable physician on the surface, but over time, numerous allegations and complaints began to emerge regarding his professional conduct, treatment practices, and ethical violations.

Between 1954 and 1967, Clark’s medical license was revoked four separate times. Official reasons included gross misconduct, moral turpitude, and one instance with no specific charges listed. In a highly unusual pattern, each revocation was later reversed, allowing him to resume practice. During these years, Clark became the subject of at least 25 formal complaints filed with the Michigan State Board of Medicine.

These complaints painted the picture of a deeply unethical and dangerous physician. Allegations included performing illegal abortions, sexually assaulting patients, molesting minors, dispensing dangerous quantities of drugs unnecessarily, and practicing medicine while unlicensed. Three patient deaths were linked to drug overdoses during this time, though none resulted in charges. Clark was even committed to a psychiatric hospital in 1958 by his ex-wife, though he was released in less than three months and allowed to resume his medical career.

Despite mounting concerns and red flags, Clark continued operating for years. His ability to evade serious legal consequences likely stemmed from a combination of insufficient oversight, administrative failures, and, perhaps, a system reluctant to pursue criminal charges against licensed medical professionals.

On March 20, 1967, Clark’s longtime secretary, Hannah Bowerbank, collapsed and died suddenly while at work in his office. Though the death was viewed as “curious” by police at the time, no direct evidence of wrongdoing was uncovered. No charges were filed, and the case was quietly dropped.

Then, eight months later, on November 3, 1967, another of Clark’s employees, Grace Neil, died under similar circumstances. On the night of her death, local police spotted a hearse illegally parked outside Clark’s office. Upon investigation, they discovered Neil’s body already loaded into the vehicle, seemingly prepared for transport. An autopsy revealed traces of sodium pentothal, an anesthetic drug, in her system—raising immediate red flags about how and why the substance was administered.

Police attempted to search Clark’s premises on November 16, 1967, but made a critical error: they forgot their warrants. While they returned to retrieve the proper paperwork, Clark fled. He was apprehended days later near Port Austin, 125 miles north of Detroit.

After his arrest, Clark was charged with two counts of manslaughter in the deaths of Bowerbank and Neil. Although investigators looked into at least nine additional suspicious deaths linked to his medical practice, including patients who had died of cardiac arrest, therapeutic overdose, or mysterious injections, no further charges were brought. Some of these cases were too old to prosecute or lacked the necessary forensic evidence to proceed.

In 1968, Clark was convicted of the two manslaughter counts and sentenced to three to fifteen years in prison. He served time at the state penitentiary in Jackson, Michigan. Throughout his imprisonment, there were no indications that Clark ever publicly confessed to additional crimes or cooperated with investigators about the suspicious deaths of his patients.

On March 23, 1972, Dr. Roland E. Clark died in prison as a result of an accidental fall. His death brought an abrupt end to a disturbing and chaotic medical career marred by repeated violations, coverups, and suspected serial killings masked behind a doctor’s license. Though only two deaths were ever formally tied to him in court, the true number of Clark’s victims may never be fully known.