"We have no record of her being licensed," said Robert Puleo, executive officer for the state board. "There may or may not be an open investigation, I can't deny or confirm."

A chiropractic office can hire assistants to help chiropractors, "and that's not necessarily a violation," Puleo said.

However, Aspen is listed as a doctor of chiropractic who works at the Merced Spine and Sport Rehabilitation Center in Merced. She and Jaimal Sangha, a chiropractor at the center who is licensed by the board, didn't return repeated calls seeking comment.

When a Sun-Star reporter showed up at the center seeking comment, the reporter was asked to leave or office workers said they would call security.

Speaking in general terms, Puleo said, if someone is practicing without a license and the board receives a complaint, the board conducts an investigation to get as much information as possible about what exactly the person was performing. That information is forwarded to an expert who evaluates it and determines whether the person was performing chiropractic manipulation, meaning performing any kind of procedure that requires a license, Puleo said. That would be a violation of state regulations.

Investigations by the board aren't made public because people might see it as an indication that a person is guilty, when in fact, at the end of the investigation, there could be no indication of a violation, Puleo said. An investigation can become public if it's substantiated and requires some kind of discipline.

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