In Macomb County, credibility of counselor used as expert witness is questioned

In Macomb County, credibility of counselor used as expert witness is questioned


12:33 AM, Dec. 5, 2011

By Peggy Walsh-Sarnecki
Detroit Free Press Staff Writer

A few months ago, Gerald Terlep was a respected counselor with a long-standing Macomb County practice who regularly testified in the county's probate court as an expert witness.

Today, he's facing rumors that he passed himself off as a medical doctor during those hearings. But some, including the hospital where he's a contract employee, are baffled that it took 13 years to raise the issue of whether Terlep was qualified to testify.

Terlep, who has a PhD in education and a master's degree in social work, does not meet the state's requirement to be an expert witness because he is not a medical doctor or a licensed psychologist, said Macomb County's counsel, George Brumbaugh, who is reviewing the issue.

Michigan law says court-ordered mental examinations must be done by a medical doctor, a psychiatrist or a psychologist; it does not include counselors.

Charges are unlikely, and there is no evidence that Terlep ever claimed to be a medical doctor, Brumbaugh said. Terlep has not been testifying while the issue is under review.

Brumbaugh also said it appears unlikely that the cases Terlep testified for will be reopened.

"Those cases are terminated. It's not like somebody's serving a sentence," Brumbaugh said.

It's not clear how Terlep's credentials got called into question.

"That's one of the things that's being reviewed," said Chief Probate Judge Mark Switalski. "Typically, this would come up in the courtroom, and the court would make a finding. So I'm not sure how this was even raised."

Nor is it clear how a court could allow him to testify if he wasn't qualified. Brumbaugh and Switalski agree that before Terlep could testify, both sides would have to agree he was qualified. And although the law says he's not qualified to testify in competency hearings, according to several professional associations, Terlep's credentials qualified him to testify within his area of expertise.

Social workers are able to diagnose and treat mental disorders, said Sherri Morgan, associate counsel for the National Association of Social Workers.

Brumbaugh did not return telephone calls seeking information about what Terlep testified on. "If the court says he's qualified, then he's qualified," said Francis Perry, a professor of counseling at Eastern Michigan University, who was referred to the Free Press by the Michigan Counseling Association.

Terlep has been advised not to comment, but those who know him are quick to come to his defense.

"We know him to be a respected health professional who has helped thousands of patients with behavioral health issues throughout his 40-year career," read a statement released by Henry Ford Macomb Hospital where Terlep serves as a psychotherapist as a contract employee.

"We have no evidence that Dr. Terlep has ever misrepresented his professional credentials."

Please read complete article at link below:


http://www.freep.com/article/20111205/NEWS04/112050335/In-Macomb-County-credibility-counselor-used-expert-witness-questioned?odyssey=mod%7Cnewswell%7Ctext%7CFRONTPAGE%7Cs

Editor's note: Dr. Terlip would fit in perfectly as a court witness in the Probate Court of Cook County where the prerequisite for qualification is lying!  Lucius Verenus, Schoolmaster, ProbateSharks.com

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