GREGORY CARTER; PROFESSIONAL DISCIPLINE HEARING SET TO BEGIN FOR INFLUENTIAL "PSYCHOLOGIST." CALLED SELF "DOCTOR." DOCTORATE FROM U.S. DIPLOMA MILL;

"Carter is a "psychological associate, " a designation that is a step down from psychologist, but is also governed by the college. Associates have master's degrees, while psychologists have doctorates in psychology. Psychological associates can conduct assessments and while some are permitted to make diagnoses, others, like Carter, can do so only under supervision.

Because of family strife, Mr. B's granddaughter had lived with him and his wife for most of her life.

A joint custody arrangement with the child's biological father required that the child's primary residence be with the maternal grandparents.

But that arrangement was terminated two years ago after a family court trial. Court transcripts show Carter was referred to as a psychologist and that his credentials were never questioned. Justice Craig Perkins gave sole custody of the girl to the father, saying Carter's report, which recommended the action, "tips the balance."

The grandfather is determined to regain custody of the girl and has filed a complaint against Carter to the college.

"This is a miscarriage of justice. I'm concerned about the well-being of the children, " Mr. B. said."

REPORTER THERESA BOYLE: THE TORONTO STAR;

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PUBLISHER'S NOTE: Toronto Star reporter Theresa Boyle has a story in today's paper on Gregory Carter, under the heading, "Whitby man who claimed to be “doctor” under investigation." Carter faces a professional discipline which begins tomorrow. Theresa Boyle did a superb job of reporting the Goudge Inquiry into many of Dr. Charles Smith's cases which raised troublesome questions as to how so many judges, prosecutors, public officials and even defence lawyers could fail to ensure that Smith was properly qualified to give the testimony he was offering to the Court. Similar questions are being asked in the State of Ohio, where Dr. Paul Shrode misrepresented his qualifications in death penalty cases.

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"He bills himself as a "doctor," the story begins.

"His CV boasts a PhD in psychology," it continues.

"He is past president of Durham Mental Health Services and was formerly a member of the community advisory board of the Whitby Mental Health Centre.

But it turns out that Gregory Carter, 63, of Whitby, is no doctor. His doctorate is from a U.S. diploma mill.

Nevertheless, "Dr. Carter" worked under contract for six years with the Durham Children's Aid Society and has weighed in on family court and child custody cases.

Now there are serious concerns that children may have been inappropriately placed because of Carter's recommendations.

On Tuesday, Carter faces a disciplinary hearing at the College of Psychologists of Ontario. He already faces criminal charges and police are expected to lay more within weeks. He could not be reached for comment.

"Every case Carter has ever worked on should be reopened, " said a Durham-area grandfather, who was one of the first to blow the whistle on the so-called shrink.

The grandfather, who can only be described as Mr. B to protect the identity of his granddaughter, lost custody of the girl, now 11, in 2008 on the strength of a custody and assessment report by Carter.

Carter is a "psychological associate, " a designation that is a step down from psychologist, but is also governed by the college. Associates have master's degrees, while psychologists have doctorates in psychology. Psychological associates can conduct assessments and while some are permitted to make diagnoses, others, like Carter, can do so only under supervision.

Because of family strife, Mr. B's granddaughter had lived with him and his wife for most of her life.

A joint custody arrangement with the child's biological father required that the child's primary residence be with the maternal grandparents.

But that arrangement was terminated two years ago after a family court trial. Court transcripts show Carter was referred to as a psychologist and that his credentials were never questioned. Justice Craig Perkins gave sole custody of the girl to the father, saying Carter's report, which recommended the action, "tips the balance."

The grandfather is determined to regain custody of the girl and has filed a complaint against Carter to the college.

"This is a miscarriage of justice. I'm concerned about the well-being of the children, " Mr. B. said.

Carter has been charged by Durham Regional Police with fraud, perjury and obstruction of justice in connection with this case. The allegations have not been proved in court. He faces similar charges in relation to two other cases where his opinion was offered in child custody cases.

The college is holding a disciplinary hearing on one of those cases Tuesday. It involves a Whitby father who, in 2008, lost a court battle to get sole custody of his two sons, now aged 7 and 9. A true psychologist in that case had warned that the boys' mother had borderline personality disorder. But a judge dismissed that finding in favour of Carter's assessment, which was critical of the father.

Andrea Maenza, a spokeswoman for Durham CAS, said that the agency ended its relationship with Carter in early 2009 when it learned that "he did his PhD but the school was bogus."

Carter says he has a doctorate from Pacific Western University, which was investigated by the U.S. government in 2004 and found to be a diploma mill.

"We accepted his community reputation. In retrospect, we should have questioned it, " Maenza said, noting that Carter was called a doctor by lawyers and judges and relied upon in cases as an expert witness.

He did more than 300 assessments for the agency, which has already conducted a preliminary review into them. In the vast majority, he appears to have worked within his scope of practice in carrying out assessments to determine what kind of educational or psychological supports were required for Crown wards, Maenza said. But he did do a couple of parenting capacity assessments and "could have" influenced the outcome of cases, she noted, adding that the cases in question are being reviewed."

Harold Levy...hlevy15@gmail.com;