Melvin L. Morse

For other uses, see Melvin Morse.
Melvin L. Morse
Born (1953-12-11) December 11, 1953[1]
Sandy Springs, Maryland[1]
Nationality American
Occupation Pediatrician
Known for "Near-death experience" interest

Melvin L. Morse is an American medical doctor who specialized in Pediatric medicine. He was voted by his peers as one of “America’s Best Doctors” in 1997-98,2001-2002 and 2005–2006.[2] He has published numerous scientific articles in medical journals over the course of his thirty year career. As the author of several books, Morse has appeared on many talk show and television programs to discuss his extensive research on near death experiences in children.[3]

His 1991 book Closer to the Light was a bestseller. Oprah Winfrey interviewed Morse about this book in 1992. Larry King interviewed Morse in 2010. The PBS show Upon Reflection produced a half-hour episode devoted to Morse. He was the subject of an article in the Rolling Stone magazine in 2004 entitled "In search of the Dead Zone".[4]

In 2012, Morse and his second wife were charged with felony child endangerment based on allegations made by his eleven-year-old step-daughter. During Morse’s 2014 trial, he was dubbed as the “waterboarding doctor” by the media.[5] [6] Trial testimony did not substantiate any instances of “waterboarding” as the term is generally understood; however, Morse was convicted of reckless endangerment and was sentenced to serve three years in prison.[7][8][9]

Morse was released from Sussex County Correctional Institution (SSCI) in 2016.[10] According to Kahlil Peterkin, Clinical Supervisor of the prison’s therapeutic Key program and Morse’s therapist of thirteen months, Morse underwent a transformation while incarcerated. Peterkin also reported Morse was well-respected by his fellow inmates and considered a leader in prison. He taught fellow inmates meditation techniques which Peterkin also described as ‘transformative” in the lives of the men who learned and practiced them.[11]

Following his release, Morse co-founded The Recidivism Prevention Group, a company dedicated to assisting addicts and former inmates in developing spiritual understandings to re-enter society as productive members. The group uses meditation techniques to accomplish these goals. Morse now resides in Washington, DC.[12]

Early life and education

Morse graduated from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland in 1975 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Natural Science.[1] Morse earned a medical degree from George Washington University in Washington, D.C. in 1980.[13] He interned in Pediatrics at the University of California at San Francisco, and then completed a residency in Pediatrics at Seattle Children's Hospital. He subsequently completed a two-year fellowship in Hematology/Oncology and a one-year fellowship in Behavioral Pediatrics.[14]

Career

Morse practiced Pediatrics in Renton,Washington for 20 years [16]. He was an Associate Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Washington in Seattle. [15] In 1986, Morse worked for a year as a pediatrician at Fort Hall, Idaho for the Indian Health Service. [1] He retired from the full-time practice of Pediatrics in 2006 before moving to Delaware in 2007. Prior to his arrest, he was working as a pediatrician at an office in Milton, Delaware. After his arrest on child endangerment charges in 2012, his Delaware license was suspended.[13][15][16]

In 2007, Morse became the Research Director of the Institute for the Scientific Study of Consciousness (ISSC) founded by Charles Tart in 1979. While Director of ISSC, he was awarded the Warcollier International Prize for consciousness research in 2011.

Publications

Personal life

Morse has been married twice, and has six children, five of whom are adopted.[17] He is in regular contact all his children. Delaware Family Court has not restricted his access to his daughter Melody.

Reckless Endangerment Conviction

In August 2012, Morse and his wife Pauline were arrested for felony child endangerment based up allegations of "waterboarding" made by his eleven-year-old step-daughter. He was also accused by Delaware State Police of force-feeding the eleven-year-old girl until she threw up, among other child abuses.[18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25]

Morse's trial started on January 28, 2014 at the Sussex County Superior Court in Delaware.[26] The accusations made by the State Police were not substantiated at trial. The step-daughter testified at trial that she vomited due to overeating, not to force feeding.[27]

Morse placed her in the bathtub and ran water over her head to rinse the vomit out of her hair. This was the testimony which spawned the term “waterboarding” by the prosecution and the media. The trial transcripts contain no testimony regarding any instances of “waterboarding” in the context of torture as it is known today.[28]

In spite of the defense discrediting the step-daughter’s testimony at trial, Morse was convicted of one felony and five misdemeanor charges of reckless endangerment. He was sentenced to three years in prison. His wife pled guilty to misdemeanor charges.[5][6]

Later in 2014, Eugene Braxton, in "America's Mystic solves Near Death Riddle", attributed Morse's waterboarding to his desperation to "win the near-death crown.[29]

This sensationalized theory gained traction in the media, but had no basis in truth, and has never been substantiated.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Melvin L. Morse. "Melvin L. Morse, MD, FAAP" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2014-02-01.
  2. ↑ "The Real Melvin L Morse MD - Practice of Pediatrics". melvinmorse.net. Retrieved 2016-12-02.
  3. ↑ "Institute for the Scientific Study of Consciousness - Videos of CHILDREN'S Near Death Experiences". spiritualscientific.com. Retrieved 2016-12-02.
  4. ↑ Randall Sullivan (2004-04-29). "In search of the Dead Zone". Rolling Stone. Sullivan wrote about an intern named Melvin Morse… His work with near death children surprised him so that he became intriqued with their experiences and began a long term study… As he began to be confronted with the very real sense of a Person or Intelligence that children met on the other side, he said, “…I’m deliberately holding back from dealing with it, because I know that once I cross that line, I’m no longer a scientist.”
  5. 1 2 Landau, Joel (13 April 2014). "Delaware doctor receives three years in prison for waterboarding 12-year-old girl". New York Daily News. Retrieved 19 April 2014.
  6. 1 2 "Delaware pediatrician convicted of waterboarding girlfriend's daughter". CBS News. 13 February 2014. Retrieved 19 April 2014.
  7. ↑ "Offender Status Sheet" (PDF).
  8. ↑ "The Real Melvin L Morse MD - Arrest and Trial". melvinmorse.net. Retrieved 2016-12-02.
  9. ↑ "Trial Document" (PDF).
  10. ↑ "Offender Status Sheet" (PDF).
  11. ↑ "Interview with Khalil and Paul Perry" (PDF).
  12. ↑ "LinkedIn".
  13. 1 2 Randall Chase (2012-08-10). "Del. doctor accused of 'waterboarding' daughter". Dover, Delaware: Associated Press. Archived from the original on 2013-03-01. Retrieved 2015-04-14. Morse and his wife, Pauline, were charged with several felony counts Tuesday based on the daughter's claims. Acting upon a complaint by the Delaware attorney general's office, state officials on Thursday ordered the emergency suspension of Morse's medical license.
  14. ↑ Melvin Morse, M.D.
  15. ↑ "Prosecutor in waterboarding case: Ex-doctor terrorized stepdaughter for years". DelMarVa Now. 2014-01-28. Archived from the original on 2015-05-20. Prosecutors say a former Delaware pediatrician accused of “waterboarding” his stepdaughter by holding her face under a faucet, terrorized the girl for several years. In opening statements Tuesday, a prosecutor said Melvin Morse exercised total control over the girl including “her right to draw breath.”
  16. ↑ "Melvin L. Morse: Curriculum Vitae" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2012-08-10.
  17. ↑ "The Real Melvin L Morse MD - For twenty years, Dr. Melvin Morse was known as a kind, caring pediatrician who saved the lives of dozens of children in his work in critical care medicine. He was a teacher of medical students, a compassionate clinician, and a loving father and husband.Then his life changed.". melvinmorse.net. Retrieved 2016-12-02.
  18. ↑ Dan Kelley (2014-01-27). "Jurors being chosen in Delaware doctor's trial over waterboarding claims". Philadelphia: Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on 2014-01-30. Retrieved 2015-04-14. Morse, who heads the Institute for the Scientific Study of Consciousness, has appeared on "Oprah," "Good Morning America" and "Larry King Live" on CNN. He is the author of a book, "Closer to the Light."
  19. ↑ "Melvin Morse, Delaware doctor, charged with felony counts for allegedly "waterboarding" daughter". CBS News. 2012-08-10. Archived from the original on 2012-08-10. Morse, who has authored several books and articles on paranormal science and near-death experiences, has appeared on shows such as "Larry King Live" and the "The Oprah Winfrey Show" to discuss his research, which also has been featured on an episode of "Unsolved Mysteries" and in an article in "Rolling Stone" magazine.
  20. ↑ Randall Chase (2012-08-10). "Delaware doctor accused of 'waterboarding' daughter". Orlando Sentinel. Archived from the original on 2012-08-10. Hurley, the attorney, said the 11-year-old has some "opposition issues" and had complained to her parents several years ago about being abused by a half-sibling. He said the parents contacted authorities and the half-sibling was arrested, but that the girl confessed months later that the incident never happened and that she just didn't want the half-sibling living in the house.
  21. ↑ Sam Wood (2012-08-10). "Del. yanks license of doctor charged in 'waterboarding'". Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on 2012-08-10. Melvin Morse, 58, poses a "clear and immediate danger to the public health," declared a filing published on the website of the Board of Medical Licensure and Discipline.
  22. ↑ "Delaware doctor arrested for 'waterboarding his daughter': A paediatrician has been arrested after allegedly waterboarding his 11-year-old daughter as a form of punishment.". The Telegraph (UK). 2012-08-07. Archived from the original on 2012-08-10. "Melvin would sometimes look away while he did it and [the girl] would become afraid that he would lose track of time and she would die," according to a police document seen by the News Journal, a Delaware newspaper. The girl also told police that Mrose had said she could be put under water for five minutes without suffering brain damage.
  23. ↑ "Father waterboarded his daughter, 11, FOUR times while her mother stood by' - and he'd appeared on Oprah as expert on children's near-death experiences '". Daily Mail. 2012-08-09. Archived from the original on 2012-08-10. Retrieved 2012-08-10. Dr Melvin Morse, a published author who has appeared on the Oprah Winfrey Show and Larry King, allegedly held the girl's face under a running faucet on four occasions for as long as five minutes.
  24. ↑ Randall Chase (2012-08-15). "Near-death experiences doctor may have been experimenting by 'waterboarding' stepdaughter, police say". Fox News. Retrieved 2012-09-15. Based on his work involving children's near-death experiences, police suggested he may have been experimenting on her.
  25. ↑ "Dad denies subjecting daughter to waterboarding". New Zealand Herald. 2012-08-17. Archived from the original on 2012-09-15. A US doctor today denied allegations of waterboarding his 11-year-old stepdaughter as part of his research into near-death experiences.
  26. ↑ Lacey Johnson (2014-01-28). "Delaware doc accused of waterboarding stepdaughter goes on trial". Reuters. Archived from the original on 2014-02-02. Retrieved 2015-05-20. The prosecutor, Melanie Withers, said he held the girl face-up under a running kitchen faucet until she was unable to breathe. Morse "called it waterboarding," Withers said.
  27. ↑ "Trial Documents" (PDF).
  28. ↑ "Court Document" (PDF).
  29. ↑ Eugene Braxton (2014). America's Mystic Solves Near-Death Riddle. Archway Publishing. p. 86. ISBN 9781480812802. Retrieved 2015-05-20. Dr. Melvin Morse was so desperate to win the near-death crown that he was arrested for purposely drowning his own children in an attempt to create a near death in them.
  30. Randall Chase (2015-08-15). "Records show troubled past of pediatrician accused of waterboarding stepdaughter". Christian Science Monitor. Archived from the original on 2012-08-15. Retrieved 2015-04-14. Doctor Melvin Morse, who faces allegations of waterboarding his 11-year-old stepdaughter, had financial problems and a troubled relationship with his ex-wife. He was also fascinated by the near-death experiences of children.
  31. Alex Tsarikis (2012-05-31). "Dr. Melvin Morse On Why Doctors Don't Listen to Near-Death Experience Accounts". Skeptiko. Archived from the original on 2012-08-10. Join Skeptiko host Alex Tsakiris for an interview with near-death experience research and author of, Closer to the Light, Dr. Melvin Morse. During the interview Morse discusses why science has not fully accepted the near-death experience:
  32. "Closer to the Light (Melvin Morse)". Upon Reflection. 1991. Archived from the original on 2012-08-10. Host Marcia Alvar speaks with Melvin Morse, Pediatrician and author of Closer to the Light: Learning from the Near Death Experiences of Children. They discuss the similarities of the stories of children who have had a near death experience: leaving the body, going down a tunnel or passageway, and moving towards a bright light.
  33. J. Isamu Yamamoto (2009-06-09). "The Near Death Experience (Part Two)". Christian Research Institute. Archived from the original on August 10, 2012. Melvin Morse and his book certainly do deserve serious attention. As a physician, he has made two significant contributions to the subject of near-death experiences. First, he has provided professional insights into NDEs from a medical perspective. And second, his research was mainly conducted with children. Because his studies and observations gave the whole subject of NDEs a needed boost for the early nineties, Morse has frequently appeared before the media spotlight. For this reason also, the banner he is waving should be examined as well.
  34. J. Isamu Yamamoto (2009-06-09). "The Near Death Experience (Part Two)". Christian Research Institute. Archived from the original on 2012-08-10. In the previous issue we examined common elements in the accounts of people who claim to have had near-death experiences. We focused primarily on the New Age interpretation of this phenomenon, surveying the work and writings of Raymond Moody, Kenneth Ring, and Melvin Morse. In this issue our discussion explores alternative explanations to those of the New Age movement for NDEs.
  35. "Guest Speaker: Melvin Morse, MD, Where God Lives". Archived from the original on 2012-08-10.
  36. "Former UW pediatrician accused of 'waterboarding' daughter". Seattle Times. 2012-08-10. Archived from the original on 2015-05-20. A former associate professor of pediatrics at the University of Washington who is internationally known for his research into near-death experiences has been charged with endangering the life of his 11-year-old daughter, who told investigators she was subjected to waterboarding.
  37. "Dr. Melvin L. Morse, MD". health grades. Retrieved 2015-05-20.
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