Former child and family psychologist sentenced to prison for child porn charges

SALEM, Mass. — Essex County D.A. Paul F. Tucker announces that former child and family psychologist Mark Ternullo, 71, of Danvers has been sentenced to prison for 3-4 years after being charged with two counts of possession of child pornography.

Ternullo had previously worked for more than 20 years as a child and family psychologist, including for schools at Beverly, Gloucester, Methuen, Middleton, Newburyport, and Newton. His license was suspended in 2022.

This comes after a three-day jury trial in which Assistant District Attorney Maria Markos presented evidence and witnesses that proved Ternullo kept thousands of images of child pornography in his former apartment. Ternullo was found guilty on Friday, October 11, at the Superior Court in Salem, M.A.

It was first reported in 2022, when the Danvers apartment building that Ternullo resided in was undergoing renovations. A contractor with the renovations team had noticed a small enclosed space within the apartment that contained the images, alongside additional images on a Ternello-owned hard drive.

Turnello was also sentenced to 3 years of probation upon completing his prison sentencing, alongside having to complete evaluation and register as a sex offender, not have unsupervised contact with a minor, and stay away from witnesses and his former apartment building.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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