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Pediatrician Loses License After Waterboarding Accusation

Delaware State Police

Delaware state officials have pulled the medical license for pediatrician Melvin Morse who has been accused of waterboarding his 11 year old daughter.

It comes two days after the 58-year old Milton man was arrested on felony charges of reckless endangerment and conspiracy.

Court documents say that he grabbed his daughter by the ankle and dragged her across a gravel drive way after which he took her inside their home and spanked her. 

The daughter told detectives that on – at least – four different occasions he disciplined her by holding her face under running water causing the water to fill her nostrils and run over her face.

She said that the incidents took place between May of 2009 and May of 2011.

And the court records say her younger sister is reported to have said she saw this happen.

Secretary of State Jeffrey Bullock said a pediatrician who is alleged to have committed crimes against children – even if not one of their patients -- should not have contact with patients.

Morse is being held at the Sussex Correctional Institution.

He is the co-author of a book about the near-death experiences of children.         

Don Rush is the News Director at Delmarva Public Media. An award-winning journalist, Don reports major local issues of the day, from sea level rise, to urban development, to the changing demographics of Delmarva.