Former Massachusetts child psychologist convicted of child pornography

A former child psychologist has been sentenced to three to four years in state prison on child pornography charges.

Mark Ternullo, 71, of Danvers was found guilty of two counts of possession of child pornography last Friday after a three-day jury trial in Superior Court in Salem, Essex County District Attorney Paul Tucker’s office said Wednesday. After his release, Judge Thomas Drechsler also sentenced him to a three-year suspended sentence.

During the trial, Assistant District Attorney Maria Markos presented evidence that Ternullo stored thousands of images of child pornography at his former home in Danvers, authorities said.

“The discovery of the images came to light in early 2022 when a contractor hired by the owner of the residence was performing renovation work and noticed a small enclosed room containing the images,” the DA’s office said.

Authorities found additional photos on Ternullo’s hard drive.

Ternullo previously worked as a child and family psychologist for more than 20 years, working in schools in Beverly, Gloucester, Methuen, Middleton, Newburyport and Newton, the DA’s office said. The state suspended Ternullo’s license as a psychologist in 2022.

Ternullo will also be required to register as a sex offender, have no unsupervised contact with anyone under 18, stay away from witnesses and his former home and complete a sex offender assessment, the statement said.

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Lindsay Shachnow covers general assignment news for Boston.com, covering breaking news, crime and politics across New England.

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