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Medical Board suspends license for Temple pediatric doctor arrested for child porn

The Texas Medical Board believes Dr. John Middlemiss Palmer's continued practice of medicine would pose a threat to public welfare.

TEMPLE, Texas -- A disciplinary panel of the Texas Medical Board has temporarily suspended without notice the Texas medical license for Temple-based Baylor Scott & White pediatric pulmonary physician Dr. John Middlemiss Palmer, 55, who was recently arrested for possession of child pornography and could face up to 20 years in federal prison if convicted.

The decision to suspend Palmer's license was made Monday after the panel determined "his continuation in the practice of medicine poses a continuing threat to public welfare."

A temporary suspension hearing will be held soon after 10 days' notice is given to Palmer, who also has the right to waive the hearing. The current suspension will stay in place until that hearing or until any further action is taken by the medical board.

A criminal complaint filed with the U.S. District Court Western District of Texas said investigators with the Office of the Attorney General's Child Exploitation Unit executed a search warrant on April 18 on Dr. Palmer's home and office at McLane Children's Hospital. Investigators seized a laptop and three external hard drives, according to the complaint. The document said one of the hard drives had multiple files showing prepubescent children engaged in sexually-explicit conduct.

The AG's office said Palmer denied any involvement with child porn.

Palmer was affiliated with Baylor Scott and White. A spokesperson confirmed he had been terminated. And, his information was scrubbed from the healthcare organization's website.

Baylor Scott & White McLane Children's Hospital released the following statement late Friday afternoon:

"We are shocked and deeply troubled by the charges against Dr. Palmer. We first learned of the investigation this week and acted swiftly – suspending the physician on the day we learned of the investigation and terminating him immediately after his arrest. Dr. Palmer was employed by Baylor Scott & White as a pediatric pulmonologist for less than a year. He was hired in May 2017, coming highly recommended and reviewed through our employee background screening and medical staff credentialing processes. We are thoroughly cooperating with authorities in the ongoing investigation of Dr. Palmer. At this time, we have no indication that Baylor Scott & White patients are involved in this matter. As always, our patients’ well-being is our primary concern."

Lyndsey, who asked we didn't use her last name, said her infant son saw Dr. Palmer for the past seven months. He is nine months old. She said she was "very shocked" and "disheartened" at the news.

"He was very personable," she said. "He always seemed as if he wanted what was best for your child."

Lyndsey said she would have recommended anyone to Dr. Palmer based on her experience. She said it would be harder to trust doctors in the future.

Another mother, Lisa, said she and others are shocked. She said she believes Palmer saved one of her children's lives. She said Palmer is very good at his job and it would be a waste of his intelligence if he ended up behind bars.

"Extremely, extremely knowledgeable. He was very up to date on all the care that kids need. A lot of, with pulmonology, a lot of kids need to be on vents and have a lot of breathing disorders and stuff and he was very knowledgeable and was up to date on all that," said Lisa.

She said she wants the system to work and believes he is innocent until proven guilty.

"Well I just think that now that we see something we see on Facebook, news or anything like that, we just assume they're guilty. But any of us could be accused of anything, that doesn't mean you're guilty. So I'd just like to give him or anyone else the benefit of the doubt, let's get him in a court of law," said Lisa.

Palmer will appear in a detention hearing on Tuesday at 1:30 p.m. in front of U.S. Magistrate Judge Jeffrey Manske.

"Attorney General Paxton urges all parents and teachers to become aware of the risks our children face on the internet and take steps to help ensure their children’s safety," the AG's office wrote in a statement.

If you believe someone you know is making or downloading child porn, you can report it to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children by clicking here.

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