How did a ‘risk to public health’ get medical license?

It is unconscionable that the New Mexico Medical Board would re-license a physician assistant who surrendered his credentials after admitting he tried to have “sexual activity” with a 13-year-old in another state.

And it is reprehensible that the board would then cloak that irresponsible decision with a “no comment” and a finger pointed at the prior administration.

Because when New Mexicans take themselves or their children to a medical professional like James Beverly, 47, who is licensed by the state of New Mexico, they aren’t thinking about which politician is in charge in Santa Fe. And they certainly should not have to wonder if that licensed professional has been sentenced for criminal activity (three years’ probation for a 2004 conviction), had his license pulled/surrendered it for said activity (in Utah and New Mexico, respectively), and fought to get it back (only New Mexico relented).

Beverly has most recently been licensed as a physician assistant in New Mexico since 2009, despite his history.

He had voluntarily surrendered his license when the state found out about his 2004 Utah conviction, but he got the conviction overturned because of a change in the law since the arrest. He then sought to have his license reinstated.

Utah wasn’t buying what he was selling, though, and denied his request in 2009, writing that the overturned conviction did not negate his admission he attempted to have “sexual activity” with a 13-year-old, which “violates moral turpitude and ethical standards.”

“Your attempts to mislead the Division and minimize the gravity of this behavior leads the Division to believe that issuing you a license would put the public at risk,” the denial letter states.

In New Mexico, the state medical board just handed him his license back.

And now Beverly is charged with criminal sexual contact concerning the abuse of a child between March and August. Last month deputies arrested him at his family practice office in Cedar Crest after he was accused of the repeated sexual abuse of a young relative. His attorney says the allegations are not true and, “We look forward to demonstrating that in court.”

New Mexico’s Medical Board should have demonstrated “our priority is protecting the health and safety of New Mexicans,” as its spokeswoman said, by digging into how Beverly got his license back. Instead, Amanda Quintana said she could not comment because Beverly was licensed under a previous administration.

It is cold comfort that the board has now “moved to suspend his license, and will continue to cooperate fully with law enforcement as their investigation moves forward.” Because if you don’t know how New Mexico got here, how someone that another state medical board said had a “lack of good moral character” and was a “risk to public health” got a license here, there’s no way to prevent it from happening again.

Or to know how many other cases like it exist.