Sutter Says:
That he is a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor (LPCC)
under the "Ohio Revised Code" and qualified to handle:
"Crisis Intervention, Rape Crisis, Domestic Violence, Sexual Abuse, Stress & Anger Management, Suicide/Homicide Intervention, Substance Abuse, PTSD, Depression, Anxiety, Rational Emotive Therapy, Innovative Solution Management, Effective Communications, Clinical Counseling."
A snapshot from Sutter's solicitation:
Another claim to being an LPCC, in addition to many other false accreditations
can be found
here.
On his "Just the Facts" page, Sutter claims to have received "CEs and certifications in Crisis Intervention, Domestic Violence, Suicide Prevention, and Hostage Negotiation." He also boasts of having "a PhD in Trauma Psychology."
The Truth:
The Ohio State License Center has no record, either active or
expired for Jim Sutter. Neither does he meet the official requirements for
the specialties that he is claiming (source).
Neither is there any record of Sutter having a PhD in Trauma Psychology, which
would be quite a trick given that he has no undergraduate degree.
By his own admission in 2007, Sutter was pretending to be a licensed counselor with a PhD in Trauma Psychology when working with the Free Clinic of Cleveland, Ohio. A local newspaper called the Cleveland Scene confirms that he was indeed associated with the organization's suicide intervention program, called the Together Hotline (8-3-2000).
As can be seen in the image posted on his personal website, Sutter actively advertised his false credentials in an effort to solicit customers suffering from rape trauma and severe depression, including the suicidal. Not only does it take a certain sort of sickness to exploit such victims, but even the unintentional damage that an unqualified individual can do to someone in the most vulnerable of conditions is staggering.
It is difficult to fathom the depravity of such an individual, much less put into words just how serious a matter this is. One hopes that exposing Sutter in this way will prevent him from abusing future victims.
