Going by her resumé, Sue Cornbluth knows child abuse.

She has a doctorate in psychology and claims to be a "nationally recognized mental health expert." She teaches at Temple University and has appeared on television to discuss traumas such as the Jerry Sandusky scandal.

But Cornbluth lacks a state license. And now she is accused of perjury for allegedly lying about it.

The felony charge, filed last week in Bucks County, states that Cornbluth claimed to have a license when she served as an expert witness in a 2013 custody battle. Hired by the grandparents of a 5-year-old girl, Cornbluth testified that the girl's father had likely molested the girl - an assertion investigators and the judge dismissed.

Expert witnesses are often picked apart in court for their lack of bona fides, but criminal charges for lying about them are rare, said Matt Weintraub, Bucks County's chief of prosecutions.

"If somebody just puffed up their qualifications, we wouldn't prosecute them," he said.

But Cornbluth lied about having a license, Weintraub said, "and she was willing to do so at the expense of an innocent party."

Cornbluth, 41, of Ambler, is fighting the charge, which carries a possible prison term.

"Is there some confusion? Yes," her attorney Laurence Narcisi said. "But she has a doctorate in clinical psychology. We firmly believe she is not guilty, and it will be proven at trial."

Her testimony in the 2013 custody case has already led to an admonishment against Cornbluth from Pennsylvania's Department of State. In December, it fined her $6,000 and ordered her to stop saying she is a psychologist and practicing as one in the commonwealth.

Under state guidelines, a licensed psychologist must have a psychology doctorate and two years of supervised experience, and pass an exam administered by the state board. Every other year, the professional must renew his or her license and take continuing education courses.

Cornbluth's work as an expert witness was criticized by the judge who oversaw the custody case, Diane Gibbons, a former Bucks County district attorney.

"The procedures she utilized in conducting her evaluation raised serious questions as to the reliability of the information she obtained," Gibbons wrote in a ruling that returned the girl to her parents' custody.

Gibbons noted that Cornbluth lacked training in interviewing children suspected of abuse. She also pointed out that when Cornbluth suspected abuse, she failed to notify the proper authorities until a detective told her to.

In a brief interview this week, Cornbluth declined to speak at length about the case. She said she had spent most of her time in recent years teaching at Temple, not practicing psychology. She also wrote a book last year on self-esteem in adopted children.

Since earning her doctorate from Chestnut Hill College, she has taught two psychology classes as an adjunct professor at Temple's Ambler campus. A university spokesman said Temple was reviewing the allegations.

Cornbluth said the custody case was the first time she had testified in court since the 1990s, when she worked for a Philadelphia nonprofit that serves foster children.

"I chose to do it this time because I wanted to protect the child, who I believed was getting hurt," she said.

She added: "Anybody who knows me in this town knows who I am and respects me. It's a very complicated case, and there are factors you're unaware of."

bfinley@phillynews.com

610-313-8118 @Ben_Finley