Parkland pediatrician is a ‘danger,’ must stay in jail until trial, federal judge rules

Carli Teproff
·2 min read

Calling Parkland pediatrician Michael Mizrachy a “danger” to the community, a federal judge ruled Monday that he must remain in jail until his trial on a possession of child pornography charge.

Mizrachy, 49, who was originally arrested Jan. 12 on state charges, was charged in federal court Friday. If convicted on the federal charge, Mizrachy could receive up to 20 years in prison.

He had been out on a $30,000 bond since Jan. 13.

In June, the South Florida Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force received a tip that led them to Mizrachy, who has been practicing for 20 years. At the the end of June, the task force got a search warrant, allowing investigators to search his Yahoo email account.

Detectives found a video that showed a man raping a young girl, according to his original arrest report. After further investigation and additional search warrants, detectives found additional pictures of young children in their bathing suits, underwear or shorts, BSO said at the time.

The federal complaint, which was unsealed Monday, mirrors the allegations in the state affidavit.

According to the complaint, investigators searched Mizrachy’s Parkland home in Oct. 20. At the time, he told investigators that the email account was his “hidden secret.” Detectives also found that Mizrachy used Kik, a messaging app that often shows up in child pornography cases.

On Monday, Mizrachy appeared in front of U.S. Magistrate Judge Alicia O. Valle via video conference.

The hearing came the same day as Florida Sen. Lauren Book, whose children had been treated by Mizrachy, wrote a letter to State Surgeon General Scott Rivkees asking Mizrachy’s license be suspended. She said he needed to be stopped from being allowed to practice medicine via telehealth.

“It is abundantly clear that Mizrachy’s actions — of which there is clear proof — pose an immediate, serious danger to public health and I therefore urge you to issue an emergency order against his license,” wrote Book, a Democrat who represents parts of Broward County and is founder and CEO of Lauren’s Kids, a nonprofit aimed at preventing child sexual abuse.

She also filed a bill aimed at protecting children from other healthcare practitioners facing similar charges.