Staff Reports
A Miami‑Dade jury has found psychologist Maria Ximena Duarte guilty of sex‑related offenses tied to encounters involving a 15‑year‑old at a local hotel. Jurors cleared her on a human‑trafficking count but convicted her on other sexual‑conduct charges. After the verdict, Judge Ellen Sue Venzer ordered Duarte taken into custody pending a January sentencing hearing. The case has already cost Duarte her license and could cost her years behind bars.
Jury verdict and immediate custody
The jury’s decision focused on actions prosecutors say took place at an Aloft hotel near Dadeland, where they allege Duarte befriended a vulnerable teen, supplied drugs and alcohol and encouraged sexual acts with adult men. Prosecutors described grooming and manipulation. Assistant State Attorney Justin Funck told jurors the girl “felt like she wasn’t alone, that someone cared about her.” The judge declined to leave Duarte on house arrest and ordered her jailed after the guilty verdict.
Co‑defendants, plea deals and witness testimony
Two men connected to the incidents, Jason Mojica and Hermes Mejia, struck plea deals and testified for the state. Mojica received a multi‑year prison term after pleading guilty to sexual battery and other counts; Mejia pleaded guilty to child abuse and took probation in exchange for his cooperation. Defense attorney Robert Barrar argued the case relied on witness deals and said Duarte only offered “a shoulder to cry on.” The jury, however, sided with prosecutors on the core lewd‑conduct counts.
License suspension and sentencing exposure
The Florida Department of Health moved quickly after the allegations and placed an emergency suspension on Duarte’s psychologist license. That administrative action runs on a separate track from the criminal case but reinforces the loss of professional standing. Criminally, Duarte faces exposure in the low‑to‑mid teens of years in prison on the counts of conviction. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for January, and the judge’s custody order makes clear the court treated the verdict as serious enough to revoke her conditional freedom.
Why this case matters — and what should change
This is about trust. A licensed mental‑health professional is supposed to protect kids, not prey on them. The jury found that trust was broken. Beyond one conviction, the case should prompt tougher licensing checks, faster administrative action when professionals are accused of harming minors, and real oversight of who gets to call themselves a caregiver. Call it common sense: when the people we rely on to heal betray that role, the response should be swift, public and uncompromising. Prosecutors won today; now regulators, courts and the public need to make sure a guilty verdict means more than a headline.
