Doctor Accused of Sexually Abusing Child Patient

A pediatrician was arraigned Friday after being charged with sexually abusing a 13-year-old male patient of his. Dr. Jamie Luis Cortes has been accused of kissing and touching the genitals of the child, a patient at a Washington Heights clinic whom he is suspected of having sexual contact with since the boy was ten. The DA's office says that Cortes has given the boy money and a cellphone and sent him inappropriate text messages and explicit photographs. An employee of Cortes's alerted police that she witnessed abuse after the child's mother spoke with the employee about her concern over the amount of time the doctor and her son were spending together. Cortes had previously been acquitted after being accused of molesting two boys in 1994. He would face up to 7 years in prison if convicted on the new charges.