By L.L. Brasier and John Wisely
An Oakland County family can continue its lawsuit against officials who took the children away and jailed the parents on charges of sexually assaulting their severely autistic daughter, a judge ruled Tuesday.
Julian and Thal Wendrow and their two teenage children are suing Oakland County, the Michigan Department of Human Services and Walled Lake Consolidated Schools in U.S. District Court.
Julian Wendrow was arrested in December 2007 and remained jailed for 80 days. Thal Wendrow was placed on an electronic tether, and their children were sent to foster care for months before prosecutors dropped the case in 2008.
The case against the Wendrows was based solely on statements their mute and autistic daughter, then 14, was said to have made using a widely debunked communication method called facilitated communication. The child's hands were guided by a trained aide using the method, but studies show it's the aide usually doing the typing.
The Wendrows filed suit in 2008. Many of the claims against prosecutors were dismissed because they are protected under governmental immunity.
Last year, the defendants asked that all the claims be dismissed. On Tuesday, Judge John Corbett O'Meara agreed to dismiss the parents' and brother's claims that they were treated unfairly because of their affiliation with the disabled girl. O'Meara concluded only the girl has standing to sue under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
O'Meara let stand a defamation claim against former Oakland County Prosecutor David Gorcyca, who sought the criminal charges and then publicly said after he left office that the Wendrows were guilty even though the case was dropped.
Oakland County Corporation Counsel Judith Cunningham said Tuesday that most of the claims against the county were dismissed. "We are nudging toward victory," she said.
O'Meara scheduled a trial on the remaining claims for June.
Sarah Prescott, an attorney for the Wendrows, said she disagreed with the judge's decision to dismiss the family's disability claims but is happy the girl's claim can be presented to a jury.
"To say that she can go forward against all these defendants is the heart of the case," Prescott said. "The quicker we can get to the courthouse steps, the better."
In his ruling, O'Meara also let stand several claims against the Walled Lake school district, which first reported the allegations, because the facilitated communication occurred at the school where the autistic girl attended classes. According to depositions, school officials knew the communication method was suspect.
Lawyers for the district did not return a message seeking comment on Tuesday's ruling. The Michigan Attorney General's Office, which is defending the state social workers involved, declined to comment.
West Bloomfield and its police department, also named in the suit, settled with the family for $1.8 million in 2011.
O'Meara refused to dismiss a claim against a state worker who is accused of violating the Wendrow children's rights when she took the girl for a gynecological exam that found no evidence of abuse. The worker also drove the couple's 13-year-old son to the police station, where he was interrogated for two hours.
Source http://www.freep.com/article/20120328/NEWS03/203280380/Judge-Oakland-County-family-can-continue-its-lawsuit-over-dismissed-child-abuse-accusations?odyssey=mod%7Cnewswell%7Ctext%7CFRONTPAGE%7Cp
CPS corruption hurts and destroys families worldwide. Please use caution posting about CPS here or anyplace on the internet. For your protection, using your full, real name and precise location is not advised. CPS has eyes everywhere and CPS is notorious for taking what people say, twisting it, embellishing on it and then using it against them in CPS "investigations" and at court proceedings.
Showing posts with label jail. Show all posts
Showing posts with label jail. Show all posts
Sunday, April 1, 2012
Monday, March 26, 2012
Jail child abuse? Southern Poverty Law Center sues Polk County over alleged child jail mistreatment
It will be interesting to see how this one turns out. Is there really child abuse going on in this jail?
Monday, January 23, 2012
Child care worker accused of raping boy - Texas
Blogger note:
Just because a daycare is registered somewhere or licensed by the state should not make you feel all that safe. We know a registered day care that has a 2ce convicted felon running it. How does that happen? The felony background check only goes back 5 years in the situation we are talking about. The felonies of this daycare provider ocurred in the 1970's and 1980's. We also know of state run daycare centers that have had many violations, some of which were harm inflicted on our family members while in their care. Foster children who go to the state licensed daycares are subjected to horrendous abuse and no one does anything about it. So be careful! Know your daycare provider and know them well.
----
By Ana Ley
Police arrested a child-care worker accused of repeatedly raping and threatening an 11-year-old boy.
Bradley Bendele, 32, was arrested Friday night and charged with continuous sexual abuse of a young child, a first-degree felony.
According to an arrest warrant affidavit, Bendele raped the boy while he cared for him.
Bendele runs a child-care business, authorities said, though it does not appear to be licensed through the state's Department of Family and Protective Services.
The boy told police Bendele threatened several times to kill him and his family if he reported the attacks, according to the affidavit.
Bendele remained at Bexar County Jail on Saturday afternoon in lieu of $100,000 bail.
Child Protective Services spokeswoman Mary Walker said the Child Care Licensing division of the state's Department of Family and Protective Services is investigating the suspect's business as a potential illegal operation.
“It's so important for folks to go online and check out day care facilities and make sure they're registered and licensed by the state,” Walker said. “It's important for parents to know who they are leaving their children with.”
Source http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local_news/article/Child-care-worker-accused-of-raping-boy-2671456.php
Just because a daycare is registered somewhere or licensed by the state should not make you feel all that safe. We know a registered day care that has a 2ce convicted felon running it. How does that happen? The felony background check only goes back 5 years in the situation we are talking about. The felonies of this daycare provider ocurred in the 1970's and 1980's. We also know of state run daycare centers that have had many violations, some of which were harm inflicted on our family members while in their care. Foster children who go to the state licensed daycares are subjected to horrendous abuse and no one does anything about it. So be careful! Know your daycare provider and know them well.
----
By Ana Ley
Police arrested a child-care worker accused of repeatedly raping and threatening an 11-year-old boy.
Bradley Bendele, 32, was arrested Friday night and charged with continuous sexual abuse of a young child, a first-degree felony.
According to an arrest warrant affidavit, Bendele raped the boy while he cared for him.
Bendele runs a child-care business, authorities said, though it does not appear to be licensed through the state's Department of Family and Protective Services.
The boy told police Bendele threatened several times to kill him and his family if he reported the attacks, according to the affidavit.
Bendele remained at Bexar County Jail on Saturday afternoon in lieu of $100,000 bail.
Child Protective Services spokeswoman Mary Walker said the Child Care Licensing division of the state's Department of Family and Protective Services is investigating the suspect's business as a potential illegal operation.
“It's so important for folks to go online and check out day care facilities and make sure they're registered and licensed by the state,” Walker said. “It's important for parents to know who they are leaving their children with.”
Source http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local_news/article/Child-care-worker-accused-of-raping-boy-2671456.php
Monday, December 26, 2011
Several DHS workers have been prosecuted - Oklahoma
Some of the Oklahoma Department of Human Services workers caught in wrongdoing at work ended up being prosecuted, too.
BY NOLAN CLAY, RANDY ELLIS AND ROBBY TRAMMELL
Some of the DHS workers caught in wrongdoing at work ended up being prosecuted, too.
The DHS worker who stole Christmas gift cards was charged with a misdemeanor, petit larceny.
Deborah Jean “Kasey” Parrish, 55, of Cherokee, was fired in August 2009 after pleading guilty.
A bank had donated nine Visa gift cards to be Christmas presents for foster children. They had been placed in gift bags to be handed out along with other presents, records show. A worker discovered four were missing three days before Christmas in 2008.
Parrish claimed she found four $50 cards on Dec. 17, 2008, in the DHS employee parking lot in Alva. She admitted using the cards to make personal purchases at J.C. Penney, Hobby Lobby, Cato and Walmart.
Parrish pleaded guilty in June 2009 to four counts of petit larceny and was put on probation for 30 months. She had to pay $1,649 in fines, fees and court costs and $200 in restitution. She was a social services specialist who had worked at DHS for 14 years.
In a discharge notice, she was told: “Your actions in using the Visa gift cards that belonged to someone else demonstrate you cannot be trusted to complete your job duties in the ethical and honorable manner required.”
Stole from elderly
A DHS worker who stole from elderly DHS clients was fired on Nov. 25, 2008. She eventually pleaded guilty to three felony charges of exploiting a vulnerable adult.
Debra Maxine Roberts, 53, of Chelsea, is on three years' probation. She also was required to serve a 30-day term in the Rogers County jail last year and to make restitution.
“I regret any harm which I have caused these individuals,” she wrote in a statement for a presentence report.
Prosecutors allege she stole $4,497 from an 84-year-old man, $5,905 from a 74-year-old mentally disabled man and $900 from an incapacitated 73-year-old man.
Roberts, an adult protective services specialist, had been appointed a temporary guardian for the men. She had access to their financial accounts so she could pay expenses such as nursing home bills.
Fictitious accounts
Two former DHS social services specialists are serving 10 years on probation for creating fictitious food stamp accounts.
Tsa E. King, 41, of Midwest City, and Douglas Ray Howard, 59, of Oklahoma City, pleaded guilty this year to two counts of conspiracy and two counts of computer fraud. They were fired last year.
Howard acknowledged they obtained more than $20,000 worth of food stamps through their fraud. Each was required to pay $10,346 in restitution.
In one instance, they used the identity of a California man who has never been to Oklahoma, a DHS investigator reported. The man was described on a DHS computer as needing food stamps because he was homeless and later because he had two newborn twin girls. He actually did not have any infant daughters. Howard had once known the man.
In the second instance, they used the identity of Howard's cousin, who had died at age 15 in California in 1967. They created fictitious children for the cousin, too.
Medicaid fraud
A fired child-welfare specialist, Eileen Filer-Whitson, is serving five years on probation for Medicaid fraud.
While at DHS, she held a second job as a private social worker. Prosecutors allege that at her second job she submitted false claims for Medicaid payments. Prosecutors said she lied in the claims about counseling children who actually received no services.
Filer-Whitson, 47, of Luther, pleaded guilty to the felony charge and was ordered to make $35,000 restitution.
A DHS investigation also found she had claimed to be working simultaneously at DHS and her second job 165 days. She was fired in March 2008.
CONTRIBUTING:
Sheila Stogsdill
Source http://newsok.com/article/3634918
BY NOLAN CLAY, RANDY ELLIS AND ROBBY TRAMMELL
Some of the DHS workers caught in wrongdoing at work ended up being prosecuted, too.
The DHS worker who stole Christmas gift cards was charged with a misdemeanor, petit larceny.
Deborah Jean “Kasey” Parrish, 55, of Cherokee, was fired in August 2009 after pleading guilty.
A bank had donated nine Visa gift cards to be Christmas presents for foster children. They had been placed in gift bags to be handed out along with other presents, records show. A worker discovered four were missing three days before Christmas in 2008.
Parrish claimed she found four $50 cards on Dec. 17, 2008, in the DHS employee parking lot in Alva. She admitted using the cards to make personal purchases at J.C. Penney, Hobby Lobby, Cato and Walmart.
Parrish pleaded guilty in June 2009 to four counts of petit larceny and was put on probation for 30 months. She had to pay $1,649 in fines, fees and court costs and $200 in restitution. She was a social services specialist who had worked at DHS for 14 years.
In a discharge notice, she was told: “Your actions in using the Visa gift cards that belonged to someone else demonstrate you cannot be trusted to complete your job duties in the ethical and honorable manner required.”
Stole from elderly
A DHS worker who stole from elderly DHS clients was fired on Nov. 25, 2008. She eventually pleaded guilty to three felony charges of exploiting a vulnerable adult.
Debra Maxine Roberts, 53, of Chelsea, is on three years' probation. She also was required to serve a 30-day term in the Rogers County jail last year and to make restitution.
“I regret any harm which I have caused these individuals,” she wrote in a statement for a presentence report.
Prosecutors allege she stole $4,497 from an 84-year-old man, $5,905 from a 74-year-old mentally disabled man and $900 from an incapacitated 73-year-old man.
Roberts, an adult protective services specialist, had been appointed a temporary guardian for the men. She had access to their financial accounts so she could pay expenses such as nursing home bills.
Fictitious accounts
Two former DHS social services specialists are serving 10 years on probation for creating fictitious food stamp accounts.
Tsa E. King, 41, of Midwest City, and Douglas Ray Howard, 59, of Oklahoma City, pleaded guilty this year to two counts of conspiracy and two counts of computer fraud. They were fired last year.
Howard acknowledged they obtained more than $20,000 worth of food stamps through their fraud. Each was required to pay $10,346 in restitution.
In one instance, they used the identity of a California man who has never been to Oklahoma, a DHS investigator reported. The man was described on a DHS computer as needing food stamps because he was homeless and later because he had two newborn twin girls. He actually did not have any infant daughters. Howard had once known the man.
In the second instance, they used the identity of Howard's cousin, who had died at age 15 in California in 1967. They created fictitious children for the cousin, too.
Medicaid fraud
A fired child-welfare specialist, Eileen Filer-Whitson, is serving five years on probation for Medicaid fraud.
While at DHS, she held a second job as a private social worker. Prosecutors allege that at her second job she submitted false claims for Medicaid payments. Prosecutors said she lied in the claims about counseling children who actually received no services.
Filer-Whitson, 47, of Luther, pleaded guilty to the felony charge and was ordered to make $35,000 restitution.
A DHS investigation also found she had claimed to be working simultaneously at DHS and her second job 165 days. She was fired in March 2008.
CONTRIBUTING:
Sheila Stogsdill
Source http://newsok.com/article/3634918
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Teacher Sentenced to Three Years' Probation for Child Abuse and Battery - Wisconsin
By Sara Kronenberg
Calumet County - A former teacher accused of abusing students was sentenced to probation Wednesday -- with the threat of a year in jail if she violates the requirements.
Calumet County prosecutors charged Mary Berglund this past March with ten counts, including five felonies, for allegedly abusing six disabled students at Janet Berry Elementary School back in 2009.
At Wednesday's court hearing, Berglund pleaded no contest in a plea agreement that amends the child abuse charges to five counts of misdemeanor battery and one felony count of child abuse.
As part of the plea deal, prosecutors asked the judge to sentence Berglund to probation and counseling.
The judge decided to put Berglund on probation for three years with anger management courses, counseling, and 100 hours of community service. She'll spend a year in jail if she doesn't follow through.
Source http://www.wbay.com/story/16373467/2011/12/21/judge-sentences-former-teacher-to-probation-for-child-abuse-and-battery
Calumet County - A former teacher accused of abusing students was sentenced to probation Wednesday -- with the threat of a year in jail if she violates the requirements.
Calumet County prosecutors charged Mary Berglund this past March with ten counts, including five felonies, for allegedly abusing six disabled students at Janet Berry Elementary School back in 2009.
At Wednesday's court hearing, Berglund pleaded no contest in a plea agreement that amends the child abuse charges to five counts of misdemeanor battery and one felony count of child abuse.
As part of the plea deal, prosecutors asked the judge to sentence Berglund to probation and counseling.
The judge decided to put Berglund on probation for three years with anger management courses, counseling, and 100 hours of community service. She'll spend a year in jail if she doesn't follow through.
Source http://www.wbay.com/story/16373467/2011/12/21/judge-sentences-former-teacher-to-probation-for-child-abuse-and-battery
Saturday, November 5, 2011
Police: Foster parents allegedly hurt other child
By BRIAN WALKER
The Post Falls foster parents arrested on Thursday in connection with the death of a 2-year-old girl they cared for nearly three years ago bonded out of the Kootenai County jail on Friday after their first appearance in court.
Jeremy Clark, 36, and his wife, Amber Clark, 28, were arrested after a grand jury assigned to the case came back with an indictment in the Karina Moore case on Wednesday night.
Both were being held in jail on $25,000 combined bonds on two counts of felony injury to a child, one count of concealing evidence and one count of perjury. The bond amount stayed the same during the first appearance before the couple bonded out of jail late Friday afternoon, according to jail staff.
During their court appearance earlier in the day, Amber sobbed while Jeremy showed little emotion. Several supporters of the Clarks attended their appearance.
The Clarks, represented by the county Public Defender's Office, declined to be interviewed on Friday, per their attorneys. Their attorneys could not be reached for comment.
The arraignment in district court is expected on Thursday. The case is expected to go to trial.
"When I became chief, bringing this to a conclusion was one of my top priorities," Post Falls Police Chief Scot Haug said. "My feeling was that somebody needed to be a voice for Karina. This was a very complex case that took interviewing dozens of medical experts, witnesses and reviewing digital and physical evidence.
"We wanted to make sure we had a good solid case (before making the arrests). We've always had a detective, sometimes two, assigned to the case for the past three years."
Haug and Kootenai County Prosecutor Barry McHugh declined to comment on details surrounding the charges or evidence.
"I can't talk about evidence," Haug said. "That will come out in court."
McHugh added: "They deserve a fair trial."
Haug said another child under the Clarks' care - a boy who was 4 at the time - was allegedly injured in the home between 2007 and 2008.
"The (injury to child) charges indicate physical harm done to the children, but I can't get into the specifics," Haug said.
The Clarks were registered foster parents for two years and had several children in their care, but haven't been registered with the state since the Moore case. They also have kids of their own.
Haug said he believes the Clarks were aware of the ongoing investigation during the past three years. A search warrant was recently served at their home.
Jeremy was arrested without incident at his house, while Amber was arrested at her Hayden workplace.
Haug said the Clarks were not cooperative with police during the investigation, but declined to specify.
The grand jury met on the case from Monday through Wednesday. Haug said it's rare that cases go to a grand jury, which speaks to the complexity of the Moore case. He said police supported McHugh's decision to have a grand jury consider the charges.
Karina's biological mother, Samantha Moore, couldn't be reached for comment on Friday. She earlier said she doesn't believe her daughter's death was an accident.
Haug said Samantha was pleased with the outcome of the case when he spoke with her on Thursday.
The Clarks, who had been Karina's foster parents for more than a year, told police that Karina fell about 4 feet down a flight of carpeted stairs during the Jan. 6, 2009, incident. Amber Clark told police she was on the couch and recognized that the child might fall, but the child fell to the bottom of the stairs before she could help. She called the incident a tragic accident.
Haug wouldn't comment if investigators believe the account was made up.
Clark claimed she performed CPR until emergency responders arrived and flew her to Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane. Police said Karina was at the bottom of the stairs when they arrived.
Karina was brain dead and comatose afterward and died 10 days later.
The Spokane County Medical Examiner's Office ruled the case a homicide, citing "blunt force head injuries."
However, the examiner's report did not corroborate with the initial police investigation nor the opinions of multiple doctors police interviewed at Kootenai Medical Center and Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane, which determined the head and spleen injuries were consistent with an accidental fall.
John Howard, the medical examiner who performed the autopsy of Karina, said he could not comment on the evidence or factors that led him to the homicide determination.
Moore filed civil lawsuits against the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare in January this year in state and federal courts, claiming she reported abuse allegations against the Clarks to social workers twice, but her concerns weren't addressed.
The suit claims the IDHW "negligently and with reckless indifference failed to supervise the foster home ... which resulted in the death of Karina."
The suits have been stayed.
Karina and two of her siblings, a brother and sister, had been living with the Clarks. Moore has since regained custody of her two surviving children.
The Clarks hadn't been booked in the local jail before.
Staff writer David Cole contributed to this article.
Source http://www.cdapress.com/news/local_news/article_4599160c-4a3a-5254-9fa5-1876efb5147f.html
The Post Falls foster parents arrested on Thursday in connection with the death of a 2-year-old girl they cared for nearly three years ago bonded out of the Kootenai County jail on Friday after their first appearance in court.
Jeremy Clark, 36, and his wife, Amber Clark, 28, were arrested after a grand jury assigned to the case came back with an indictment in the Karina Moore case on Wednesday night.
Both were being held in jail on $25,000 combined bonds on two counts of felony injury to a child, one count of concealing evidence and one count of perjury. The bond amount stayed the same during the first appearance before the couple bonded out of jail late Friday afternoon, according to jail staff.
During their court appearance earlier in the day, Amber sobbed while Jeremy showed little emotion. Several supporters of the Clarks attended their appearance.
The Clarks, represented by the county Public Defender's Office, declined to be interviewed on Friday, per their attorneys. Their attorneys could not be reached for comment.
The arraignment in district court is expected on Thursday. The case is expected to go to trial.
"When I became chief, bringing this to a conclusion was one of my top priorities," Post Falls Police Chief Scot Haug said. "My feeling was that somebody needed to be a voice for Karina. This was a very complex case that took interviewing dozens of medical experts, witnesses and reviewing digital and physical evidence.
"We wanted to make sure we had a good solid case (before making the arrests). We've always had a detective, sometimes two, assigned to the case for the past three years."
Haug and Kootenai County Prosecutor Barry McHugh declined to comment on details surrounding the charges or evidence.
"I can't talk about evidence," Haug said. "That will come out in court."
McHugh added: "They deserve a fair trial."
Haug said another child under the Clarks' care - a boy who was 4 at the time - was allegedly injured in the home between 2007 and 2008.
"The (injury to child) charges indicate physical harm done to the children, but I can't get into the specifics," Haug said.
The Clarks were registered foster parents for two years and had several children in their care, but haven't been registered with the state since the Moore case. They also have kids of their own.
Haug said he believes the Clarks were aware of the ongoing investigation during the past three years. A search warrant was recently served at their home.
Jeremy was arrested without incident at his house, while Amber was arrested at her Hayden workplace.
Haug said the Clarks were not cooperative with police during the investigation, but declined to specify.
The grand jury met on the case from Monday through Wednesday. Haug said it's rare that cases go to a grand jury, which speaks to the complexity of the Moore case. He said police supported McHugh's decision to have a grand jury consider the charges.
Karina's biological mother, Samantha Moore, couldn't be reached for comment on Friday. She earlier said she doesn't believe her daughter's death was an accident.
Haug said Samantha was pleased with the outcome of the case when he spoke with her on Thursday.
The Clarks, who had been Karina's foster parents for more than a year, told police that Karina fell about 4 feet down a flight of carpeted stairs during the Jan. 6, 2009, incident. Amber Clark told police she was on the couch and recognized that the child might fall, but the child fell to the bottom of the stairs before she could help. She called the incident a tragic accident.
Haug wouldn't comment if investigators believe the account was made up.
Clark claimed she performed CPR until emergency responders arrived and flew her to Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane. Police said Karina was at the bottom of the stairs when they arrived.
Karina was brain dead and comatose afterward and died 10 days later.
The Spokane County Medical Examiner's Office ruled the case a homicide, citing "blunt force head injuries."
However, the examiner's report did not corroborate with the initial police investigation nor the opinions of multiple doctors police interviewed at Kootenai Medical Center and Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane, which determined the head and spleen injuries were consistent with an accidental fall.
John Howard, the medical examiner who performed the autopsy of Karina, said he could not comment on the evidence or factors that led him to the homicide determination.
Moore filed civil lawsuits against the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare in January this year in state and federal courts, claiming she reported abuse allegations against the Clarks to social workers twice, but her concerns weren't addressed.
The suit claims the IDHW "negligently and with reckless indifference failed to supervise the foster home ... which resulted in the death of Karina."
The suits have been stayed.
Karina and two of her siblings, a brother and sister, had been living with the Clarks. Moore has since regained custody of her two surviving children.
The Clarks hadn't been booked in the local jail before.
Staff writer David Cole contributed to this article.
Source http://www.cdapress.com/news/local_news/article_4599160c-4a3a-5254-9fa5-1876efb5147f.html
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Man Jailed For False Report Of Child Abuse
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- A Jacksonville man was sentenced to 45 days in jail after being charged with making a false report of child abuse.
Timmy Riley will also have to pay several fines for his false reporting and has been advised not to make any false reports to the Department of Children and Families in violation of a previously entered injunction.
Riley was arrested by the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office. According to Florida state law, "a person who knowingly and willfully makes a false report, or who advises another to make a false report, is guilty of a felony of the third degree, punishable by up to five years imprisonment."
"Child safety is the first priority of the Florida Department of Children and Families," said DCF Interim Regional Managing Director Pattie Mallon. "We investigate allegations of abuse and neglect involving children, and we take our investigations very seriously. If we receive a report of serious abuse or neglect, our investigators must see the children within two hours. Our goal is to see all child victims within 24 hours of the first report of abuse. Because our goal is to be highly responsive, any false reports of abuse could prevent us from seeing real abuse victims quickly and giving them the protection they need. We salute the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office for their swift action to arrest this person who falsely reported abuse."
A false report is defined as a report of abuse, neglect or abandonment of a child to the central abuse hotline in which the report is maliciously made for the purpose of harassing, embarrassing or harming another person; personal financial gain for the reporting person; acquiring custody of a child; or personal benefit for the reporting person in any other private dispute involving a child.
This does not include a report made in good faith to the central abuse hotline. Florida law allows for an administrative fine for up to $10,000 for each report determined to be false.
False reports of child abuse are rare in the Jacksonville area, according to DCF. In Duval, Nassau and Clay counties, less than 1/10 of 1 percent of all abuse reports received in a 12-month period were verified to be false reports.
Source http://www.news4jax.com/news/29439438/detail.html
Timmy Riley will also have to pay several fines for his false reporting and has been advised not to make any false reports to the Department of Children and Families in violation of a previously entered injunction.
Riley was arrested by the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office. According to Florida state law, "a person who knowingly and willfully makes a false report, or who advises another to make a false report, is guilty of a felony of the third degree, punishable by up to five years imprisonment."
"Child safety is the first priority of the Florida Department of Children and Families," said DCF Interim Regional Managing Director Pattie Mallon. "We investigate allegations of abuse and neglect involving children, and we take our investigations very seriously. If we receive a report of serious abuse or neglect, our investigators must see the children within two hours. Our goal is to see all child victims within 24 hours of the first report of abuse. Because our goal is to be highly responsive, any false reports of abuse could prevent us from seeing real abuse victims quickly and giving them the protection they need. We salute the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office for their swift action to arrest this person who falsely reported abuse."
A false report is defined as a report of abuse, neglect or abandonment of a child to the central abuse hotline in which the report is maliciously made for the purpose of harassing, embarrassing or harming another person; personal financial gain for the reporting person; acquiring custody of a child; or personal benefit for the reporting person in any other private dispute involving a child.
This does not include a report made in good faith to the central abuse hotline. Florida law allows for an administrative fine for up to $10,000 for each report determined to be false.
False reports of child abuse are rare in the Jacksonville area, according to DCF. In Duval, Nassau and Clay counties, less than 1/10 of 1 percent of all abuse reports received in a 12-month period were verified to be false reports.
Source http://www.news4jax.com/news/29439438/detail.html
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