A grand jury report issued Aug. 31 strongly criticizes the Florida Department of Children and Families’ record of protecting children and the elderly in Marion, Lake, Sumter, Citrus and Hernando counties.
The 10-page document spells out the grand jury’s finding of facts and details what the panel calls multiple example of DCF missteps in those counties, which make up Circuit 5.
“This grand jury is issuing this report not as a routine administrative review, but to sound an alarm,” the document reads. “The Department of Children and Families (DCF) is statutorily mandated to protect our community’s most vulnerable citizens: our children and our elderly. DCF in Circuit 5 is failing catastrophically in that duty.”…