Courthouse Protester Seeks Custody Hearing In Viera

For several days, the 39-year-old father has paced back and forth with a cardboard sign asking a judge to 'free my babies' as hundreds of people carried out their daily business at the Moore Justice Center in Viera.

Korvary Rojas, of Fort Lauderdale, said he is also protesting against the Department of Children and Families at the Viera courthouse and added he is hoping to regain custody of his two daughters, ages 2 and 3, in a pending family court review.

Rojas has been at the courthouse since Tuesday, but was asked by Brevard County sheriff's deputies on Thursday to leave the courthouse premises after a call to a helpline raised concerns about his wellbeing. Several deputies turned up within minutes of the call and surrounded him in front of the courthouse. No arrest was made.

“They told me to go home, that I can't be standing there. These are my babies,” he said, “free my babies. I don’t know what else to do,” the handyman told FLORIDA TODAY.

The Department of Children and Families removed the two children from Rojas’ home in June 2015. A June 3 hearing was held at the Moore Justice Center in Viera for Rojas to present his case.

“The court heard testimony from the father in regards to a home study managed in Fort Lauderdale,” said David Ocasio of DCF in a written statement to FLORIDA TODAY.

“It was deemed that there were still concerns regarding the dad's ability to properly care for the children. A judgement has not been made on whether or not to overrule the home study.”

Rojas said one deputy prayed for him. Others asked why he was there. He was also joined by another fathers' rights advocate,  David Henry, on Thursday. "I've been out here night and day," he said. "But I've been suffering like a dog for a year since they took my children. I thought I was supposed to come back here to pick up my babies but nothing happened," he said, adding that he questions the care the two are receiving in DCF custody.

"I just want my babies."

http://www.floridatoday.com/story/news/2016/06/09/courthouse-protester-seeks-custody-hearing-viera/85644284/

Ex Deputy Gets House Arrest For Falsely Reporting Abuse

SANFORD — A former Seminole County Sheriff's deputy convicted of falsely reporting that a romantic rival was dating a sex offender who was abusing a child was sentenced Wednesday to house arrest.
Valencia LaRue, 42, has been in the Seminole County jail since she was convicted April 13.
Jurors concluded that she had anonymously called a Florida Department of Children and Families hotline, saying that the new boyfriend of her lover's estranged wife had sexually abused a 6-year-old girl.
The child had not been abused, and, in fact, the romantic rival had no boyfriend, investigators found.

Valencia LaRue, former Seminole County deputy, was convicted of making a false child abuse claim to DCF's hotline

On the day of the phone call, May 14, 2014, LaRue was no longer a deputy. She had resigned the day before but was about to be fired after 20 years in law enforcement.
An internal affairs investigation found that she and another deputy, Joseph Fetchick, had an affair while they were both still married to other people.
They were accused of leaving their assignments to have sex while on duty at least three times. Although they admitted to the extramarital affair, the two denied that allegation.
Fetchick was fired. He and LaRue currently live together. She now operates a beauty salon.
Phone records obtained during the investigation showed that the two exchanged more than 6,000 text messages in a 10-week period, many of them sexually explicit.
The phone call happened about a month later. In it, LaRue said that Fetchick's wife had a boyfriend who was abusing the couple's 6-year-old daughter. LaRue also said that Fetchick's wife and boyfriend had sex in front of the child.
The Sheriff's Office traced the call to LaRue's cellphone.
At Wednesday's hearing Fetchick's ex-wife, Michelle Fetchick, told Circuit Judge Debra S. Nelson, "The past three years have been nothing short of absolute turmoil."

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/breaking-news/os-former-deputy-false-child-abuse-report-20160525-story.html