Auction of Fla. Agency Files Unauthorized

Boxes of files from Florida’s troubled child welfare agency, including confidential child abuse cases, were included in a public auction and bought for $5 by a television reporter.

The files, contained in boxes marked “shred,” were among items taken from a building the Department of Children & Families used until February 2001. The items were put up for public auction Thursday.

Reporter Mike Deeson said he ended up with thousands of pages of case files, abuse reports, pay stubs from parents and even psychiatric evaluations. His television station, CBS affiliate WTSP, did not broadcast information from the files.

Department spokeswoman Shawnna Donovan said the agency did not authorize the auctioneer to offer the files. “We had no agreement in writing,” Donovan said.

The sale was suspended several hours after it started once the agency realized unauthorized items were being sold.

The auction was just the latest blunder to plague the state agency. In April, a 5-year-old girl was reported missing more than a year after her caretaker said she was taken by people the woman thought were state workers.