Woods allegation draws ire

McClatchy-Tribune

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — In the midst of the Tiger Woods sex scandal, newspapers around the globe reported that Florida child abuse investigators visited the golfer’s Orlando-area home to assess the safety of his daughter and infant son.

“Florida Child Welfare Checks Out Tiger’s Cubs,” one New York paper reported, citing the online celebrity website TMZ.com.

Nothing came of the matter.

Now, a state senator who oversees Florida’s Department of Children & Families is calling for an investigation into whether someone knowingly filed a false child abuse report against the Woods family, perhaps needlessly traumatizing the Woods children and wasting time and tax dollars. Doing so is a felony.

The senator said she thinks a call was placed to the Florida Abuse Hotline “to keep the media celebrity attention going.”

“To use the resources of the state for some grand celebrity theater is completely unacceptable,” said Sen. Ronda Storms, a Republican who chairs the Senate’s Children, Families and Elder Affairs Committee. “It robs children who are legitimately in danger.”

In a letter to DCF Secretary George Sheldon, Storms asked him to “fully investigate” the matter and to provide the Orange County State Attorney’s Office with evidence that would aid in prosecution.

Sheldon responded Dec. 30 that: “We assure you we are currently reviewing the available information surrounding this investigation.”

DCF declined to discuss the issue in detail, citing confidentiality laws governing child abuse reports and investigations.

Department spokesman Joe Follick, however, said: “A verified false report may prompt civil or criminal penalties . . . meaning a letter, fine or arrest.”