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Ex-DCF investigator accused of falsifying records released from jail

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — A former Department of Children and Families investigator accused of falsifying case records was released from the Brevard County Jail Tuesday afternoon.

John Porterfield, 53, turned himself in to the jail Monday on charges of falsifying records.

Porter resigned last year after working at the agency for five years.

His resignation came amid accusations that he made up family visits, forcing DCF to review all his case files.

A supervisor believed Porter might have copied and pasted portions of another investigator’s case notes into his own file, according to a Florida Department of Law Enforcement investigation.

“Well, fortunately, the falsification that occurred in those two cases did not result in any kind of child safety issues,” said Kristin Gray, a DCF spokeswoman. “The children were not harmed. The falsification was not the cause or did not lead to any further abuse or neglect of those two children.”

Porter was responsible for investigating allegations of child abuse and neglect made through the Florida Abuse Hotline.