For Immediate Release
March 18, 2015
MIAMI - The Florida Department of Law Enforcement arrested former Department of Children and Families child protective investigator Shani Smith, 35, on six counts of official misconduct after an investigation found she falsified records in the Catalina Bruno case. The DCF Office of Inspector General referred the case to FDLE and assisted in the investigation.
According to Smith’s case notes, Bruno had been referred for a substance abuse evaluation which came back negative. However, the investigation found Smith never referred Bruno for the substance abuse evaluation. In May 2013, five months after Smith’s investigation closed, Bruno’s 11-month-old son was found dead in an unventilated vehicle. At the time of the child’s death, Bruno had been drinking alcohol.
Smith turned herself into the FDLE Miami Office and was transported and booked into the Turner Gilford Knight Correctional Center. The Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office will prosecute the case.
For Further Information Contact:
Gretl Plessinger, Samantha Andrews or Steve Arthur
FDLE Office of Public Information
(850) 410-7001