Intransigence Recordings For Sale

February 12, 2012 permalink

Connecticut parents Melissa and Robert Obernauer are so frustrated with the futility of pleasing Connecticut DCF that they have offered audio recordings of their dealings with the agency on eBay for $50,000. The press article and eBay listing are enclosed.

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Frustrated couple sells DCF tape recordings

Posted: Wednesday, February 8, 2012 11:32 AM EST Updated: Wednesday, February 8, 2012 5:33 PM EST, By WFSB Staff

KILLINGWORTH,CT (WFSB) -

Melissa and Robert Obernauer are in a battle with the state Department of Children and Families and much of it is on tape.

Ever since DCF removed Melissa's biological daughter from their home, they say their fight to get her back has been almost pointless.

"This is not a case about helping a child. This is a case of them versus us," said Robert Obernauer

It's gotten so bad that the parents began recording their conversations with the state. They were so convinced that the court process was fixed so they'd lose that they decided their only way to fight back was to sell those recordings on eBay for thousands of dollars.

"Of course the judges always side with DCF in these cases, never with the family," said Obernauer.

Both sides agree it's a sad story. Melissa Obernauer's daughter was diagnosed with bipolar disorder when she was just three years old.

With her biological father out of the picture, Robert and Melissa moved the girl and her younger brother from New Jersey to a home in Killingworth six years ago. They say they called DCF looking for help dealing with the girl's mental health issues. They say their relationship with their caseworker broke down.

"It's been a daily struggle. Every single day just about. It consumes your life," said Obernauer.

DCF took custody of the now nearly 12-year-old while she was an in-patient at Natchaug Hospital in Mansfield.

The Obernauers claim the breaking point was a dispute over her medical care, but several sources tell the I-Team the Obernauers refused to take the girl back home which amounts to abandonment.

It's a charge they dispute. We asked DCF for their side of the story. They said privacy laws limit their response, but they did give us a statement stating: "The Department receives custody of a child via an order of the Superior Court, which does so only upon evidence that the parent is unable or unwilling to care adequately for the child. In such instance, the State will be required to invoke the legal process to ensure the child's adequate treatment and care. We recognize how devastating this can feel to a parent and how difficult it can be to care for a child with emotional challenges.

In this case, this was made more difficult when, because of the parent's own behaviors, the court took the unusual step of placing limits on the parents' interactions with the Department. While the present case involved many complicated elements, it is fortunate that the Department was able to identify a relative who is currently caring for the child. Most importantly, the child is doing well in the home, and the plan is for this home to provide the permanent family for the child."

In fact, Obernauer was even arrested for threatening DCF workers at one point. A charge he called a misunderstanding of his comments. DCF didn't even know about the recordings until the I-Team told them.

"It started very early where they would say one thing and then say 'we didn't say that," Obernauer said.

The eBay posting offers the audio for $50,000. But why would anyone pay that? The scandalous ad promises the recording contains lies and says it would make valuable evidence against DCF in court. The Obernauers played a few of the clips for the I-Team. Most were relatively benign conversations, the most inflammatory we heard was a call from a therapist who said their daughter missed a critical appointment while in DCF care.

Obernauer says his job frequently takes him to New Jersey. He says there it's legal to secretly record a call.

"I could not get anyone from the state to listen to me. I contacted the attorney general's office who wanted to know nothing about it, I sent letters to the judge, no response, the DCF ombudsman's office wanted to know nothing about the lies, so I figured that after I listed them on eBay it would get attention and give the case more publicity," Obernauer said.

Obernauer says he's gotten a few inquiries, but no offers yet. He says if someone was really planning to use the tapes against DCF he'd probably turn them over free of charge. But that raises an interesting question - what good are they?

Attorney Dan Klau is a privacy expert. He says he's never seen a case quite like this, but says in the legal world these tapes are probably useless because in Connecticut, unlike New Jersey the consent of everyone is required before a call can be recorded and Connecticut law would probably bar them from a courtroom.

Jeanne Milstien, Connecticut's child advocate, said the eBay posting is "outrageous."

"I was just shocked because I thought, it's only a matter of time when you do something like that before the child's identity is known and it's the child who's going to be exposed, and that child who is vulnerable, and the child who could get hurt," she said.

The Obernauers say they've spent $25,000 in legal fees and haven't gotten anywhere. Their daughter is living with a relative out of state right now. They say they're determined to someday bring her home. They knew the eBay posting could bring criticism, but they also hoped it would bring publicity to their fight.

"They've already tried destroying our child's life. We don't want to see them doing this to other children," he said.

Source: WFSB

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Connecticut DCF confession recording/child workers lying on record/corruption

Item condition:

--

Price:

US $50,000.00

Shipping:

$15.00 Economy
Shipping See more services

Delivery:

Estimated between Wed. Feb. 15 and Thu. Feb. 23

Returns:

No returns or exchanges, but item is covered by eBay Buyer Protection

Up for auction are LEGALLY MADE recordings (made in the State of New Jersey), in which Connecticut DCF service providers admit that they have lied in official paperwork. These tapes are ideal for use by any person who has had a child "kidnapped" by DCF, and is looking to take legal action against them. Within the tapes there are confessions from service workers admitting that DCF has lied in paperwork as well as other matters. Because the recordings were made legally in the State of New Jersey, they should be admissable in ANY United States court. Also included in this auction is paperwork from a Connecticut Public School employee, which proves that they knowingly provide false information to DCF workers. Finally, you will receive a recording in which a DCF Attorney tries to convince a child that their parents are engaged in domestic violence, even after the child says that they have never witnessed anything. I have set a "buy it now" price for the tapes of $150,000, which is a VERY REASONABLE amount to pay to get back your child if they have been taken by DCF based on lies. Additionally, the tapes can be used in civil suits, which could earn you MILLIONS! This auction is a binding contract, and a serious auction. News media organizations are encouraged to bid on these items. The tapes run approximately 2 hours total. This should be of very high interest to national news media organizations for specials on government corruption and child abuse. Any questions will be responded to quickly.

Thanks for your interest

***The tapes are in secure storage at an undisclosed location in Southern New Jersey. Payment must be made within 24 hours. Interviews with myself for news programs are not included, and must be negotiated separately.

IF YOU GOOGLE CONNECTICUT DCF WATCH, YOU WILL SEE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION THAT YOU MAY FIND USEFUL.

I RESERVE THE RIGHT TO END THE AUCTION AT ANY TIME, AS LOCAL NEWS MEDIA COMPANIES HAVE ALREADY EXPRESSED INTEREST

Source: eBay