Brett Lang, along with his son, Tucker, visited with Sound Off Louisiana founder Robert Burns on Thursday, February 23, 2023 to vent their frustrations with the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) and its recent decision declining to allow two foster children to return to Lang’s home.
Editor’s Note:
Four days after we published the feature below, KFLY (Channel 10 in Lafayette) aired this feature on Brett Lang’s matter. Interestingly, a former DCFS worker, Stacey McPherson, certainly seems perplexed as to why DCFS did not return the children to Lang!
This video blog was formed with the intent of permitting anyone frustrated with Louisiana state governmental operations of any agency to “Sound Off” on issues of concern to them. On Thursday, February 23, 2023, Brett Lang, a law-enforcement official, visited with Sound Off Louisiana’s founder, Robert Burns, to express his concerns entailing DCFS and his interactions with the agency.
Specifically, Lang, along with his son, Tucker, vented frustration that DCFS recently made a decision that the agency would not return two foster children to Lang.
Because Lang and his son did such a great job, we are intentionally minimizing our written commentary on this matter and instead strongly encouraging everyone to watch the following video, which incorporates three (3) segments (audio only) of a recent Zoom meeting Lang had with three DCFS officials who communicated the agency’s decision to Lang:
February 23, 2023: Police Officer Brett Lang, along with his son, Tucker, vent frustration at DCFS’s decision not to return two foster children to Lang’s care.
We also want to provide one other audio clip beyond the video above. The audio clip was derived from the same Zoom meeting at which these DCFS officials explained their decision to Lang.
In the audio clip, Ms. Mona Michelli, the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Child Welfare Programs and Field Operations at DCFS, acknowledges the “numerous emails” that she had received, “writing on your (Lang’s) behalf.” Here’s the audio clip followed by links for those emails that Michelli acknowledges:
Initial outset of DCFS Zoom meeting with Lang at which Michelli indicates that the agency has opted not to return the children to Lang and acknowledges all the emails of support she received on his behalf.
1. February 8, 2023 email of Wendy Romero.
2. February 8, 2023 email of Shannan Chevallier.
3. February 8, 2023 email of Lori Frederick.
4. February 8, 2023 email of Brooke Boudreaux.
5. February 9, 2023 email of Mitzi Nagim.
6. February 9, 2023 email of Bishop Drew Rousse.
7. February 10, 2023 email of Bonnie Bonin.
8. February 10, 2023 email of attorney Rebecca LaSalle.
9. February 16, 2023 email of Kenneth Perry.
Prior to collecting the above emails, on Monday, February 6, 2023, Lang sent this email of the same date (February 6, 2023) to 15th JDC to inform the court that DCFS had “deceived” the court when a DCFS official responded at a court hearing earlier that same day to a question of whether Lang was certified, and the response was, “No.”
The above email is complete with screen shots of text exchanges between Lang and Michelle Trahan, the Home Development Supervisor for DCFS, wherein Trahan indicates that, irrespective of whatever may have been told by any DCFS official to the judge, Lang’s certification was “current.”
Lang also supplied us with a screenshot of texts he sent, as requested by DCFS officials, of his bank records to demonstrate that he was current. As Lang states on the video above (and as backed up by the screen shot we’re about to present), DCFS officials knew as of Thursday, February 2, 2023 that Lang was current with his certification but nevertheless appears to have in fact “deceived” the court four days later on February 6, 2023 in indicating to the court that he was not certified. Here’s the screenshot Lang sent us:
Lang also pointed out to us that, at the court hearing of February 6, 2023, the adult biological daughter of the birthmother of the two children testified that the best home for those children was with Lang, but that’s not what ultimately turned out to be the case.
We’re going to refrain from providing our on commentary on this entire incident and, instead, encourage those who would like to comment to do so in the comments section of this feature to express your sentiments, ask Lang questions, etc.
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Currently fighting the same thing with the juvenile judge in 15th jdc and Lafayette DCFS office….very serious and corrupt stuff to share. Would be happy to share with you.
WoW, sounds so similar. I fought with DCFS over a year and a half, when they LIED in court on the reason’s that my kids were removed, when the instant order CLEARLY states a whole different reason, a reason that fell back on the undertrained investigators, that do not uphold their moral ethics and follow correct procedures, to make sure the kids safety is of upmost importance. ( I also have video recordings and phone calls recorded of certain dcfs workers admitting it was there wrong doing, which caused the removal of my kids and when seen me on my phone with a lawyer, walked away made a phone call and then all of a sudden around 6:45 p.m., drug screen results that me and my kids took days prior (which results were requested from me and the 3 safety monitors multiple times that day, but was told was not in yet and would take a couple more days) suddenly came in, with so say my 10yr old testing positive for illicit substances, although me and my other 2 children were negative for any substances. I also have on a phone call recorded of me and the HEAD supervisor at the time which she instructs me to go out outside and talk to the investigator IN training and let her know it was all a misunderstanding, that my brother in law was actually approved as an safety monitor but just not added to my case plan, which his name was the only safety monitor I gave them when case was opened besides my mother, but yet his name was no where on my case plan, only my mothers and two other peoples whom I never mentioned, meaning they asked my mother for some safety monitors but yet I had full custody of my kids. THIS is only the first day of horrific events that took place on the worse day of my life, but theres many many more acts of unjust, falsified reports (many I HAVE CAUGHT them in their lies, by proving them wrong with paper records (doctors medical records, their on case plans) stating TOTALLY different facts then what was presented to the judge during court. This is already very very long, but if u want to really hear a story of injustice, and abuse of power, and treacherous events, that turned my kids from straight A students and HABIT HEROS, to barely making a passing grade, I even have a letter from one of my kids teachers, stating that the kids had drastically went downhill. My caseworker lied about parenting classes available in New Iberia, I was told they were ONLY offered at the Extra Mile in lafayette, and I have completed all but 4, but when my vehicle broke down, the DCFS driver unsuprisingly so say had the wrong address to pick me up from, and refused to come out and bring me any time after that, but the day they terminated my parental rights because of LIES, PERJURY, false testimonies from my case worker, which I have paper trails of proof of her lies, I overheard a case worker, I won’t mention her name just yet, tell one of the parents in court that instead of completing the parent classes at the DCFS OFFICE as she HAD BEEN DOING FOR MONTHS ( the same months as I was ordered to ONLY take the Lafayette classes), she was actually going to start sending the social workers to go in the home and teach the parent the parenting classes. My kids are depressed, split up, walking around like zombies, living amongst grown adults that were not screened by dcfs when placed in the fosters home, and now they are forbidden to talk to me. My 12 and 10 year old had to delete their snap chats because we were communicating everyday on there, mostly just sending each other pictures telling them how much I missed them and loved them, and I havent talked or seen them since christmas because the foster parent heard me tell them I will NEVER ever stop fighting to get them home where they belong and are loved unconditionally and are raised in a nuturing thriving successful home. My lawyer (which I was told was a HIGH CONFLICT lawyer) that the last judge appointed me, because DCFS’s lawyer was caught by me and my fiance, SHOPPING on her phone under the table during my court while my case was up and being discussed in front the judge so I fired her, because she never did anything for my case, never acted in the best interest of me or my kids. Come to find out the lawyer was actually on probationary period for wrongful acts in her job duty from a previous client, and she was appointed at my court date the court date before my rights were terminated, and her offer for a continuous to study my case and get all the information that was viable to my case to be able to represent me and do her job by representing and fighting for my family was DECLINED and within a month and a half my rights were terminated , on lies and false allegations, and when asked how long I had to appeal my decision, this HIGH CONFLICT lawyer I was appointed told me 30 days, when in all actualality it was only 15 days. I do not know what to do or where to go from here, even my mother was denied relative kinship, and when I asked to sign my rights over to her in the beginning, My lawyer objected because of so say wanting me to work my case plan, but I had heard so many similar horror stories, I didn’t want my kids to have to get lost in the systen and be used as a cashout for being placed in foster care. I need to be heard because I can not fight a whole agency alone, but I can not give up on my babies, I will continue searching for a way to get justice and let my story be heard, and do whats in the best interest of my kids safety and well-being, and I REFUSE TO LET A AGENCY WHO USES THEIR POWER AND DISCRIMINATES against US INNOCENT PARENTS who were rasing kids healthy, happy, and safely, to take my kids, my only meaning on life, for reasons of their own. I would love to hear from you because this is ONLY a little peice of an enormous act of corruptness from an iniquitous agency. If it’s happening to us, what other kids are being removed for absolutely all the wrong reasons, and being tormented.
I have had numerous run ins with this corrupt agency. I need to know the laws about how to protect myself from them. I need help. They took my daughter from me, when I also have to younger kids, and moved her to Colorado with her dad, that she didn’t even know. Now my daughter is staying with my mom because of the lies and deceitful “stories” told to her by her father and my mother. She doesn’t want to come home to live with me anymore. DCFS should be held accountable. This has torn my family apart. Destroyed my two younger children. They miss their sister. Please help.