2 DCF employees from Florida arrested in Polk County

POLK COUNTY, Fla. – Polk County Sheriff’s officials arrested two Florida Department of Children and Family Services employees in unrelated incidents one day apart.

Evelyn Ross, 47, was first arrested when she allegedly crashed into a utility pole while drunk in Lakeland at 2 a.m. Sunday. When the officer arrived at the scene of the crash on Saddle Creek Road near Saddle Lake Park, he saw that her eyes were bloodshot and watery and she smelled of alcohol, a news release said.

The officer said Ross admitted to having “a lot to drink.” She allegedly failed the breathalyzer test and was arrested. Ross was taken to the hospital, then released and taken to jail.

Her blood alcohol content was 0.197 and 0.190, respectively, with the legal limit being 0.08, the sheriff's office said. She was charged with driving under the influence and driving under the influence with property damage.

“Driving under the influence of alcohol and causing a car accident sets a very bad example,” Sheriff Grady Judd said in a statement.

The second arrest occurred during a traffic stop after it was learned that the registered vehicle owner's driver's license had been revoked.

The deputy stopped Jayla Rae Robinson, 22, on Highway 17 in Bartow around 1 p.m. Monday. She told the deputy she knew her license was suspended because she had been stopped and cited for the same violation two days earlier, the news release said.

Robinson was arrested for knowingly driving while her license was suspended. A 15-year-old child was in the car at the time, whom officers said she was taking to court. Another department employee picked up the child.

“We take violations of the DUI and DWLSR (driving by driving) laws very seriously, especially when the suspects are people who hold positions of trust in the community,” Judd said.