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Two Charged With Child Neglect After Kids Nearly Hit By Car In Jacks Branch Road
April 26, 2022
Two people are facing felony charges after two children were found playing in Jacks Branch Road and were nearly hit by a vehicle.
Fred Delane Young, Jr, age 32, and Ashley Marie Boswell, 31, were both charged with two counts of child neglect.
A Florida Department of Law Enforcement special agent was traveling south of Jacks Branch Road when she observed a vehicle stopped in the road and a woman standing with two children, one of which was completely naked. The woman stated she had to slam on brakes to avoid hitting one of the children as they danced and played.
The FDLE agent took the children to the home but was first unable to make contact with an adult.
“I observed the home to be in deplorable conditions with animal feces on the floor, dishes overflowing in the sink, and trash over flowing the trash can,” an Escambia County Sheriff’s Office deputy wrote in his report. The deputy made contract with a witness inside the home who stated the children were not his, but that they belonged to Boswell and Young. He stated he was asleep and had no idea that the children were there or than Bowell and Young had left the home. He told deputies that they had been arguing the night before about narcotics.
One of the children stated they were hungry and had not eaten since the previous day. The FDLE agent obtained permission to enter the home to locate food for the children. She stated that she observed roaches all over the kitchen, unwashed dishes piled up in the sink, and a loaf of bread in the refrigerator that appeared to have been eaten by a rat.
Fleas were found on the children, the arrest report states.
The deputy also noted a child’s training toilet containing feces with blood on it and the bathroom toilet contained feces.
As the investigation continued, Young arrived on scene with Boswell asleep in his vehicle. They both stated they wanted a lawyer, the report states.
The children were removed by the Florida Department of Children and Families.
Young and Boswell remained in the Escambia County Jail Tuesday morning with bond set at $6,000 each.
Comments
16 Responses to “Two Charged With Child Neglect After Kids Nearly Hit By Car In Jacks Branch Road”
It is so sad to see cases like this where poor innocent children are put in these conditions with parents who shouldn’t have children because they can’t handle the responsibility when there are people who could provide every comfort that wish they could have even one child.
@JimC without going into personal things like my own career, I know exactly what DCF does and I never said anything about them doing anything random. God knows, it’s hard enough to get them to follow up on reports they already have which THIS case is one of the many reported to them previously and more than once. Sorry you misunderstood me. DCF might be backlogged, not fully staffed or whatever the problem is- there certainly IS a problem. If you read some of the other posts here, you’ll see.
Glad these kids were “rescued” from this type of life. I pray they are placed in a positive and loving home. These two are plain TRASH! Yes, I said it. To be more concerned with drugs more than these precious children is disposable to no end. There this same type of situation a few houses away from me and DCF goes over there quite a bit and NOTHING is ever done. Those poor kids need to be removed as well but why they are still there surprises me and the other neighbors. Praying for THE CHILDREN in this story.
Were there any drugs found? I hope the two offenders never get these precious children back.
In reference to DCF not doing their job – Unfortunately, once DCF sees improvement in a situation and the family follows the requirements of cleaning, etc., the cases are closed and unless a new complaint is filed, the situations can go back just like they were. I’ve seen it happen. Some people know how to get around the system and until enough cases are filed or sadly severe damage is done, this type of thing continues and the children suffer. I’m not familiar with this case but I’ve seen it happen in others.
All the food giveaways around the community every weekend, there are no reasons why anybody shouldn’t have food in their homes today. Especially children going hungry. A Shame, and the kids should be put in a loving home.
Sad they will just give them back to their parents. And they will just be hurt again.
@Susie – The DCF doesn’t routinely check on homes or children until a report is made. How would they do that? It would be a gross and intrusive overreach by a government agency.These conditions are often contained behind closed doors and, more often than not, the residents are transient or temporary occupants. Unfortunately, it usually takes this sort of episode to bring the situation to the attention of Law Enforcement and the DCF. Aside from an honest report by people who are aware of what’s going on, like that “other occupant” in this case, or by a teacher or family member, there’s no way to know that it’s going on. I’m sure there’s a lot more of it than we know of.
Jesus could turn their lives around! He is all they need. He did that for me! He’s right there waiting and wanting them to come to Him. I wish I hadn’t waited so long. Hopefully they will get tired of living this way. Praying for this family.
How can DCF get away with not doing their job year after year? I mean, this type of obvious situation has reared its ugly head over and over. It should be obvious to them, yet other departments always discover it….not DCF!
Bless those children. The parents are obviously unfit, caring more about drugs than their precious children.
@Jason Agreed. The whole system is messed up. Punishable by fine means legal for those who have the means to pay. People selling god’s green herb are getting extremely high bond & jail time, yet child abusers are let off at a much lower price. Sadly, I bet that they will get less jail time than a non-violent, non-dangerous drug dealer would.
Poor kids, no child deserves to live like that! What irritates me to no end is seeing perfectly healthy people physically be this sorry and lazy… really piled up dishes? Roaches everywhere? Can’t even be bothered flushing the toilet?! You know Escambia Pest Control is very reasonable and the owner is a great guy… but I guess $100 for that would go to drugs. Funny how these child neglecting drug users suddenly know the law when caught, just proves they are smart enough for that but not when it comes to taking care of their kids and cleaning their homes.
I sure hope the children can be placed with loving people who will teach them well. The parents should be immediately sterilized.
The bond should honestly be higher!
All I can say is, its about time. That situation in that home has been like that for several years. DCF has been called multiple times before on this couple.
6k bail. Kids coulda died. But the weed guy get 100k bail