ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – A 24-year-old St. Johns County man is charged with child abuse for throwing his 2-year-old daughter down a flight of stairs, according to the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office.
"There was a lady holding a little baby and she said the baby is hurt and I said 'I'm a nurse, give me the baby!'" said Joseph Izzi's neighbor.
Izzi's neighbor didn't want their identity revealed, but told Channel 4 what happened in the Domenico Circle Apartment Complex Monday morning.
"I had blood on my arms so I knew there was an injury to the back of her head ," said the neighbor.
When Channel 4 knocked on Izzi's door Tuesday night, his roommate didn't answer, but instead left a note on the door that said "go away."
Izzi's roommate did speak with police though, according to the police report, Izzi's roommate told police that he and Izz (pictured, right)i had been smoking marijuana before Izzi lost control and threw the toddler down the stairs. The roommate told police after he threw the toddler, Izzi then tore off all of his clothes.
Joseph Izzi Jr. is also charged with assault on two deputies who found him running naked in the parking lot of the apartment complex in the 600 block of Domenico Circle after smoking marijuana, deputies said.
The girl was taken to Flagler Hospital, as was Izzi. Deputies said he already had scratches and bruises on him when they arrived. They said he then banged his head on the cage in the deputy cruiser after being taken into custody.
According to the Department of Child and Family Services, the 2-year-old girl is now in the custody of relatives.
"The Child is safe," said Department of Children and Family Services, John Harrell. "The child is with relatives but we're continuing to investigate because we want to see if there were any other issues or any other concerns regarding maltreatment."