COLUMBIA COUNTY, Fla. – A grandmother and a mother are both charged with child neglect after deputies found three young children living in filth at a White Springs home, according to the Columbia County Sheriff's Office.
Susan Thomas, 54, and her daughter, 31-year-old Jessica Thomas, were arrested Thursday after investigators found what they believed to be unsafe and unhealthy living conditions for the children.
Deputies, who were acting on a tip from the Department of Children and Families, said they visited the home off U.S. 441 and found one of the children wearing a dirty diaper.
According to investigators, that child had rotting teeth and bug bites down the length of his leg.
None of the children were wearing shoes while playing in the yard, deputies said, and a 3-year-old stubbed his toe on a sharp object.
Investigators said they found hazards outside the home that included exposed electrical lines running from an outside box, trash, a porch with missing steps and large containers filled with standing water deep enough for a child to fall in and drown.
Inside the house, investigators said, they discovered remnants of food scattered on the floor and large cockroaches crawling everywhere, including on old food inside the refrigerator.
Beyond the house, deputies said, they found one of three horses on the property appeared to be malnourished.
The children were removed from the property and a relative was granted permission to take the children, deputies said.
According to the arresting deputy, the children's mother and grandmother showed no empathy as they were being taken away.
Susan and Jessica Thomas were booked into the Columbia County Jail on Thursday afternoon, but they each posted $10,000 bond several hours later.
When News4Jax stopped by their White Springs home on Friday, no one answered the door, but voices could be heard inside and movement could be seen through a window.