Wildest Bodycam Discoveries of Kids Living in Deplorable Conditions

Hi.
“Where’s your dad?”
“Huh?”
“Huh?”
“Who’s home with you?”
“For Long Beach Police Department, if you’re inside, make yourself known.”
“Kids in the basement.”
“That door appeared to be locked, so she busted it down and there were five or six kids in there.”
“The amount of flies makes you think there’s a body.”
“They don’t have anything clean. They have no working bathroom. They have no working kitchen.”
“There’s no ifs or buts. Either we go in or you guys are being arrested. Okay.”
“No.”

In the United States, some of the most serious crimes do not begin with weapons or even masked intruders. They begin behind closed doors where children are left unprotected.
Today, we’ll walk through six cases from six different counties where neglect was not a single mistake, but a pattern. Digital investigations that uncovered hidden danger, kids begging neighbors for food, toddlers locked in filth, newborns exposed to entire groups of children trapped by the very systems meant to protect them.
These are the moments when police, neighbors, and social workers realized that what looked like a private family problem had [music] become a criminal emergency. Monday, January 8th, 2024, Derma, Mississippi. What began as a search warrant limited to electronic devices quickly turned into an emergency for three young children.
Investigators had traced online accounts and IP addresses linked to child material back to the home of Eric Kellum and Elizabeth Herbert, expecting a purely digital operation focused on computers and storage devices. But instead they found controlled substances, a firearm, three miners living in an environment that was unsafe on every level, which transformed a technical raid into a child protection crisis where the priority shifted from evidence to immediate safety.
“You hear it?”
“Yes, sir.”
“We got our kids in here.”
“Oh, what’s going on?”
“We’ll let you know in just a second.”
“Hold on. Let me lock you so they don’t move.”
“Hey, he ain’t searched yet.”
“Go down and see that officer there.”
“Baby, go take a picture. Oh, you got anything on you?”
“No, I’m sorry.”
“Okay.”
“All right, ma’am. My name is Deputy Baker with the sheriff’s office here. I’m also with the Mississippi Attorney General’s Office, Internet Crimes Against Children’s Task Force.”
“Right now, you are being you are being detained. You’re not under arrest. Okay.”
“Okay.”
“You’re being detained for an investigation of ex children.”
“See, I have a Google account that got hacked and I got on my Google account about something like that and I messaged Google saying my account had been hacked. Okay. Pupp.”
“All right. Before I can ask you any questions about that, I’ll have to read your rights, though. So, just bear with me a minute. I’ll have to go get the forms out of my truck and everything. But we do have a search warrant for the house.”
“Oh, there’s the things up here. I sent you a picture.”
“So, who who all in the house right now?”
“My three kids.”
And there’s no one in the house. I mean, if you need phone, these these off these deputies can go inside with you so you can watch the kids. Okay.
“Hey, could you get some Erica? Could you get could you get a pair of gloves? Oh, pounders, you got any gloves?”
“I don’t have you guys were in here not long ago.”
“Yeah.”
“Hey, how y’all doing?”
“I don’t know where it’s at.”
“Paraphernia in the bathroom.”
“That is not mine. I can tell you exactly who it is.”
“All right. Go go go see go talk to Deputy Casa in there. Where’s your cell phone and stuff? Hold on.”
“I just have one right here.”
“All right. Where was it at? Don’t touch. Don’t touch it.”
“It was in the [ __ ] right here next to”
“Okay, that’s fine. Just don’t don’t do anything with your phone.”
“Okay. Well, I mean, I need my phone for working and doctors. So, you can look at it. I can unlock it for you right now.”
“Well, if we’re going to do if we’re going to do that, I’ve got to do some paperwork first.”
“I said cuz you can look on my phone or you won’t. I ain’t got nothing on it.”
“I got a pair of the pipe in here on the bathroom.”
“Yeah. And it’s not mine. I can tell you that. Exactly.”
“When did you leave it over here?”
“Four weeks ago.”
“And you still leaving it on the counter in there where you”
“All right. Is this one Is this one Is this one your phone?”
“Yes.”
“Okay.”
“Is this one his phone?”
“That one don’t work.”
“It’s just an extra phone.”
“Yes.”
“Okay.”
“I say I’ve been working. I haven’t touched it cuz I didn’t want to touch it.”
“But then you but you got kids right here.”
“Then they don’t go in there because we have issues with that bathroom with the plumbing and stuff. That plumbing the plumbing’s backed up. They don’t go in there. They stay in here and there. We mostly stay in here right now because we have issues with the heat and the air.”
“So the thing about it is what were you trying to tell me as far as the Google account?”
“I got a notification. I got locked out of my Google account saying something about child exp. Okay.”
“I messaged Google saying my account has been hacked. Okay.”
“They said they’re going to investigate. Okay.”
“Because I don’t use my Google account except for like stuff for work.”
“What uh what email address is associated with your Google account? Do you know?”
“Would you know the email address cargmail.com?”
“That’s one I used to have that I got locked out of a while ago. I couldn’t get into it.”
“Okay. What about 19gmail.com?”
“That’s the one that just got locked out of. Okay.”
“That’s the one I messaged him about. I got a notification.”
“See the clip?”
“Yeah, there’s a broken one right here, too. I don’t think I’m going to see that right there. Tinkle. Be careful. There’s something in it. There it is right there. Okay. I don’t know. Okay. What about an email address juggmail.com?”
“I usually use my name.”
“Okay.”
“Do you think any of those could belong to Eric?”
“Honestly, I have no idea.”
“Okay. Cuz I’m going to show you a picture real quick.”
“This is from his Facebook page.”
“See Jugaloo’s University?”
“Yeah, that’s old Facebook.”
“Okay. I mean, it kind of matches what’s in some of those usernames and emails there.”
“So, I’m just going to flat out tell you upfront and to the point. Okay.”
“I received a cyber tip from the National Center for Missing and Children.”
“Okay.”
“In that cyber tip, this home email was addressed or I’m sorry, this home internet service was used in the transfer of child.”
“Those email addresses and those usernames were associated with it. So, these Snapchat accounts that were created using that email address and this home internet service was either you or him.”
“And I can tell you it was not me.”
“Okay. So, here’s what we’re going to do at this point. Right now, he’s under arrest.”
“Okay.”
“And it’s obvious why.”
“Yeah.”
“Um I’m going to go back and interview him, but for now, anything electronic in this house has to go with me.”
“Okay. Any CDs, DVDs?”
“We don’t have anything that we use.”
“Cell phones, laptops, iPads, external hard drives, thumb drives.”
“We don’t have anything. You got the cell phones.”
“Okay.”
“They’re going to search through here and look because anything those cell phones, that’s it. I use the cell phone as a remote for the TV for the kids.”
“Okay.”
“So, anything like that that’s here, we’ve got to take it.”
“You have all of them right now. I promise.”
“Okay. But we still have to look. Is that a airsoft gun kind of thing or what is that with no pellets or nothing in it?”
“Don’t touch it.”
“No, don’t touch it.”
“I was just going to hand it to you. Okay.”
“Just leave it.”
“Just leave it.”
“I’ll say it’s there. It is your truck out here unlocked.”
“Uh yeah, it’s actually not my truck. It’s my father-in-law’s.”
“Okay. Well, we we’re going to have to search anything that’s on the property. So, that that includes vehicles.”
“I mean, it’s just it’s not mine. It’s his dad.”
“What’s the white powder in the tin foil in there?”
kids and mother out here.
“Um, whatever works best for you. But it is cold out here, too. Um, but I am about to call CPS. I’m going to call CPS and get them out here.”
“I mean, it’s not livable.”
“Pipes in the bathroom. There’s some kind of crystal like substance in there, too. She’s saying it’s been in there.”
“Collect everything. Collect everything.”
“She’s saying it’s been in there for 4 weeks. She didn’t want to touch it. So, your kids can go in there and definitely going to need you to come out here to this house. The house is unlivable.”
“There’s in the house.”
“Um, we’ve arrested the husband so far. The mother’s still here with three kids.”
“Light bulbs.”
“Yeah, a lot of them do.”
“I haven’t touched it yet. And that’s that was where in the bathroom.”
“Okay.”
“With all this other”
“Yeah.”
“Where where the kids can get to.”
“So here’s here’s what we’re going to do. When when uh CPS gets here, we’re going to tell them to take the kids and we’re going to arrest her for possession of whatever y’all find in there.”
“And then whatever you can charge about the kids.”
“Yeah. Well, at least for now, she’ll get possession charges and he’ll get the child charge and possession charge.”
“And what I’ll do is I’ll go ahead and uh I’ll just Miranda him next week and then ask him what that is in that 10.”
“As a matter of fact, here I’ve got the forms right here. Just go ahead and do the form on him. Ask him what you want to ask him about that. I’ll ask him what I need to ask him real quick and then we’ll just take him up to the jail because I’ve seen enough.”
“All right. And [clears throat] you can see it’s nothing is it’s all plain and simple. All right. Before we ask you any questions, you have you must understand your rights. You had the right to remain silent.”
“Okay.”
“Do you do you wish to answer any questions?”
“I I don’t know what the best thing to do without a lawyer and I don’t have a lawyer and y’all have to appoint me one.”
“Let let me say let me say this, okay? I can’t ask you any questions or tell you anything about what’s going on un unless you’re willing to talk to me. You can stop at any point.”
“Like even if I ask a question and you say, ‘I don’t want to answer that.’ That’s okay. I just need you to acknowledge that you understand what your rights are.”
“Okay. Yes. Yes, sir.”
“Okay. My name is Deputy Baker. I’m work with the Callum County Sheriff’s Office. I’m also with the Mississippi Attorney General’s Internet Crimes Against Children’s Task Force. I received a cyber tip that some images and videos were transferred using the internet service at your house.”
“Okay.”
“Using usernames and email addresses and things that are associated with you.”
“Okay.”
“So, that’s why we’re here with a search warrant.”
“Okay.”
“On top of that, he had something he needed to ask you about some stuff that we’ve already found in the house.”
“Okay.”
“What’s in that tin? What’s that crystallite substance in that tinfoil in the bathroom?”
“Um, be honest because I’ve got a test kit. I can test it.”
“Okay. Um, well, see, now I don’t know what to do. See, I don’t know if I need to talk to a lawyer now or what.”
“Well, you don’t have to answer that question, but as far as it stands right now, you’re under arrest. Uh, at least for the possession of child.”
“I don’t know.”
“And also for whatever that we find in the house. So, we’ll sort that out in a little bit.”
“Okay.”
“I’ll transport you to the jail.”
Amidst it all, Eric listened to the preliminary charges being read. His reaction was telling. He didn’t resist, but also failed to take responsibility. He appeared confused, avoided direct answers, and admitted he had no lawyer or defense strategy. From a psychological standpoint, this passivity reflected a form of cognitive avoidance, minimizing the seriousness of the process as a way of self-protection. For prosecutors, however, it only confirmed that the case would move forward on solid evidence, seized devices documented, and a hazardous environment for children.
“So, when we get to the jail and I uncuff him, I can just get him to sign this.”
“Yeah. Yeah. And if he don’t, we’ve got it on video that he acknowledged it and he was handcuffed. So, and at this point, I don’t have anything else to ask him and he lawyered up. So,”
“I may have a kit, test kit in my”
“We’re just going to collect it and bring it back. So, we’ll go we’ll go with that from there.”
“Yeah, just wait up there for me.”
“I’m working on putting the house. You know I am. But I’m working every goddamn day. I’m not”
“All right, let’s not have a Let’s not have an argument.”
“Can you be careful with the tools are my father-in-laws?”
“They’re not going to damage anything.”
“All the stuff in there is my father-in-law’s just about. They’re not going to damage anything.”
“There’s a room right here. I didn’t see nothing. I looked all through the The only thing that I seen electronic is that Xbox.”
“Mhm.”
“That was sitting right there at the door. And she said the only thing she had was the phone she give you.”
“That’s all I have.”
“I went that way to the bathroom where she was going.”
“Right.”
“And that’s when I found seen that asked where she was doing. She was grabbing some tin foil.”
“Uhhuh.”
“Yeah. And it told it’s not mine. that there was a tent pole like a balded like a ball over to the left and a little plate. Uh as soon as we got them out for we look through the wood man we open this white powder in there. So”
“okay”
“I didn’t know that was I knew the pipe was in there for I’m not asking you about that either way.”
“But what I am asking about is the electronics. Okay. I know I know the cell phone that you had and there was the Nokia cell phone that you said was just an extra one. in his pocket.”
“We got one from him.”
“Do you Do you have any kind of thumb drives or anything in this house?”
“In my phone.”
“That’s all you got?”
“He’s already”
“Ma’am, I I I need you to go until we’re done. Okay.”
“Okay. Right.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Also, I’ve got a memory card, but it’s in my phone.”
“Mhm.”
“And that’s all I have.”
“Right.”
“But as far as he goes, do you know if he has any phone drives or anything anywhere in my house that there can go in there with him and see?”
“That would be fine. You want to go with her, Jeremy? But yeah, watch watch your step right here.”
“Okay.”
“This board’s flimsy.”
“Just come in. Come in.”
“You want to come back?”
“Come in here and let me talk to you for a minute.”
“They don’t have anything clean. This is their living conditions. This is where the kids were when I came in here.”
“They have no working bathroom. They have no working kitchen. They have nothing. Just to look around. Look right there. Oh god. I got to get a closeup.”
“Sir,”
When CPS finally arrived, the operation reached a turning point. What had been a policeled case became a joint institutional intervention. Every observation from CPS, structural deficiencies, unsanitary conditions, the presence of hazardous items was logged as independent evidence of child. alongside police reports. These civil findings gave the case greater legal weight. At the same time, the medical protocol was activated. The three children were taken for physical and psychological evaluations. These reports would measure not only immediate consequences, but also the emotional toll of growing up in an environment marked by neglect and criminal exposure. For Eric and Elizabeth, this development nearly eliminated any chance of regaining custody as the child protection case advanced parallel to the criminal one.
“This is why I’m telling you it is in no condition whatsoever for any anything sustainable. Plus, there was methane in the house.”
“Okay.”
“And so, we’re going to charge her with possession of”
“Okay.”
“And take her to jail. I was just waiting on you to get here to work out the children before I did. We’ve already transported him for child and possession of”
“Okay. But it it wasn’t of their children, was it?”
“No. No, not Well, I don’t know yet cuz I I still have to take everything we got from here to get it processed. And now if I find anything of their children, I’ll let you know.”
“Okay. Do you know they’re”
“I have not asked the ages, but they’re all three very small.”
“Okay. So, I would need to get a forensic set up for them. I would say no.”
“Okay.”
“I don’t think they’re going to be old enough to to be able to.”
“But if you want to walk around, you can, but I mean, the whole house is like this.”
“All right.”
“Now, this is fine.”
“And the bathroom, you can’t stomach going in there.”
“Okay.”
“When you took the pictures of the inside, you took the whole inside, right? Like the conditions and everything, too, cuz that’s probably going to end up being another charge.”
“Okay. I just want to make sure.”
“Right there. Is that where I was telling you that? Right there. Is that because we’re probably going to be we’re probably going to do a child, too.”
“Yeah. Cuz times get hard. This is no excuse. So when when CPS is done with the mom getting the information that they need to get and everything if you’ll 1015 her and ride with one of y’all to transport her back and then I’m going to talk with CPS and exchange investigative information so that we can get a charge on that too. And”
“probably easier.”
“It’s usually 30 days in 30 days.”
“I mean, as far as I know, I don’t know if I’m charged with anything.”
“Am I charged with anything?”
“You will be.”
“I will be because what?”
“Well, there was in the house and I”
“the conditions of the house”
“if I pass on testing everything”
“possession of me has nothing to do with whether you test positive or negative.”
“And see that’s”
“even though I didn’t know that was in there. I just knew the pipe was in there and it wasn’t mine. But with just that charge would that affect it just as bad? It does cuz that’s going to be because the children were in the home with it and then plus the conditions of”
“Yeah. Tell mom is being um arrested as well. She’s being charged with possession of”
“and I just sent you the pictures. I don’t know if they’re going to”
“I’m going to lose my job and everything.”
“Uh I think personally I lost my job and my kids.”
“Whichever one we’ve been texting now”
“and I don’t even know.”
“Okay. But you’re at court.”
“Yeah. Okay, I’m about to um take y’all in the home. Can I I’ve got the phone.”
“Okay,”
“I’m going to go back in.”
“Okay.”
“Yeah,”
“you got order to get him out of that.”
“Okay.”
“Yeah, judge. This is Deputy Baker. I’m here as well. We were conducting a search warrant here and then I called him out here. Um, there’s something else I want to show you, too. Um, I mean, there was in the home and everything else, but, uh, I mean, look at this”
“roaches.”
“And that’s right next to where the kids were.”
“They can’t stay with their grandparents. I’m not saying that they can’t be considered for placement. What I would need to do, they can follow me to the office. I can get their information.”
“Like I said, for my my dad, I don’t have his number, but if you know Britney, you can get up with her.”
“Yeah.”
“Okay. Because if if they can take them, I would love for them to take them.”
“Okay.”
“Because I know can’t handle them.”
“Okay.”
“I say if you ask any of them, they’ll tell you cannot handle them.”
“Okay. All right. I’ll see um if I can get Britney out and see if”
“I have her number on my phone.”
“Uhhuh. But he’s got my phone, so I’d have to get off of the phone from him. And if whoever takes them, I have my food stamp card that hits tomorrow, I could give to them.”
“Okay. See, we wouldn’t be able to do that cuz they’re going to come off your case anyway. So,”
“Okay. So, Okay. But if they do come back with their grandparents, can their grandparents have the card?”
“Mhm.”
“Okay. Great. Well, let me go down here and get the kids. Um, do they have any medical conditions, allergies, um, allergic? Can’t have oranges. They make your lips swell up.”
“Okay.”
The case ended with Eric Kellum convicted of possession of child material, possession of a controlled substance, and three counts of child receiving 15 years in prison. Elizabeth Herbert was charged with possession and three counts of child. Her legal process remains ongoing with the potential for a multi-decade sentence if convicted. The three children were placed under the custody of the Mississippi Department of Child Protection Services undergoing medical and psychological evaluations to assess the long-term impact of living in that environment. Beyond the individual charges, the case highlighted how rural isolation, substance abuse, and online crime intersect, leaving children exposed until a digital investigation finally forces intervention.
2 years earlier and nearly 1,400 miles away, a different household in Arizona was facing its own crisis. One that neighbors had been witnessing long before police ever arrived. Monday, July 18th, 2022, Mesa, Arizona. For weeks, three sisters ages 2, five, and six were seen knocking on doors, asking strangers for food and water. When police reach their home, they find their mother Katrina Anise Johnson and her partner Brandon Edwards living in an environment marked by addiction, chronic school absenteeism, and repeated refusals of family help. What began as a welfare check would quickly reveal long-term neglect overlooked by multiple systems.
“Jesus.”
“Hi.”
“Hello, ma’am.”
“Just coming out and talking to us tonight. Um,”
“so based on what we saw, we had to do a little bit further investigation. Got to ask some more questions.”
“Um, can we just go over to our car real quick and”
“just ask more questions?”
“I’m trying my best to keep this”
“my kids and keep get this place cleaned up. I just talked to the property manager. She just left.”
“I know. I talked to her, too.”
“Do you mind just stepping over my vehicle so we can talk?”
“No.”
“Why?”
“You have a warrant. Whose”
“car is this?”
“That’s hard. Can I get some shoes for my husband? We’ll talk. Can you My husband, please. Please. Can you please get Brandon, please? Is he being drafted, too?”
“Hold on.”
“Please tell me. Please.”
“We have to do more investigation. He’s not He’s not going to go in jail right now.”
“Okay.”
“You’re only going to jail cuz you have a warrant.”
“So, what’s with the war investigation? What’s that mean?”
“Okay. We have to ask more questions. I have some detectives that are going to talk to you.”
“What? Come on. Honey.”
“So, she’s going for the warrant today. Do you have any weapons right here?”
“No, I don’t.”
“Am I just”
“Does she have any shoes or anything outside?”
“Yeah. Can I get her a jacket and stuff?”
“It’s freaking cold, bro.”
“No way.”
“What am I?”
“No way.”
“We’re entertained right now. Okay.”
“Why?”
“What are you doing with my”
“What the is going on? Guys, explain what’s going on.”
“Don’t Don’t I know.”
“Yeah. Hold on.”
“[screaming]”
“What?”
“Baby. Baby. No. Don’t touch my daughter. Please.”
“We’re not going to.”
“Don’t run.”
“I need to know what’s going on with my kids.”
“No. Please don’t touch my daughter. Please. I’m being cooperative. I’m being cooperative. I understand. You can step out.”
“Please. Thank you. Please. his face to be.”
“Okay. Do you have anything in your pocket?”
“No, we can’t talk.”
“So, we’re concerned”
“with the safety of the children.”
“I know, but I’m understand. I understand.”
“What’s going on? I told you I need to talk to the land lady.”
“Hold on. Okay, relax. Let us let us let us let us work figure it out. Okay.”
“I understand. Your kids are going to be fine.”
“I don’t want to go.”
“We’re going to We’re going to take care of I don’t want to go to DCS, please.”
“I understand.”
“I promise them. Please.”
“I know. I’m fine. I’m sorry. I’m going to shut the door. I’m nervous. I’m scared. Okay. Please talk to me. Please.”
“Hold on a second. Please don’t.”
“Hold on a second.”
“Daughters are over there.”
“And I I understand how you feel right now. I really do.”
“I have to go to jail right now or I have to stay here and wait.”
“We’re just being detained.”
“I did her a jacket.”
“Yeah. Like I’m not trying to be hostile. My my daughters are right there.”
“So we’ll we’ll get everything She’s not going yet. So when everything”
“when everything gets, you know, figured out, we’ll allow you to grab whatever she needs and all that stuff. So we’re just going to have a seat in my car real quick.”
“And”
“can I just stand here with my daughters? Cuz they’re scared right now. They’re really scared.”
“I understand.”
“I don’t think you do.”
“I No, I do understand.”
“You talk like you understand, but you don’t.”
“Crying right I”
“My daughters are freaking freaked out cuz they’ve been taken by CPS before and it took us a year to get them back.”
“Okay. Well,”
“my daughters are freaked the out and you guys are locking them in the house right now. That’s that. Come on, dude. How does that look to them?”
“We’re not locking them in the house. We’re allowing them to go back.”
“They’re holding the door shut and my daughters are inside. How do you think they’re thinking as kids?”
“They can see you right now.”
“Oh, you think they’re that tall?”
“They’re sitting on the bed.”
“She was She was just watching through the window.”
“So, let’s just go have a seat in my car. Uh, that’s not fair. I I’m not here to be, you know, fair. I’m here to do my job. Okay.”
“You don’t mind handing over your phone to me real quick, sir?”
“Can I call my mother? At least have her come down here and get my kids.”
“We’ll get to phone calls. Okay.”
“I just want to have my mom come get the kids so they’re not freaking out. Can I just have that from you guys? That is very I’ll even let you call.”
“You’re not even going anywhere yet.”
“I know, but I want my mom to come pick up my daughter’s right. Okay. I’m the tra guy. Thank you, Charles.”
“My car is freaking out. Can you”
“pull Can you pull up to the fence and let me have the window open?”
“You got to You got to go in. You got to get in the car first.”
“I’m like 49”
“and we got You can’t have your phone back there.”
“I don’t understand why I have”
“because you both have to be”
“8:35.”
“Okay.”
“What did I do wrong? It’s pending an investigation.”
“A warrant that doesn’t count here.”
“It’s impending it’s impending a child investigation. You’re being detained. Okay. That’s that’s why.”
“Yeah.”
“Is he biological dad three children?”
“Okay. So, right now I’ll keep them detained in my vehicle until we can figure it till you figure out what we’re going to do with these kids. So, I told you guys your parents aren’t going anywhere. Right. Right. They’re still right there. We’re just talking to them in the vehicles. Okay. Have you guys eaten today? Are you hungry?”
“We already ate.”
“You ate today?”
“We already ate.”
“How How far how long ago?”
“Um just right just right now.”
“Before you guys came”
“before we got here, what did you guys eat?”
“Um we had um we had some meat and some egg and stuff like that. Some meat and some what?”
“Um, egg and bacon and all that.”
“That sounds really good.”
“Did you eat it here?”
“Yeah, we ate it here.”
“Did you all eat?”
“Mhm.”
“Yeah.”
“All ate.”
“Is anyone still hungry?”
“Mm-m.”
“No. Are you guys thirsty?”
“No.”
“I have some water if you guys want some water. Are you guys thirsty?”
“No.”
“Yeah. Okay. My car in the middle there’s a gallon of water. Go get it, please.”
“Water. Yep. Right in the middle. Can you guys have like juice?”
“Huh?”
“Can you guys have like juice? Like Gatorade?”
“Yeah.”
“You allowed to?”
“Yeah. Okay. I’m going to get you guys some Gatorade. Okay. Cuz it’s kind of hot out here. And then you sure you’re not hungry?”
“I’m not hungry.”
“You’re not hungry?”
“Really fast. Okay.”
“Yeah, we’ll let him come over here. Baby, don’t”
“have to keep it with you.”
“We have We can have one of our detectives go back in and get your necklace with you.”
“I don’t have it in the room.”
“I know. They They’re They’re locking down their house. I can’t even go home.”
“How about you?”
“I can’t even go home.”
“Sir, do you want to come give your daughter?”
“Let me have shoes.”
“Would you like to give your kids another hug? They want a hug from you again.”
“Yeah, please.”
“My daughter knows where my necklace is. It’s my grandmother’s”
“earn. Can she go? I know where she’s taking it.”
“I know where it is.”
“Can she grab my necklace?”
“No, because last time they tried to take”
“We’re just going to go on a trip, okay? And everybody’s just What are you saying?”
“Okay, he just wants it for himself.”
“We understand. Let’s put him in the car. I’m sorry.”
“All right, we’re going to go and head in the back of my car again. Okay, ma’am. Can I just tell them calm when I get out?”
“I’ll let him know for you. Okay.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
“Nice of you guys to help us out cuz I know we were slammed and this is”
“that’s how we’ve been out on”
“but this has been like the kind of way of small punishment for a child case that we’re working with this. So, But she’s uh she’s nice and calm. We just been chitchatting. So that way she’s nice and uh nice and relaxed. So she’s not going to be any issues for you. And hopefully we we talked about a good good game plan to go from here. Right. All right. So”
“thank you.”
“I’m going to go ahead and take these off you. Okay. And then I’ll have my partner here put his on for you.”
“All right. Just cuz all procedural stuff, right?”
“Absolutely.”
“But get that warrant taken care of. Okay.”
“Yes.”
“And then do what we talked about. All right. Hey, hey, listen.”
“I almost feel like I don’t want to tell”
“it’s it’s it’s stupid. All right. But we got to take care of it. And then once we take care of it, we can worry about the more important things. All right. Like your children.”
“Okay.”
“Keep you in front. Sounds like you’ve been pretty cooperative.”
“I need I need to put them on behind me.”
“Thank you. I kind of have a little bit back there.”
“And then just remember that little uh analogy I shared with you about that tree. Okay.”
“I’m It’s going to stick with me now.”
“All right. It’s a nice little positive thing that especially us Midwesterners like to share with each other. I think we’re able to relate better with one another when we do that.”
“Yeah.”
“Behind the right in front of this wheel. I’m just going to give you a quick check. I’m sure they already did. Turn around.”
Johnson and Edwards would be arrested and charged with three counts of child abrior convictions and a history of abuse would face a harsher penalty. While Edwards was held equally responsible for enabling the ongoing neglect, the girls were placed under state protection as the court considered permanently terminating parental rights. The case highlighted how repeated warning signs, missed school, utility shut offs, and children asking neighbors for food can accumulate unnoticed until the situation becomes impossible to ignore. But 9 months later, another 2-year-old, this time in Florida, would be trapped in a far more urgent and dangerous situation. Saturday, April 22nd, 2023, Fort Walton Beach, Florida. A neighbor called 911 after spotting a toddler covered in insects pounding on a window for help. Inside, officers find the 2-year-old had been deliberately locked in a filthy room, surrounded by rotting food, soiled diapers, and hazardous debris. The adults responsible, Tyle