A couple was arrested Tuesday in a Wildwood motel with their son in need of medical attention.
Sumter County sheriffs deputies were called to Motel 6 on East State Road 44 in Wildwood. Deputies were responding to a call for assistance by an investigator from the Department of Children and Families. Upon arriving at the motel, deputies found 36-year-old Deana Mari Day, and her husband, 39-year-old Ronald Harrison Day, as well as their minor son.
The child welfare investigator indicated to the deputies that he had been directed to the Motel 6 regarding a complaint that the Days had failed to provide appropriate medical care for the child. The investigating officer found the parents to be extremely nervous, the room to be in disarray with discarded pizza boxes and cups strewn about. The bed in which the boy had been sleeping appeared to be covered with stains caused by unknown liquids.
The deputies attempted to speak to the child but found that he appeared to be suffering from some disabilities and was unable to provide much information. The deputy then examined his body and observed several bites on the child’s body along with ringworm on numerous fingers and an extremely irritated and untreated rash on his groin area from his inner thigh all the way to his scrotum.
The deputy then questioned the parents. They claimed that they had provided their child with medical care in that he had seen numerous doctors that said they could not do anything for him. They were unable to provide any medical records or names of doctors nor could they provide any treatment creams or medications to help take care of the issues that the deputy observed on the child;s body.
The parents told the deputy that neither of them works, has a driver’s license, any money, or means of transportation should they need medical assistance for their child. They further stated “they were dropped off at the motel for one night and did not know where they were going to go from here or how they were going to get there.”
The parents were offered urine test to detect whether they had any drugs in their system. Mrs. Day provided a sample which tested positive for methamphetamines. Mr. Day refused to provide a sample and stated he knew his rights and did not have to consent to a urine test.
The deputy then contacted EMS which upon arrival and their observation of the child they informed the deputy that he should be taken by ambulance to the hospital for proper care.
The officers then arrested the Days and charged them with a third-degree felony, cruelty towards a child. They were booked at the Sumter County Detention Center on $2,000 bond each.
