Neighbors saw red flags for months before 4 children were removed from Volusia County home

Daryl Matthews
·2 min read
4

People living on Clovis Drive in Deltona said they have been trying to get the state and local agencies to help four children and an elderly man for several months before the Department of Children and Families removed the children from their home this week.

Neighbors told Eyewitness News that since September 2022, they’ve called and filed reports with Adult Protective Services after they noticed how much help an elderly gentleman inside the home needed.

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“In this case, we did what the system allowed us to do, and we got the runaround. We never got any answers,” said Staci Hagan, a close friend of a neighbor.

Hagan said she hoped the consistent calls would have got the ball rolling for someone to check on the children also.

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“The system is broken. Those children should have had a red flag up a year ago when all of this went down with the adult protective services,” said Hagan.

Neighbors along Clovis Drive said over the last year, they noticed the caring for the outside of the home started to diminish, but they had no clue the inside was unlivable.

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Tuesday, Christopher Rounds and Samantha Acker were arrested for child neglect by Volusia County deputies after they said a child from the home showed up to school with dirty clothing on and roaches coming from her book bag.

A report from the deputies stated that four children lived in the home ages 16, 15, 10 and 8.

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It also stated that the 15-year-old is deaf and mute, and no one in the home knew sign language.

The reports also stated the Department of Children and Families found a red mark on the child’s back but did not identify abuse and that the organization has been to the house numerous times.

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Eyewitness News did call and email DCF, the Volusia County office, and Tallahassee for details on the interactions with the home and has yet to hear back.

All four children are now in the care of a family friend.

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