Mother arrested after children found living in ‘house of horror’
By Spencer Tracy
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ORANGE CITY, Florida (WESH) — A Volusia County mother is behind bars after deputies say she allowed her three children to live in “horrific” conditions described by the sheriff as a “house of horror.”
Jacqueline Daniel was arrested Monday at her home on West New York Avenue in Orange City.
Deputies originally responded to help the Department of Children and Families check on the children but found what Sheriff Mike Chitwood called “the worst house in the world … completely overwhelmed with roaches, lice, black mold, feces, and trash piled high.”
One of the children, 10 years old, had to be hospitalized due to a severe lice infestation. Doctors reportedly shaved the child’s hair to treat scabs and lice in the hair, eyebrows, and eyelashes.
Investigators said Daniel admitted she knew her other two children, ages 9 and 15, were also infested but did not treat them.
“By the mother’s own admission, she says the house isn’t fit for humans to be living there — it wouldn’t even fit for an animal,” Chitwood said.
In bodycam footage, Daniel told deputies, “I know I deserve this … I want a chance to get this right.”
Chitwood, who has been on the job 38 years, called the home “one of the worst I’ve ever seen” and said the children’s lives could have been at serious risk.
Chitwood said Daniel was more worried about losing her work license than her children’s safety.
Daniel faces three counts of felony child abuse. Her children are now in the custody of the state. Jail records show she was released following her first court appearance.
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