VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. – A man is facing child abuse charges after deputies say he recklessly drove through Ormond Beach while intoxicated with a 4-year-old as a passenger.
Volusia County deputies say Gary Gill was swerving by the 1200 block of Anderson Drive Sunday and crashed into several trash cans in a Hyundai SUV. Multiple calls to 911 reported Gill was driving a severely damaged vehicle that was missing a tire on the front drivers’ side, the SUV speeding on the road on the bare metal wheel.
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A deputy eventually found the damaged SUV backing out of a driveway on Seaview Drive. He conducted a traffic stop in which Gill had slurred speech and smelled of alcohol, according to an arrest report.
The deputy had returned to his patrol vehicle to contact the Florida Highway Patrol to conduct a hit-and-run investigation. When he returned to Gill, he found his head lying in the open door window and vomit dripping down the side of the vehicle, according to authorities. That’s when the deputy checked the backseat and noticed a small child with vomit on himself.
The deputy spoke to the child who said he was four years old and scared. The deputy called for medical assistance to check the child’s condition in which first responders said the child was so frightened he threw up on himself.
When deputies called the child’s mother she said she knew the child was with Gill and said the vehicle was hers. She told authorities Gill worked in construction and had left home to pick up his blood pressure medication, according to a report. She had reported to the area where deputies stopped Gill to pick up her son.
Deputies investigated Gill’s car and found a near-empty bottle of Crown Royal on the floor of the passenger side of the vehicle and a full bottle of Pepsi. The 44-year-old eventually became unresponsive during the investigation and was taken to the hospital.
According to authorities, Gill started to get violent in the ambulance and first responders eventually injected him with medication to calm him down.
Gill is now being held in the Volusia County Jail without bond. He’s facing charges of driving on a revoked license and child abuse without great harm.