SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. – Two parents are facing serious child neglect charges after their 5-month-old twins were found severely malnourished and in critical condition at a Seminole County RV.
Madison Smith and Leroy Somersall appeared before a judge after deputies discovered the infants in life-threatening conditions following a tip to the Florida Abuse Hotline on Jan. 6.
According to the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office report, “the twins were malnourished to the point where you could see every bone in their bodies” and “the children were unresponsive and required life-saving interventions.” Deputies found “no formula or empty containers” in the family’s RV, which was parked on Byrd Avenue.
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The parents claimed in the report they “were never told by any medical professional that they needed to feed the babies more as they grew.”
“How could any parent neglect their children like that? That was my first reaction,” said Louise Perkins, who lives in the home behind where the RV was parked. “If they had a need, there were organizations in this community who could have helped. There’s no excuse to malnourish two babies. Not just one, but two.”
The infants were airlifted to Arnold Palmer Hospital in Orlando for treatment.
A judge set bond at $50,000 for each child neglect charge with great bodily harm. Both parents face a $100,000 bond, as they’re charged for each infant. They are prohibited from contacting the infants, anyone under 18 years old, or each other. Both will be fitted with GPS monitors.
Smith and Somersall are scheduled to return to court on March 3 for their arraignment.