A Volusia County jury found Shamika Mitchell guilty of Aggravated Child Abuse and Unlawful Desertion of a Child after a three-day trial. The charges stemmed from an incident on November 8, 2023, when Mitchell abandoned her 1-year-old son on Daytona Beach.
Surveillance footage showed Mitchell walking down a beach access staircase with the toddler just before midnight, but five minutes later, she returned without him. The toddler was later found near Main Street and Ocean Avenue at around 1 a.m., unresponsive and partially submerged in the water.
A woman who discovered the child described him as being on his hands and knees, with sand up to his wrists and waves crashing over him. He was transported to Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children and recovered.
Mitchell initially told officers she left the child with his father, but further investigation revealed the father was in Detroit.
The case was investigated by the Daytona Beach Police Department with support from the Volusia Sheriff’s Office. Mitchell, who faces up to 35 years in prison, will be sentenced at a later date by Judge Karen Foxman.
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