John Jefferson
Inset: Shamika Mitchell (Volusia County Division of Corrections). Background: Daytona Beach, Florida, where Shamika Mitchell abandoned her 1-year-old son (WRAL/YouTube).
A mother from Michigan has been found guilty of felony child abuse and unlawful desertion for abandoning her 1-year-old son on Florida‘s Daytona Beach, with the boy’s teenage brother reportedly calling the cops on her — claiming she’s “possessed by demons,” according to police dispatch records.
“She sent my little brother somewhere,” the teen told authorities on Nov. 8, 2023, after calling 911 to report his mother’s actions, according to local NBC affiliate WESH. “She said with his dad,” the teen explained frantically. “I keep telling her to show me proof, proof, but she’s not showing me proof. … So, like, I really think my mom is possessed by demons.”
Shamika Mitchell, 38, of Detroit, is now facing up to 35 years in prison for her son’s abandonment after being convicted in Volusia County. During her three-day trial, prosecutors described how she was caught on surveillance tape “walking down a beach access staircase with the toddler in her arms just before midnight,” according to WESH, and then “five minutes later, Mitchell comes back from the beach without him.”
The boy’s teenage brother tried questioning his mom about his brother’s whereabouts on Daytona Beach.
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“I’m telling her to tell me proof because I know that he’s been having these little episodes lately,” the teen explained to the dispatcher. It’s unclear what caused the “episodes,” according to WESH.
A stranger wound up finding Mitchell’s son, and just in the nick of time, police said.
“She told Daytona Beach Police that he was in the water on his hands and knees,” police said in the incident report. “Hands buried in the sand up to his wrists and waves were crashing over his head.”
Authorities reported that the boy was unresponsive and had shallow breathing when found by first responders, in addition to an elevated pulse. He was rushed to Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children and later made a full recovery.
In December 2023, it was reported by WJBK that Mitchell’s five children — ages 1 to 17 — were placed in the foster care system by Florida’s Department of Children and Families after her arrest. Their grandmother, Valerie Mitchell, told the outlet she traveled to the Sunshine State to try and get them out, but was unable to at first.
“I’ve called everybody and I need some help,” Valerie Mitchell said. “My grandsons want to come home.”
On Dec. 19, 2023, the children were sent home with a case manager and placed in Valerie Mitchell’s custody. She said it was a Christmas that she’ll never forget.
“I am so happy, I just don’t know what to do,” Valerie Mitchell told the Detroit Free Press after her grandchildren arrived. “I’m just happy they’re home.”
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