Parents arrested on Florida beach after they were found passed out, kids gone
MIAMI - A family's Florida vacation ended with the parents arrested and their two young children found wandering Daytona Beach.
A Georgia couple was arrested after Volusia County deputies found them Saturday afternoon passed out on the beach surrounded by open cans of alcohol. Their children were nowhere in sight.
According to the sheriff's office, someone called them after watching the couple drink too much, leaving their two little kids to wander off along the popular beach.
The Daytona Beach Shores city ordinance states it's unlawful for anyone to drink any alcoholic beverage on the beach. Those found in violation are subjected to a fine of up to $500 or jail for up to 60 days, or both.
A deputy's body-worn camera shows the moment a disheveled Timothy Stephens realized both children, ages 5 and 7 were nowhere in sight. The children were not even at the beach at the time.
Deputies found them at a nearby hotel in the swimming pool unsupervised.
Stephens and Alyssia Langley were handcuffed and taken into custody.
"Where are my kids going to go?" asked Langley.
"To the family resource center, we're going to take care of them, they'll feed them, they'll clothe them," replied a deputy.
When deputies went to take them to jail, Stephens reportedly tried to make a run for it but ended up knocking himself unconscious on the hard-packed sand.
The state's Department of Children and Families cared for the two children until their grandfather arrived from Georgia to take custody of the kids.
Both parents were released from jail on Sunday.