Mother arrested after children and animals abused

Public Information Officer Debra Johnson told local reporters with Historic City News that a Florida Department of Children and Family Services investigator took custody of three children and had their 33 year-old mother arrested yesterday after she was charged with child abuse and animal cruelty.

Theresa Martone was arrested late Sunday afternoon at her residence located at 18 Reed Place in Palm Coast after deputies were called to the home, which Sheriff Don Fleming described as “deplorable”.

Once on the scene, Flagler County deputies reported a stench so pungent that it was noticeable outside the home. When they entered the residence, they found themselves surrounded by garbage and animal feces.

The Martone children, ages 5, 8 and 14 years old, have been living in filth inside the Palm Coast home for the past three months, according to the incident report. The youngest child told deputies that she had not bathed in several days — possibly weeks.

“These children were living in deplorable conditions,” said Flagler County Sheriff Donald W. Fleming. “This mother should have reached out for help before the situation became this desperate.”

An investigator with Flagler County Animal Control Services removed six dogs, 22 cats, two ferrets and a rabbit from the residence.

As of Monday, Martone is still being held, without bond, in the Flagler County Inmate Facility; charged with three counts of child abuse and 30 counts of animal cruelty.