Five years ago Nicolas Carter and his wife were arrested and charged with felony child neglect after authorities got complaints about the couple’s Espanola home. The couple was living with five young children in conditions lamentable beyond description. Both parents pleaded and were sentenced to a probationary diversionary program that they followed, enabling the felony charges they’d faced to be dropped when they completed the program two years ago.
On Friday, Carter was arrested again on a similar charge, felony child neglect, and a misdemeanor charge of obstruction after one of his children–a toddler who was apparently born after the incident four years ago–wandered into the car of a grocery-delivery person then walked back and forth across the street between 7 and 12 Barley Lane for about 10 minutes, unattended by anyone before disappearing into the garage at 7 Barley. The delivery person had tried to find out from the child anything about home or parents, without success. She called 911 and left.
Deputies have responded to the house at 7 Barley Lane 16 times just since January 2023. That April deputies found a child Carter was responsible for wandering in the road. A few days after last Christmas paramedics responded to the house because one of the children was having a seizure after accidentally ingesting marijuana that had been apparently left unattended.
When a Flagler County Sheriff’s deputy arrived at the house, he could see a shirtless juvenile walking inside, through the windows, before Carter opened the front door. Carter acknowledged that his 2 year old had been wandering outside, and that he’d left the garage door open while he went somewhere else in the house. But he said he’d “found” the child in the driveway, and that he couldn’t have been gone but five minutes. He was one of five children he was responsible for, he said. His wife was at work. (At the time of their arrest four years ago, both worked at McDonald’s.) A 28-year-old man shares the house with the couple.
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A deputy familiar with Carter’s history asked to walk inside and have a look. Carter granted permission, according to his arrest report. The deputy found conditions similar to those that had been uncovered at the Espanola house–stagnant air, foul odors, including of feces and urine, mold, a sticky substance near a sliding door that Carter could not be sure about. Maybe urine, maybe oil, he said. A large German shepherd wandered around inside, as did a barefoot 4-year-old girl. The deputy described the interiors as “unsafe and horrid living conditions.”
The garage had several power tools, exposed wire, a BB gun and a metal smoking pipe typically used to smoke pot. Deputies called Carter’s wife and the Department of Children and Families. The BB gun was seized.
A neighbor reported to FlaglerLive: “That’s not the first time we’ve seen little ones running around unsupervised. Last year [a neighbor] picked up a toddler (white) that was in her backyard and walked her back to that disgusting house. The toddler was filthy and only had a soggy diaper on. We called FCSO on them but I guess since the police didn’t see it no one was charged.
“Hopefully, this time DCF will take serious action to turn the homelife around for these children, the least of which is to learn how to be a parent and clean up his house,” Sheriff Rick Staly said in a release. “I also thank the citizen that ‘saw something and said something’ so deputies could intervene.”
Joe D says
As a retired Child Psychiatric Nurse Therapist and Certified Nurse Case Manager , I can tell you this is not an isolated case!
This neglect and potentially ABUSE happens repeatedly, and affects the physical and developmental status of the children for YEARS, if not lifelong psychological damage. Thank God the neighbors kept calling when the situation repeated itself.
Unfortunately, Child welfare personnel have to make sure they can either witness or document the abuse BEFORE any removal of the affected children is allowed by law. Then the courts mandate a PLAN for the REUNIFICATION of the children with the parents, which establishes a timeframe and SPECIFICS the parents have to complete, before the children are returned (that’s IF the courts and the attorneys agree there is ENOUGH DOCUMENTATION of the neglect to begin with)! Assistance resources are SEVERELY LIMITED due to the lack of funding…but spending on Pickleball courts , golf courses, and multimillion dollar Sports Complex plans take priority…SHAME on ALL of us that turn a blind eye, and look the other way!
I cannot tell you number of times as a Mobile Treatment Therapist, I walked out of a courthouse in tears, after a removal/ placement hearing with the parents offered MULTIPLE government and private services…with them PROMISING to “do better,” and I KNOW within 3 months the children will be back in a similar situation (or WORSE). I’ve had more than one former client KILLED by their caregiver.
Illegal Drugs, Alcohol abuse and typically parental mental health issues cause this scenario to be repeated over and over, not only in Flagler County, but across the nation.
So incredibly SAD for all involved, including neighbors and teachers watching it unfold!
Greed over people says
Some people shouldn’t be parents. Amazing how impoverished 2 McDonalds workers are. Company made 15,000,000,000 in profits last year alone but can’t pay their workers livable wages. Thank a republican for blocking minimum wage increases for the last 2+ decades. With the gop forced births policies you can expect more of this I imagine.
Joe D says
Reply to Greed over people:
My thoughts are not that both parents are working for low wages at MacDonalds, but are they both working 40 hours? And what are their salaries being spent on. But then again MINIMUM WAGE isn’t designed to adequately support 5 children, and 2 adults
There seem to be multiple factors AND CHOICES involved in developing this terrible scenario not once, but TWICE!
Al says
Don’t show your ignorance by making this a political issue. Minimum wage jobs are not meant to support a family to a “middle class” lifestyle – education, training , skillset are the routes to a higher life standard. This story is an example of people who lack the ability to help themselves ( whether it be mental illness, their upbringing etc ). Minimum wage jobs have little to do with cleaning up your kitchen and waste….. however, mental and emotional issues do.
Sue says
There is no excuse for keeping a house like that except laziness!!! Poor animals and the children to live like that disgusting. I would say child services need to get act together and stay on this case!!
Dianne Van Ingen says
There is absolutely no excuse for being lazy and living in filth…clean the house..period especially if children live there…it’s laziness and it’s gross on these parents.
Unreal says
But LGBTQ people are bad parents just because they’re LGBTQ. Not that they can’t be shit people, all people can be shit people but these people are allowed to parent because they’re straight? Makes no sense.
Just Disgusted says
This has NOTHING to do with McDonald’s pay wage or Republicans. It has to do with two adults having five children with priorities other than their children. McDonald’s did not stop them from cleaning their house or providing a safe environment for their children nor did Republicans stop them from cleaning their house and providing a safe environment for their children. The first time this happened was five years ago if the conditions were similar then the first time should have been the last time not to mention the article says the house was visited 16 times since January 2023…. WTF. Unfortunately what needs to happen is all five of those children should be REMOVED immediately and BOTH parents need to go to jail PERIOD. The father said he couldn’t have been gone from the garage more than five minutes??? Does anyone remember poor little Levi (Rodeo family) he was driving around his property in his little jeep his mom went inside for a second and the little boy went into the lake, it only takes a second.
No social services says
So the kids will be sent to foster care which is grossly underfunded and ripe with abuse. Problem solved right?
Peaches McGee says
First, sterilize the parents.
Second, intensive 6 month training in keeping and maintaining a proper, safe, and nurturing home.
Third, if no compliance then adopt the children out. There are plenty of loving homes for these children.
Sally says
Maybe they shouldn’t have just been given probation the first time, because now their repeat offenders. Sometimes it isn’t always good for the child to stay with their parents. And this appears to be that situation.
Charles says
What a low life. I hope both parents are once and for all charged with a felony. No more breaks it isn’t fair to those children.
Land of no turn signals says says
Why not have a bunch of kids? the Government will pay for hospital bills,food housing and soon drugs.Lockem up asap.
Jack Howell says
I was a child abuse investigator for the Division of Children and Family Services (2004). I was disgusted by the amount of bureaucratic red tape I had to deal with before a child could be placed into protective custody. Too many lawyers and politicians are involved, which hampers child welfare protection. I left DCF as I did not see any real support for the child and removing them from harm’s way.
Pat V says
The worst breed the most…5 kids working at McDonalds omg. Birth control should be free.
Mary Fusco says
Pat, do you think people to lazy to pick up shit and rotting food are going to take birth control? Besides, the kids are their meal ticket. They are the lowest form of life. The children suffer and hard working taxpayers continue to foot the bill. As for McDonald’s wages, normal people base their lifestyle on their salary. It is not their employer’s job to pay them for the lifestyle they want.
Atwp says
Making minimum wage is no excuse for child neglect. No excuse for a dirty house. My wife and I had 4 children, no child neglect, she kept the house pretty clean our children had their needs met, wasn’t easy but thank God we did a pretty good job. Not easy but necessary. Having an extended family was great.
Sick of It says
A dear friend of mine volunteers as a Guardian Ad Litem in the Tampa area and has been working for TWO years to get parental rights terminated for a child she represents. I won’t even go into the details but I just do NOT understand how unfit parents keep getting more chances. It’s sickening. The child she represents was born with a mental incapacity thanks to mom’s drug use, there is another older child involved, and they suspect mom is pregnant again because she keeps skipping appointments and is a no show for video visits.
Yet the state of Flori-DUH in all its wisdom keeps delaying the termination of rights even though the child’s foster family is waiting to legally adopt and keep her.
I’ve had enough. I really wish I could leave and move elsewhere (but for the care of an elderly parents with dementia). As prior military we’ve lived in multiple states all over the U.S. and I swear this one has gone down the toilet in the 13 years I’ve been here. Somebody needs to start taking care of the children!