A Florida mother who allowed her boyfriend to repeatedly beat and torture her 5-year-old son, handcuff him for nearly a day and place him inside a dog cage will now spend decades in prison.
Taylor Schaefer, 30, pleaded no contest to multiple charges, including aggravated child abuse, conspiracy to commit child neglect with great bodily harm and failure to report child abuse, according to the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office. A judge sentenced her to 60 years in prison.
The case began in May 2023 when Schaefer said she had a “gut feeling” that her live-in boyfriend, 35-year-old Shawn M. Stone, was abusing her then 5-year-old son. She reviewed surveillance footage inside the home, which confirmed her suspicions, and then contacted police.
However, investigators later discovered she failed to tell authorities that she had been present in the home during much of the abuse and did nothing to stop it or report it.
“On several occasions the boy was visibly injured and limping in her presence, but received no care or medical attention. Video showed he was not only beaten, but repeatedly left with his hands bound behind his back for hours at a time,” deputies wrote. “The victim was also tied up, placed in a dog cage and often punished via deprivation of food.”
Stone is charged with aggravated child abuse, false imprisonment and child neglect causing great bodily harm. His case is still ongoing, and he remains in the Volusia County Jail without bond. He was arrested on May 9, 2023, after allegedly beating the boy with a mop handle, punching and kicking him before fleeing from deputies on a four-wheeler.
Police later collected surveillance footage from inside the home.
Authorities said the footage showed the boy with his hands tied behind his back for hours at a time in the days before Stone’s arrest.
In one incident, investigators said the child’s hands were bound behind his back from 6:43 p.m. through the night until 2:02 p.m. the following day.
“On another occasion, his legs, feet, arms and torso were bound for at least an hour while Stone stood over him,” deputies said.
Other video reportedly showed Stone yelling at and kicking the already bruised and injured child, according to the sheriff’s office. Schaefer could be seen entering the scene and telling the boy to stand up straight. Investigators said the sounds of abuse echoed throughout the home.
Deputies said the 5-year-old suffered dozens of injuries. Doctors reported that at least 46 of the injuries were visible. The child also sustained internal injuries, including a fractured skull.
Authorities also identified two additional victims in the home. One child was allegedly forced to ingest scalding hot liquid.
“It was also determined that another child in the home was forced to drink boiling water, sprayed with boiling water, and beaten with several household objects,” law enforcement said. “That child also witnessed the brutal abuse inflicted on the younger victim.”
Investigators said a third child in the home also did not receive proper nutrition or care for a serious medical condition.
All of the children were removed from the home and placed in what deputies described as a safe environment.
Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood shared a GoFundMe campaign to help support the children.
“The torture these kids endured is hard to imagine,” he said. “The good news is they’re in safe hands now, and their scumbag abusers will have to answer for what they did.”
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