Police: ‘He is not my responsibility,' says stepfather of child found weighing 25 pounds

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — A second person was arrested in connection with a child abuse case in which the 5-year-old victim was found weighing just under 25 pounds.

Daytona Beach police said Brian Hall, 29, is married to the victim's mother, Naomi Hall, and did nothing to help the neglected child.

Naomi Hall was arrested last week.

Department of Children and Families investigators went to the Halls’ Daytona Beach home on June 28 where they found the 5-year-old boy lying on the living room floor.

They said the child was extremely thin, appeared to be dehydrated and was trying to eat cereal scraps from the carpet.

A report said the child’s hands and feet were orange-colored, and the victim had peeling skin and blisters.

Naomi Hall told the investigator she did not give her special-needs son his prescribed medications, and admitted that the he went without food for three to four days at a time, according to a report.

Hall also allegedly told the investigator that she made no attempt to feed the child.

The child, who could not speak or stand, was found to weigh 24.9 pounds, and was so underweight that he was not even on the growth chart.

Naomi Hall told the investigator she would know if the boy was hungry when he would try to “chew on his hands,” or by his facial expressions, since he was never taught to speak or communicate, police said.

The boy had never received any education and had never been taught how to speak or communicate, according to a report.

When asked about the child, Brian Hall told investigators, “He is not my responsibility. I’m not his father, I come from a rich and white family,” a report said.

According to the report, Brian Hall pointed to the two children living in the home who are his and said, “Those two are taken care of.”

He was arrested Tuesday on a charge of failure to report suspected child abuse or neglect.

DCF took custody of the other children.

The 5-year-old remains in the intensive care unit, where he is receiving physical and speech therapy.

Naomi Hall was arrested in June and has since bonded out of jail.

Naomi Hall was at the hearing to support her husband, but did not comment on the case.

Cox Media Group