A 20-year-old Marion County woman was arrested Sunday after investigators said she admitted to striking a young child out of anger, leaving the child strapped in a car seat while unsupervised and giving the child melatonin despite knowing it was unsafe.
Emily Marie Silva was arrested Oct. 5 on felony charges of child abuse without great bodily harm and child neglect without great bodily harm, according to a Marion County Sheriff’s Office arrest affidavit. The investigation began Sept. 23 after a deputy responded to assist a Florida Department of Children and Families investigator looking into allegations involving Silva and a young child.
According to the affidavit, Silva was accused of putting the child in a car seat when she did not want to supervise him and giving him melatonin to make him sleep. Investigators also said harmful substances were allegedly left within the child’s reach.
Silva’s sister told investigators she had seen Silva strike the child out of anger and leave him buckled in his car seat while she left the home. The child was reportedly observed with bruises, scrapes and scars and was described as having poor hygiene.
The child was later evaluated at Kimberley’s Child Advocacy Center. According to the affidavit, investigators reviewed findings showing numerous injuries that specialists said could not be explained outside of suspected abuse or neglect. The report also alleges Silva admitted intentionally striking the child on the leg with a rope during an earlier incident in Davenport, leaving a permanent scar.
A medical provider who evaluated the child concluded that the non-verbal, developmentally delayed child was suffering from physical abuse and neglect, according to the affidavit. Injuries were reportedly documented on several areas of the child’s body, including the ears, thighs, scalp, hand and back. Investigators also said the child had not received regular medical care and was months overdue for a medical examination.
When investigators interviewed Silva on Oct. 5, she allegedly admitted striking the child out of anger on a regular basis and acknowledged giving the child melatonin because he would otherwise remain awake until about 4 a.m. She also allegedly admitted leaving the child strapped in a car seat inside the home when she did not want to attend to him.
According to the affidavit, Silva told investigators she had difficulty controlling her anger and believed an unmedicated bipolar disorder diagnosis may have contributed to her behavior. She also reportedly acknowledged the child was overdue for medical treatment.
Silva’s sister separately told investigators she had witnessed Silva violently hurt the child on multiple occasions in recent weeks, including an incident in which Silva allegedly “beat” the child and threw him to the ground in anger. She also described returning from grocery shopping on one occasion to find the child alone in the home and still strapped into a car seat.
Silva was taken into custody and transported to the Marion County Jail.
Investigators concluded the alleged abuse and neglect had occurred over time and across multiple jurisdictions. The child was taken into protective custody, and the affidavit states the child’s shelter location was being withheld.
