Florida Mom Leaves Daughter Buried In Feces
Florida Mom Leaves Daughter Buried In Feces
On December 7, 2022, deputies from the Citrus County Sheriff’s Office descended upon a home with regards to a complaint of animal cruelty. The house, located at 15 Clifford Drive in Beverly Hills, Florida, was owned by 38-year-old Shannon Marie Morgan. However, when they arrived at the home at approximately 6:56 PM, they bore witness to what could only be described as something straight out of a horror film of the worst kind. The odor emanating from the home was so strong that the deputies could smell it standing out in the front yard. As soon as they entered the residence, a huge waft of ammonia from animal waste hit them in the face like a ton of bricks.
Now, I’m sure you can imagine it became quite difficult for them to breathe in. Even more troubling, Shannon resided in this mess with her young daughter. Upon scanning the home, deputies observed several glass tanks and cages in the living room that housed three snakes and approximately 20 rats. Most of these rats did not have water in their bottles, and their food bowls were full of bedding and waste. The same went for the snakes: their bowls were bone dry, and their cages were filthy. The living room was so unsanitary that there were swarms of flies circling their enclosures. And if that doesn’t make your skin crawl, the deputies observed an infestation of roaches and other insects both inside and outside of the cages—and no, they were not feeder roaches. I sincerely hope that the rats were able to catch some of them as a source of nutrition.
Unfortunately, for one rat, it was too late. Deputies claimed it had been there for some time due to the fact that the poor thing was completely buried in bedding and feces. What I’m sure the deputies failed to consider is the fact that rats are extremely social creatures: they mourn and bury their dead, and are known to quickly bury their companions. Now, as a person who’s previously kept pairs of rats for the better part of my adult life, I can attest to that fact.
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They made their way to the bedrooms and observed, unsurprisingly, that the roach and fly infestation was present there as well. In fact, the ceilings were completely covered in swarms of flies. In one room, the floor was littered with rubbish, dirty dishes, rotting food, and animal waste. In fact, the floor was so caked in feces that it had become slippery, and one of the deputies almost fell into it. There, they found a caged ferret and a dog. Fecal matter was piled up inside of their cages, and neither had food or water. The cage the dog was found in was far too small to accommodate him, and he was missing patches of his fur.
In another room, deputies found a familiar scene of squalor: empty drink cans and bottles littered the floor, as did a filthy mattress covered in grime and roaches. There were multiple cats within the room eating and dismembering a rat in a pool of blood. As there was no food or water for any of the animals that were being held captive, the cats were only doing what they could to survive. Inside this room, they found another prisoner: Shannon’s young daughter.
Deputies made their way to a separate room that was only accessible via the back door—this was Shannon’s bedroom. The mother opened the door for the deputies, and the odor from the ammonia was so horrendous that authorities were unable to enter. Instead, they stood in the doorway and peered inside. The bedroom housed hundreds of rats that were both caged and roaming freely. The rodents had completely taken over the bedroom; it was caked in feces. This wasn’t a normal rat infestation either—these were fancy rats that had escaped, chewed holes in the drywall, and reproduced inside of the walls.
Shannon stated that she was aware that it had gotten bad and claimed that she had contacted an exterminator the same day for assistance. Now, if this is true, one can only assume that the exterminator was the one who called the police. Shannon had not sought help prior from animal rescue groups; she just allowed her home to be overtaken by countless litters of fancy rats. Shannon stated that she didn’t currently live in the home due to the state it was in, but stopped by nightly to check on it. Due to the fact that the animals were living in squalor and they had no food or water, I have no idea what she possibly could have been checking on.
Shannon was arrested and she was read her Miranda rights, and then she refused to further speak with the deputies. According to the affidavit, the deputies spoke with Shannon’s daughter, who must have been dealing with trauma due to the living conditions on Clifford Drive. She stated that she hated living in the house and had gone to live with a friend due to the vile state of her home. Now, because of her age, the daughter has not been named publicly; an official document simply referred to her as “the victim.”
Think what you want, but to me, the next part is pretty gross, and there’s been conflicting information as to whether the statement came from Shannon or her daughter. She told the deputies that the squalor had caused her to become depressed, and that she wanted to sabotage the animals and kill them so that she didn’t have to deal with them anymore.
In all, seven cats, one dog, and one ferret were seized. After further investigation, three snakes and a portion of the rodents were removed. The Sheriff’s Department claimed they’d be back for all of the animals, but sadly, that’s not what happened. The hundreds of fancy rats that had taken over the home were killed after the house was tented and then fumigated. On December 20th, 2022, the Citrus County Sheriff’s Office and members of Code Enforcement demolished the home. Due to the house being labeled a biohazard, nothing inside could be salvaged. The whole ordeal was broadcast live on Facebook, where dead rats could be seen littering the ground.
Shannon was arrested and charged with 12 counts of animal cruelty and one count of neglect of a minor. Her bond was set at $26,000. As the Citrus County Sheriff’s Office doesn’t have a public inmate listing, it’s unclear whether or not Shannon has posted bail. It is also unknown if her daughter was placed in the care of relatives or is in foster care. We do hope that she is safe and cared for.
However, this was not Shannon’s first run-in with the law. On September 4th of the same year, she was arrested for felony drug possession with the intent to sell, and she was held on a $10,000 bond. Additionally, Shannon had defaulted on her mortgage, and the Sheriff’s Office had listed her house for sale as of July. Now, this doesn’t make her a bad person, but it makes you wonder how none of this was discovered sooner.
Sheriff Mike Prendergast issued the following statement regarding the incident: “Abuse of any kind should not be tolerated. The conditions of this residence and the animals in this case were so bad, Sheriff’s Office personnel were cautioned about making entry. Neither children nor animals should ever endure this style of environment. It is crucial that our citizens report any possible signs of child or animal neglect.”
We agree with Sheriff Prendergast 100%. If you see something, say something. It is up to us to keep an eye out for our most vulnerable—this includes all creatures, big and small.
