Deputy's Son Allegedly Said Parents Kept Him Out Of School And Abused Him

A Florida sheriff’s deputy and his wife were arrested Saturday and accused of abusing their children after their son reportedly showed photographic evidence of his injuries to authorities.

Escambia County sheriff’s Deputy Christopher George Turney, 40, who was fired, and Leandra Childers Turney, 39, were charged with child neglect without great bodily harm and two counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor by failing to require school attendance, according to court records reviewed by HuffPost. The father also faces a charge of cruelty toward children.

The sheriff’s office confirmed with HuffPost that Christopher Turney had been a deputy for a little over two years and was terminated after his arrest.

Investigators said that Turney’s son, whose age was redacted from paperwork, walked to a church on July 28 and told a pastor that his father had been “physically abusive” and had punched him in the face, causing bruising around the eye, according to an arrest warrant obtained by HuffPost.

The child “was fearful of telling his story because he thought ‘no one would believe me because [Turney] is a cop,’” the warrant said. He told authorities that Christopher Turney had also called him names belittling him as an adoptee.

The child also gave detectives photographs of bruising and skin irritation that he said was caused by his father, according to the warrant.

The warrant said the couple had adopted the child in 2017 and since then he had not attended school or received a formal education, authorities said. The boy allegedly also told authorities that he was forced to give his father money he made mowing lawns.

Deputies also reported that they spoke to another of the Turneys’ children, who was reportedly born in