Officers Allegedly Jail Son, 3, for Potty Problems

Florida dad reportedly claimed an investigation into the incident was 'insane'
By Arden Dier,  Newser Staff
Posted Jun 29, 2023 4:20 PM CDT
Officers Allegedly Jail Son, 3, for Potty Problems
The boy, 3, was reportedly jailed on successive days.   (Getty Images/7713Photography)

Two Florida police officers reportedly thought the proper way to respond to their toddler's potty-training problems was to handcuff the boy and put him in jail. Daytona Beach Shores Department of Public Safety launched an internal investigation following the October incident involving Lt. Michael Schoenbrod and Det. Sgt. Jessica Long, as the Daytona Beach News-Journal reports, via HuffPost. But the results of that investigation haven't been released, so it's unclear if the officers faced any discipline beyond what the outlet reports was 20 hours of unpaid leave last month.

The Department of Children and Families also investigated, per WNDB. When questioned by a caseworker, Schoenbrod said it was an "effective" strategy he'd used on another son, then 4, almost a decade earlier after the boy hit a child in preschool, per HuffPost. "He was crying and everything, and to this day, if you mention, like, that incident, he's just like, 'I would never do that again,'" Schoenbrod said. In the more recent incident, the officer said his 3-year-old was also left in tears, which had been the goal. "I was getting the response I expected from him," he told a Volusia County sheriff's deputy, according to body camera footage.

The boy, who'd apparently defecated in his pants, was jailed on Oct. 5. He was brought back to the facility the following day, then handcuffed and jailed again, per the News-Journal. Afterward, he promised to "never again poop his pants," Schoenbrod said. The state attorney's office reportedly filed a lawsuit against the couple in March, though the contents are sealed, per the Daily Mail. The outlet reports the couple filed a countersuit against State Attorney RJ Larizza last month. In footage, Schoenbrod reportedly said it was "insane" to investigate the incident. "It's just disgusting that somebody would drag our family through the mud like this," he said. (More police officers stories.)

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