An 8-year-old boy has been arrested in Florida after he allegedly slashed a foster child's throat and threatened to kill others around him. Authorities responded to a call about a child reportedly attacking another child with a knife at a home in Clermont around 4:25 p.m. March 12. The incident had escalated from an earlier scuffle, leaving residents in fear for their lives.
Fox 35 reported the young suspect allegedly began attacking the victim in the garage earlier in the day by punching him in the stomach and jumping on him. The reported attack continued throughout the day with physical assault and choking. It culminated in the victim's throat allegedly being cut and deputies arriving to take the attacker away.
The victim thought he was safe.
The victim told police the boy allegedly began to choke him but stopped when he said he couldn't breathe, according to an affidavit obtained by FOX 35. The report stated that the victim tried to talk with the boy, who reportedly slashed his throat with a knife.
Fox News reported that a neighborhood friend got the knife away from the boy, but he became angry and allegedly asked for the knife back because he was going to "kill everyone."
The suspect reportedly attacked a deputy.
When deputies from Lake County Sheriff's Office arrived, the 8-year-old reportedly cried and yelled that he didn't want to be taken away. He allegedly tried to resist arrest and pulled away multiple times while deputies tried to put him in handcuffs, the affidavit read.
As a deputy attempted to put the child into a marked vehicle, he allegedly kicked the car and a master deputy.
Other children in the home were afraid of the little boy.
The arrest affidavit stated that this was reportedly not the boy's first violent encounter, and others in the home reported being uncomfortable with him.
"It should be noted, the Juvenile Defendant has a past history of violence at the residence and to others," the affidavit reads. "The foster children are in fear of the Juvenile Defendant."
As a result of the attack, the 13-year-old victim had a 3-inch laceration on his neck that did not appear life-threatening when deputies arrived, according to the New York Post. A parademic at the scene treated him, and he refused medical transport.
Deputies took the 8-year-old to jail.
Deputies took the juvenile suspect to Lake County Detention Center. He faces multiple charges, including aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, battery by strangulation, and aggravated assault, according to Fox News. Because he is a minor, he has not been identified.
Experts warn that minors commit violent crimes because they do not fear the penalty.
Fox News reported in October 2022 that violent crime among juveniles is on the rise in the United States, partly because younger people do not fear police or the consequences of their actions.
"The parents aren't taking care of things," Joseph Giacalone, an adjunct professor and the former commanding officer of the NYPD's Bronx Cold Case Squad, told Fox News Digital. "The schools aren't taking care of things, and then the police have to deal with them … and meanwhile they had no [child] rearing at home, no discipline at home and at school, and they want to know why kids are acting out."
According to Fox News, in 2021, 656 underage people were arrested in connection with murder and nonnegligent manslaughter in the US.
