 |
Bay News 9
Local Programming
On Demand
About
Community
Market Place
Services
Mother of feral girl: 'I love that baby, she's my life'
Danielle's biological mother denies that she ever neglected her child.
HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY (Bay News 9) -- Danielle is nine years old, but instead of learning long division and reading chapter books, she is learning how to eat, how to use the bathroom and how to communicate - things a baby learns.
The young girl is considered a "feral child," having lived the first six years of her life with little human contact.
Bay News 9 has teamed up with the St. Petersburg Times to share Danielle's story. Bay News 9 has interviewed her mother to learn her side of the story.
Danielle's story first came to light in July 2005, when the Department of Children and Families received a complaint about her mother.
Det. Mark Holste of the Plant City Police Department assisted on the call. He described what he found as the worst case of child abuse he'd ever seen.
"She was still wearing a diaper, she wasn't able to dress herself when I found her," he said. "She was covered from head to toe with insect bites, roach bites, flea bites, mosquito bites."
Police pictures show the filthy conditions in the house and the moldy mattresses Danielle slept on.
The Plant City police arrested Danielle's mother, Michelle Crocket, on charges of child neglect. However, she never served jail time. Instead, she took a plea deal and gave up custody.
Crockett still lives in Plant City. She denies that her daughter had been neglected, and says she is devastated that her daughter was taken away from her.
"They accused me of making her autistic - environmental - and that's a crock," Crockett said. "You cannot make a child autistic. You cannot make a child retarded."
In Crockett's mind, she did nothing wrong.
"The only thing I was guilty of was a dirty house, and it cost me my child," she said. "I love that baby. She's my life."
As for Danielle, she has a new life now, with a family who believes in her ability to recover. A Lee County family adopted her and moved out of Florida.
No one was sure if Danielle would find a family to take on her challenges, but it only took months for a family to find her, through the Heart Gallery of Tampa Bay.
They don't know if she will ever be able to talk, but for the first time in years, she smiles.
Child abuse resources
If you suspect a child is being abused:
Child Abuse Council
1-800-962-2873
If you need help with your child:
Crisis Center of Tampa Bay
813-234-1234
Be in the Know with Bay News 9 Now!
Get news, weather, and traffic alerts delivered directly to your computer desktop, e-mail, or cell phone with Bay News 9 Now.
- Subscribe for free!
More Bay Area Stories
- Florida fireworks law tough, though rarely enforced
- Two Bay area beaches closed due to bacteria
- Some don't have health insurance - by choice
- Check out July 4 events here
- Florida homebuyer loan program too late, other issues
- Progress Energy Florida rate hearings begin Monday
- Suspect a sinkhole? Here's what to do
- Worst of rain may be over, now flooding a concern
- Heavy thunderstorms dumping rain for third day in a row
Contact Bay News 9
- Story ideas for our Assignment Desk
- Comments on Bay News 9 or BayNews9.com
- Bay News 9 Now (our news alert system)
- Neighborhood News (tell us about your event)
Select the size text you want to use to view www.baynews9.com from the choices below.
Bay News 9's Partners
 |  |  |  |
Become An Asterisk Hunter!
At Bright House Networks, we prefer to keep things simple.So the next time you're looking for TV, home phone and Internet service with a 30-day, money-back guarantee, but without the fine print surprises, call
1-866-976-EASY.
Learn more at AsteriskHunters.com.
About Bright House Networks