MADISON COUNTY, Fla. (WTXL) - A Madison man has been charged with child abuse after he led deputies on a chase with an unrestrained 3-year-old in the back seat while high on marijuana.
The Madison County Sheriff's Office reports that on Wednesday around 9:40 a.m., a deputy tried to stop a white Ford sedan on U.S. 90 near the intersection of State Road 6.
However, the driver of the sedan, Isiah Flowers, didn't stop and began to speed away. The deputy then activated his siren and pursed Flowers.
Again Flowers continued fleeing, turning south onto SE Arnett Avenue before stopping at a residence. Multiple deputies responded to the scene and took Flowers into custody.
As he was being taken into custody, deputies say Flowers admitted that his driver license was suspended and that he had just smoked marijuana before driving.
MCSO says a 3-year-old child was found uninjured, but unrestrained in the backseat of Flower's car. Flowers was also found to have active arrest warrants issued from Pinellas County for violation of probation on the original charges of possession of cocaine and possession of marijuana.
Deputies say the mother of the child came to pick up the toddler.
Flowers was transported to the Madison County Jail without further incident. He has been charged with child abuse, attempting to elude law enforcement officer with siren activated, operating a motor vehicle with a suspended driver license, and out-of-county violation of probation.
