Investigators said an 11-year-old in Milton gained 20 pounds during about a month of hospital care.
MILTON, Fla. — A Milton couple faces felony child neglect charges after authorities said their 11-year-old son was hospitalized in December weighing 36 pounds, a case that investigators say grew into a wider inquiry into nutrition, medical care and conditions inside the family’s home.
Brandon Palmore, 40, and Shantell Palmore, 38, were arrested last week in Santa Rosa County on charges of child neglect causing great bodily harm. The case matters now because investigators say doctors found the boy’s condition was tied not to an untreated disease but to caregiver neglect, and because court records show the parents’ contact with the child is now being managed through a state child welfare plan.
According to the arrest report, the boy was admitted to Sacred Heart Hospital in early December for severe caloric malnourishment. That hospital admission triggered a criminal investigation involving the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office, the Department of Children and Families and the Child Protection Team. Deputies wrote that the child remained hospitalized for about a month and gained 20 pounds, reaching 56 pounds while receiving treatment and what doctors described as a normal diet adjusted only for confirmed allergies. Sheriff Bob Johnson later called the case “pretty troubling,” saying an 11-year-old boy weighed less than his 6-year-old sister.
Investigators said doctors identified two main areas of neglect: inadequate nutrition that led to failure to thrive, and medical neglect. In interviews on Dec. 8, the day after the child’s admission, both parents said they believed his low weight was caused by medical, psychological or genetic problems. Brandon Palmore told investigators he believed “there is something wrong with his body,” and said the boy always wanted to overeat. Shantell Palmore said the child had an “unhealthy obsession with food” and described a long list of supposed food allergies. But the report said testing did not support many of those claims. Doctors told investigators the boy passed tests for wheat, soybean, rice, oatmeal, corn and eggs. The report said he did have a nut allergy and mild, treatable eosinophilic esophagitis, or EoE.
The report said doctors ruled out several other possible causes, including thyroid dysfunction, celiac disease, Crohn’s disease, growth hormone deficiency and chronic kidney disease. Instead, investigators wrote, doctors found kidney problems, vitamin D deficiency, anemia and transaminitis tied to malnutrition. Hospital staff also said they did not observe the behavioral problems described by caregivers. After diagnostic testing, doctors concluded the child’s failure to thrive was “nonorganic in nature,” meaning it was not caused by an underlying disease, and deputies wrote that medical staff directly linked the condition to caregiver negligence. The report also described what investigators called a history of missed or rejected medical recommendations, including a March 2025 dispute over follow-up allergy testing after a doctor suspected the boy could tolerate wheat, soy and corn.
Deputies said the investigation widened after they interviewed the boy and his three sisters. The children described a home where, according to the report, the boy was treated differently from his siblings. He told investigators he was often kept in his room and could not go downstairs unless told he could. The pantry, he said, was locked. One sister told investigators there was a gate upstairs to keep him from leaving that area. Another said he cried for food from the gate but was not allowed to get any. Deputies also wrote that the boy was made to exercise until his arms and legs hurt and that one sister recalled him doing mountain climbers through the night. Another child said he sometimes had to stand in his room and was not allowed to sit down.
The report said the children described a camera used to watch him and punish him if he sat or lay down during the day. One sister said his bed had no sheets, blankets or pillow, and that unlike the other children, he had no toys or television in his room. Another said he was “hungry a lot” and at times ate expired bread, rice and beans. She also described an instance in which he allegedly ate toothpaste because he was hungry. The boy, who is homeschooled, told investigators he had been removed from school because of behavior problems. But a former teacher told deputies she filed at least two or three child welfare reports because he was always hungry and had stolen food, including chicken from a cafeteria trash can and Goldfish crackers from another child’s backpack.
Both parents were released from the Santa Rosa County Jail over the weekend after posting $10,000 bond each. Court records show their contact with the boy is to be managed by the Department of Children and Families under a case plan, though the report said the details of that plan were not yet clear. Their arraignment is scheduled for April 2 in Santa Rosa County. As of now, the criminal case centers on whether prosecutors can prove the boy’s condition and the home restrictions described by investigators amounted to neglect causing great bodily harm, while child welfare authorities continue to control the family’s contact with him.
Author note: Last updated March 11, 2026.