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Written by: A. Smith
Published May 19, 2025 @ 1:45 PM ET
FLOYD COUNTY, Ga. – A Coosa couple was arrested March 13 on child cruelty charges after law enforcement and a building inspector found their home in deplorable condition, raising concerns for the health and safety of a 6-year-old child living there.
The investigation began after a school social worker expressed concerns about the living environment of the child, who has reportedly suffered from recurring head lice and worms. The social worker, who works with Coosa schools, met with officers at the residence on Smith Road and brought a box of food and snacks to leave for the family.
Floyd County police responded to the scene along with building inspector Charles Price. Upon arrival, they spoke with Christopher and Jessica Mantooth, the child’s parents, who live in the home with their daughter and their 18-year-old son. The parents allowed authorities to inspect the residence after being informed of the concerns.
Inside, officers found floors that were grimy and unstable throughout the house, particularly in the kitchen. The home was littered with overflowing trash bags—some hanging from cabinet handles—and food debris on countertops. The surfaces were coated in an unidentified brown substance. Roaches and gnats were present, and mold appeared to be forming in various areas, including under broken par-kay flooring.
A crock pot filled with what appeared to be a decaying, mold-covered meal was found on the kitchen floor. Nearby, a trash can smeared with a brown substance was overflowing. The kitchen walls and hallways were also stained.
Inspectors found that a bathroom allegedly out of use for five years contained a sink, toothbrushes, hair tools, and other recently used items. The room reeked of feces, and the toilet was filled with dried, decomposing waste. A hole in the bathroom cabinet exposed the interior of the structure to the front yard. The entire bathroom, like much of the house, was in severe disrepair.
The child’s bedroom, which she shares with her parents, had trash bags and debris throughout. Trash was found under the child’s bed along with used chewing tobacco cans and spit cups. The teenage son’s room, in contrast, was clean and organized.
The 6-year-old girl was asleep when officers arrived but woke up during the inspection. One officer radioed for additional assistance and contacted the Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS), who sent a caseworker to the scene. The caseworker arranged for the child to be temporarily placed with her great-grandmother under a safety plan.
During the investigation, the teenage son—who was on his way to school—spoke with officers by phone. He said he was preparing to move out due to the living conditions but didn’t want to leave his sister behind. He confirmed the house had long been in that state, with rare instances of it being cleaned before deteriorating again. He also noted that while food was available, meals were often prepared very late or left out unfinished.
Christopher and Jessica Mantooth were arrested at the scene after their daughter was safely placed with a relative. Both were charged with Cruelty to Children and taken into custody without incident.
DFCS continues to investigate the family’s situation in coordination with law enforcement.
Officer’s Narrative:
[Please note: The following is a direct transcription from the official initial incident report. The Georgia Gazette does not fix any spelling or grammatical errors that may exist. Any changes or redactions made by our staff are placed inside brackets. Some errors may exist. All subjects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. The topics discussed may be sensitive to some readers. Discretion is advised.]
On 3/13/2025, I responded, along with building inspector Charles Price, to the address of [100 BLOCK] Smith Rd in reference a concern from Coosa school social worker, [WITNESS #1]. The concern was for the living condition within the residence as a 6 year old child, [VICTIM #1] lives inside. [VICTIM #1] lives with her parents, Christopher and Jessica Mantooth and 18yr old brother [WITNESS #2]. According to the school, [VICTIM #1] gets sick often with worms and head lice. [WITNESS #1] was also concerned about the family not having enough food in the home and was present at the home when we arrived. [WITNESS #1] provided a box of different foods and other snacks, placed it on the porch and left.
I was able to make contact with C. Mantooth first and explained the reason for my visit. I advised there was concern from the school that the home might not be a healthy place for [VICTIM #1] since she’s been out of school several times for the head lice and worms. I requested he allow me to walk through the home to make an assessment. C. Mantooth went inside to get his wife J. Mantooth for me to explain the situation. Price also spoke with them about the condition of the home in regards to stability, maintenance and safety. The parents advised me that DFCS had come out about a month earlier but nothing else happened. I advised I have nothing to do with DFCS at this time and am not acting on their behalf. The parent allowed me to come inside after telling me that it was a mess.
Upon entry to the home, I could see a fireplace directly in front of me, the kitchen to the left and living room to the right. The floors were unstable in areas all through the house as they were in the kitchen. The floors were grimy, there were full, open and overflowing trash bags on the floor drawing gnats and roaches, grocery bags of trash hanging from cabinet pulls with trash inside, trash on the floor, dirty and grimy counter tops completely covered with opened and closed boxes of food, insect spray, cleaning bottles covered in an unknown brown substance and other food and debris, unsure how old. The stove had dirty pans with old food residue on them. To the left of the stove was a cart with food and dirty dishes on it and trash underneath. The floors were almost black in this area, with pieces of the par-kay flooring broken up and detached from the sub-floor appearing that it is due to mold and grimy substances. There was an overflowing trash can in the corner between the food cart and the cabinets, which had some sort of dirty brown substance dripping and smeared on it.
In the floor next to the trash can was a crock pot almost completely filled with something unknown to it’s original state. It would appear that there may have been a meal that had been cooked in it at some point in the past and left on the floor; It appeared to have a thick layer of mold and other things growing in it and on it. The walls within the kitchen and hallway leading to a bathroom, bedroom and outside door had a brown substance covering it as well. The first room on the right, just outside the kitchen was the bathroom that I had been advised has been out of order for the entire time the family has lived there, which I was told was five years. C. Mantooth advised me that he has told his adult son, [WITNESS #2], not o use it, but he thinks he still does on occasion. I opened the door and was greeted with strong odor of feces. The vanity sink was dark brown, but from the looks of it, I wasn’t sure if it was naturally brown or from something else.
The bathroom is allegedly unused, but there were toothbrushes, dental picks, a bottle of mousse, a hairbrush, comb an electric hair tool on the sink, all of which appeared to be used recently. Again, the walls and cabinets were the same as in the kitchen and remainder of the home. The floors were dirty and there was a broken cabinet door exposing a hole in the structure of the house so that you could see outside into the front yard. The tub/shower was dirty as well. The toilet bowl was filled with feces that appeared it had been there long enough to take on a different consistency. The whole inside of the bowl was covered completely with dried on feces, the toilet seat was covered in a brown substance I can only imagine is dirt and feces. There was a small trash can next to the toilet full of what appeared to be old and recently used toilet paper.
[WITNESS #2] (teenager) has his own room, which I observed to be quite clean and tidy. The parents share a bedroom with [VICTIM #1], however [VICTIM #1] does have her own bed. Their bedroom contained numerous full and overflowing, trash filled bags in multiple areas of the room. There was trash and debris all over the floor and underneath [VICTIM #1]’s bed. There were hand fulls of old dip cans laying around, on the floor and on furniture along with full spit cups. [VICTIM #1] was present and asleep when we arrived, but woke up soon after. I requested, via radio, for Pfc. Shelly to assist me at this residence. I stepped outside to contact DFCS and notify them of the conditions and that the parents would be going to jail for Cruelty to Children. During my conversations with the parents, they could never really provide a valid reason why they allowed their family to live in these conditions and had a nonchalant demeanor about the situation.
I was able to talk via phone with the teenage son, who was en route to school, in regards to the situation. He advised me that he’s tired of living in the conditions and is about to move out, but didn’t want his sister to be left there. I asked if the conditions were always like that, he said. I asked were there times over the years that it would get cleaned and would he ever help them, he advised me yes, but then it would go back to the way it is. I advised that there’s no lack of food in the home so it appears there is no issue with getting fed, he said yes, but his parents would wait until 10pm to even start cooking and then just leave it. I asked him if either parent has any depression going on or other issues that might lead to them living like this, to which he responded with no.
DFCS sent their caseworker who contact C. Mantooth’s grandmother, [REDACTED] to take [VICTIM #1] per safety plan. As soon as DFCS arrived, I explained to the parents that they would be going to jail and [VICTIM #1] would be staying with [REDACTED] for the time being. DFCS explained their part in this process. I waited until the child and great-grandmother left then Pfc. Shelly and I placed both parents in handcuffs. I completed a pat down of J. Mantooth and placed her in the backseat of Pfc. Shelly’s patrol vehicle for transport.
[End of Narrative]