A 𝓈𝒽𝓸𝒸𝓀𝒾𝓃𝑔 video depicting two women violently tossing a five-month-old infant outside a Florida bar has led to their arrest on child 𝓪𝓫𝓾𝓼𝓮 charges, with newly released body camera footage revealing the chaotic confrontation and the child’s subsequent hospitalization with injuries.
The incident occurred just after midnight on September 14, 2023, outside the Coyote Ugly Saloon on Seabreeze Boulevard in Daytona Beach. Witnesses alerted police after observing the baby’s biological mother, 19-year-old Briana Lefo, and her girlfriend, 20-year-old Sierra Newell, allegedly drunk and handling the child with dangerous recklessness.
Security footage and witness cell phone videos obtained by authorities show the women passing the infant between them “like a toy.” Bystanders reported that Lefo then held the baby upside down by his ankles, swinging him aggressively over a concrete sidewalk.
When onlookers began recording and shouting for them to stop, Lefo allegedly approached one woman and struck her on the arm while still holding the child. Police were called to the scene at approximately 12:39 a.m. for a disturbance.
The newly released body camera footage captures the immediate aftermath. Officers arriving on scene found Lefo, Newell, and a crowd of upset witnesses. Lefo initially claimed they were merely “having fun” and that the baby was smiling.
“We were having fun with our baby,” Lefo is heard telling an officer in the footage. “I passed the baby to her… and these people… all of them just started surrounding us.”
Witnesses on scene provided a starkly different account, showing officers their videos and describing the alarming behavior. One witness told police that after they began filming, Lefo flipped the baby upside down and said, “Watch this.”
After reviewing the cell phone evidence, officers moved swiftly to detain Lefo. The footage shows the moment an officer informs her she is under arrest, citing the “totally reckless” behavior seen on video.
“She’s in handcuffs ‘cuz the way she’s bouncing that kid around upside down, throwing the kid around,” an officer states in the recording.
A critical witness statement then confirmed that Newell, seen sitting on the ground in a red shirt, was also actively involved in tossing the child. With that corroboration, officers placed Newell under arrest for child 𝓪𝓫𝓾𝓼𝓮 as well.
The subsequent priority was securing the infant’s safety. Despite pleas from a family member to take the child to a different hospital, officers called for an ambulance to transport him to Halifax Medical Center for evaluation.
“I want the child… from what I saw in that video,” an officer is heard saying. “Tossing it like a basketball… over concrete, flipping the child upside down hanging by his ankles.”
According to the arrest affidavit, the medical examination at Halifax revealed red marks on the baby’s back. X-rays also indicated a mark consistent with a possible broken arm. The Florida Department of Children and Families launched an immediate investigation.
Both Lefo and Newell were booked into the Volusia County Jail that night, each charged with child 𝓪𝓫𝓾𝓼𝓮. The legal proceedings that followed saw Briana Lefo ultimately plead no contest to charges of domestic violence battery and contributing to the dependency of a child.
Sierra Newell was bound over for trial on one count of child 𝓪𝓫𝓾𝓼𝓮. As of the latest available records, that case remains pending. The final disposition regarding the custody and welfare of the child involved is determined by the ongoing DCF investigation.
The disturbing episode, captured from multiple angles, underscores the critical role of bystander intervention and the swift response of law enforcement to secure a vulnerable infant from a perilous situation. The full body camera footage provides a raw, unfiltered look at the confrontation and the immediate consequences for the adults involved.