A Homestead mother and her 19-year-old son are facing felony child abuse charges after an 8-year-old girl reported that she had been hit with a belt and bound with shoelaces at home. Rebecca Bouie, 37, and Jamaury Elijah Benoit were arrested Monday, September 14, according to police.
The girl reported that her mother and Benoit struck her with a belt on her arms, legs and abdomen, and that Benoit bound her wrists and ankles together with shoelaces and left her tied up for at least an hour, according to an arrest report cited by WPLG Local 10. Police say the child had multiple healed, patterned markings on her arms, legs and abdomen consistent with belt strikes.
The case carries an added layer of legal exposure because Benoit had already been arrested in January for child abuse involving the same victim, the outlet reports. That prior case resulted in a non-expiring stay-away order barring Benoit from contacting the girl — an order police say Bouie violated by allowing him back into the home where the child lived.
Charges Stack Up for Mother and Son
Benoit faces a felony charge of aggravated child abuse or torture with great bodily harm, along with a misdemeanor charge for violating the domestic violence injunction, per the same report. Bouie faces two felony counts — child abuse with no great bodily harm and child neglect with no great bodily harm — for allegedly permitting Benoit back into the home despite the standing no-contact order.
Under Florida Statute 827.03, aggravated child abuse is a first-degree felony that can bring up to 30 years in state prison, 30 years of probation and a $10,000 fine, and it carries a mandatory minimum of 48 months under the state's Criminal Punishment Code, according to Richard Hornsby. The charge covers torturing, maliciously punishing or causing great bodily harm to a child.
Bouie's two felony counts are each third-degree felonies under Florida Statute 827.03(2)(c) and (d), each punishable by up to five years in prison, five years of probation and a $5,000 fine, per the Law Office of Leanna J. Smith. Child neglect under that statute involves a caregiver's failure to provide necessary care or protect a minor from abuse.
Injunction Violation Adds to Benoit's Exposure
Benoit's misdemeanor charge stems from Florida Statute 741.31, which addresses willful violations of domestic violence injunctions, including proximity and contact restrictions, and makes such a violation a first-degree misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail, one year of probation and a $1,000 fine, according to the Law Offices of Jack Kaleita. The statute provides the legal basis for the misdemeanor charge.
The girl disclosed the alleged abuse at school. Under Florida Statute 39.201, teachers and school administrators are required to report any known or suspected child abuse to the Florida Abuse Hotline immediately, and mandatory reporters in professional roles must give their names when filing those reports, according to Hornsby. Knowingly failing to make that report is itself a third-degree felony under Florida Statute 39.205, punishable by up to five years in prison.
Bouie was released on a $5,000 bond, while Benoit's bond has yet to be set, WPLG Local 10 reports. Both were held at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center, which is operated by the Miami-Dade Corrections and Rehabilitation Department, according to Local 10 News.
Part of a Pattern of Cases Out of Homestead
This case adds to a string of child abuse cases Homestead police have pursued in recent months. In a case from May, officers arrested a middle school Bible teacher at First United Methodist Christian School after parents reported their child's mouth had been taped shut during a classroom dispute. In October 2025, a preschool teacher at Smart Start Preschool was arrested after allegedly grabbing and throwing a 3-year-old by the arm.
The article also discusses child welfare in Miami-Dade County and Florida.
Regionally, the article also discusses child welfare in Miami-Dade County and Florida.
