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Background: News footage of the Subway sandwich shop in Jacksonville, Fla. (WJAX). Inset: James Anthony Morris Jr. (Jacksonville Sheriff”s Office).
In a surprising development, a Florida man will not face prison time despite locking a young girl in a room at a Subway restaurant. James Anthony Morris Jr., aged 34, has pled guilty to charges of child abuse related to an incident that occurred on July 21, 2025.
Morris, who was managing the Jacksonville Subway at the time, faced accusations of falsely imprisoning a child under the age of 13. The incident unfolded when a customer’s 10-year-old daughter inadvertently walked over a freshly cleaned floor area. At her mother’s prompting, the girl attempted to apologize to Morris, who then seized her and confined her in a back room.
The girl’s mother initially believed Morris was joking. However, her concern turned serious when she approached the door, only for Morris to forcibly shut it with her daughter inside. A struggle ensued as the mother tried to retrieve her child, who remained locked in for about two minutes. The frightened girl later recounted to police that she feared she was being kidnapped.
During those tense moments, Morris reportedly berated the girl, disparaging her parents as “trash and terrible people.” The incident, though resolved without incarceration for Morris, underscores the gravity of his actions and the lasting impact on those involved.
While she was locked in, Morris ranted at the girl, telling her that her parents were “trash and terrible people.”
The mother was eventually able to get her daughter out of the room and called the police.
Morris refused to speak with police, who arrested him at the Subway restaurant, though he bonded out of jail shortly after.
On April 30, Morris pleaded guilty to one count of child abuse. He was sentenced to two days in jail, but received credit for time served, leaving him with no further jail time. He was also sentenced to three years’ probation and ordered to stay away from the victim and her mother. According to online court records, Morris was also ordered to undergo a mental evaluation and a substance abuse evaluation. He was ordered to pay $769 in court fees.