🔴 Website 👉 https://u-s-news.com/
Telegram 👉 https://t.me/usnewscom_channel
OAN Staff Katherine Mosack and Brooke Mallory
5:00 PM – Wednesday, February 18, 2026
What began as a family trip to the Daytona 500 nearly ended in tragedy on Valentine’s Day when a 13-year-old boy was the victim of a brutal, unprovoked throat-slashing on the city’s boardwalk.
13-year-old Sullivan Clarke was reportedly walking back to his hotel with his parents at around 10:00 p.m. on Saturday when the assailant approached from behind. His mother, Lori Clarke, told FOX 35 that she noticed a man with a “strange look in his eyes” closing in on her son.
Initially, she feared it was a robbery, assuming the man was reaching for the cell phone Sullivan was holding to his ear.
Instead, the suspect — identified by police as 44-year-old Jermaine Long — swung a box cutter directly at the teenager’s neck. Sullivan’s parents further emphasized that the attack was completely out of the blue.
In a recovery that doctors are describing as “miraculous,” the 13-year-old boy credits a single, split-second head movement with saving his life. At the precise instant the attacker slashed at his throat on the Daytona Beach Boardwalk, Sullivan happened to look up — distracted by the dramatic launch of the nearby “Slingshot” amusement ride.
That instinctive glance shifted his neck just enough for the blade to strike the side rather than severing his windpipe or a major artery.
“The crazy thing is, I turned at the perfect time, because I was on the phone and I looked up at the slingshot, and that’s how he got the side of my neck and not right here,” he told Fox 35, gesturing to the center of his throat.
While the laceration was deep enough to require 13 stitches, Sullivan was able to walk away from an injury that likely would have been fatal had he remained still.
“It was crazy. I mean, I saw my son’s neck totally gashed open. I could see the meat in his neck. It was crazy,” said his father, Jerod Clarke.
Jerod recalled a doctor telling the family that his teen son survived by a millimeter, missing a major artery in the neck. He told Fox 35 that the family would “probably be having a different conversation” had the wound been only one millimeter deeper.
Shortly after the assault, authorities apprehended 44-year-old Long in connection with the attack. According to online public court records, he has been officially charged with a felony count of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon.
Speaking to ABC’s WPBF 25, Jerod and Lori Clarke shared their outrage upon learning that Long is a registered sex offender with a violent criminal history involving narcotics and multiple prior battery cases.
While many online users have categorized the unprovoked stabbing as a clear hate crime, investigators noted that they have not yet established a definitive motive for the attack.
Undeterred by the trauma or the 13 stitches now marking his neck, Sullivan’s resilience was on full display less than 24 hours later. According to WESH, the teenager refused to let the attack ruin his trip, insisting on attending the Daytona 500 as planned. After the race weekend concluded, the Clarke family returned to their Delray Beach home to focus on Sullivan’s continued healing.
🚨 13-YEAR-OLD SURVIVES VICIOUS SLASHING ATTACK IN FL
“IT CAME OUT OF NOWHERE.”
13-year-old Sullivan Clarke: “He came up behind me with a box cutter… I happened to be turning my head. He missed my throat.” pic.twitter.com/rVEI0qKEBE
— Laura Ingraham (@IngrahamAngle) February 19, 2026
Stay informed! Receive breaking news alerts directly to your inbox for free. Subscribe here. https://www.oann.com/alerts
What do YOU think? Click here to jump to the comments!
Sponsored Content Below