Child Injury Lawyer Blog
By David Wolf, Attorney
Published by Child Injury Lawyer Network
In McCormick, South Carolina, a family and community are mourning the tragic and most unexpected death of a 9 year old girl. It was reported that Kristen Dutton was attacked by an Akita dog that was purchased just three weeks before the incident by the girl’s grandfather. The Japanese Akita was quite a large dog and weighed in at 98 pounds. The dog bit the girl in the neck and she died from these dog bite related personal injuries at a local hospital. The incident took place outside when Kristen was alone with the dog. It was reported that the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control would pick up the dog to euthanize it. See South Carolina Girl Killed by Dog at Grandfather’s Home.
In Norfolk, Virginia, a church day care director was arrested and is being prosecuted for the death of a 7 week old child (Dylan Cummings) who died while under the care of Little Eagles Day Care Center which is a day care center affiliated with Bethel Temple Church of Deliverance. The director and another employee are being charged with child neglect. Attorneys for the day care director and the employee report that the Defendants cared for the child in a nursery and truly cared for and loved the child enrolled in the day care center. Prosecutors paint a different picture of a day care center that did not follow regulations and that placed children in a crib in a windowless closet. It is expected that the case will focus, in part, on medical issues involving the cause and preventability of the child’s death. It was reported that Dylan died of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). The prosecutor will argue that the child was unsupervised for 2 1/2 hours and that he was allowed to sleep on his stomach which puts an infant at risk for 
When transporting children, it is important for school districts and school bus drivers to maintain control and order on the school bus. Because of the dangers and risks involved with transporting children, most school districts have written policies and procedures in place that school bus drivers and attendants must follow in order to promote the ongoing safety of the children on the bus and others on the roadway. When there is a problem with a school bus driver or transportation to or from a school, a parent should address the issue with the school administration and transportation department. In addition, a parent should review the policies and procedures in place for a school district to find out what the procedures are and if the procedures were followed. Of course, if there is a serious personal injury to a child that took place as a result of the negligence of the driver or other school employee, a 
KCBS News (San Francisco) has reported that a man has been arrested on charges of child molestation at a San jose day care center. Campos Day Care Center is located on Chatsworth Place and may have been the site of lewd acts committed on a child at the day care center. Police are concerned that there may be more victims of abuse by Primitivo Campos – age 60. There is a hotline to call with any information regarding abuse at the day care center. Call Silicon Valley Crime Stoppers Tip Line at (408) 947-7867 or Santa Clara Child Exploitation Detail at (408) 277-4102. See 
In the Winter months, it is very dangerous and risky to leave a small child unattended in a vehicle. In States like Wisconsin, Minnesota, Illinois, and other cold weather states, Winter brings the risks associated with hypothermia. In some instances, a child can die from the effects and complications from hypothermia. Because of these risks as well as the risks of abduction, strangulation, and other dangers of being left alone in a car, it can be a crime to leave a child unattended in a vehicle. It was recently reported that a 21 month old was found locked in a car in Green Bay, Wisconsin outside of a bar. Fortunately, the child was found by law enforcement and did not suffer any serious or permanent injuries from being left unattended in the vehicle. Of course, with more time and other complications, the situation could have been deadly for this child. You can read more about this story at 
Day care operators and employees have a duty to properly supervise the children under their care. At times, children hurt each other and without consistent and timely intervention – serious injuries can occur. A disturbing incident took place at the Kidology Day Care in Milwaukee Wisconsin. Video surveillance recorded a 3 year old attacking an 11 month year old girl. The baby suffered injuries from the 3 year old biting her and punching her. The case is being investigated by law enforcement and child care licensing officials.
In Milwaukee, Wisconsin, two day care employees have been criminally charged regarding an incident in which a boy was left alone in a day care center van. The child was left alone in the van for over 7 hours. It was reported that the boy was 5 years old at the time of the incident. The boy was transported to Kreative Kids Child Development Center. The boy fell asleep on the bus and nobody involved with the transportation or the day care center took any action to account for or check the bus for the child for 7 hours. Even though the van was equipped with an alarm to check for children when the day care van / bus was turned off, the boy still went unnoticed on the van for an extended time period (7 hours). You can read more about this story at