Child Injury Lawyer Blog
By Joni J. Franklin, Attorney and David Wolf, Attorney
Published by Child Injury Lawyer Network
The Kansas Department of Health and Environment issued an emergency order closing Kathies Kidz Day Care Home, a Paola, Kansas day care center. According to the KDHE, two infants have died just this year. After the death of the second infant, which occurred in August, the operator of the day care agreed to surrender the facility’s certificate. At the time of the surrender, Kathies Kidz were caring for 16 children – that is 10 more children than the center was permitted to care for. KDHE inspectors checked on the facility this month and found the facility still in operation and caring for 6 children. To read more on this topic please see Kansas Department of Health and Environment revokes a day care center’s certificate after second infant dies in day care.
After a little girl died this past summer, the CPR training procedures in Minnesota are being called into question. After Hannah Kozitza, 4, died from choking on a grape in her North Mankato day care center, Minnesota’s CPR procedures started to be investigated. Child advocates criticize the state’s procedures go far enough to save a child’s life. Hannah’s day care center was fined for not following proper CPR procedure when a day care employee called Hannah’s parents before calling 9-1-1. Surprisingly, under Minnesota law, the center’s employees that attempted to help Hannah were not required to be trained in CPR. All that Minnesota law requires is that one person in a child care center must be trained, regardless of the number of children the center cares for. If you would like to read more on this topic please see 
Elouise Wade-Meria Taylor, a 51-year-old woman and and Aiken County, South Carolina day care owner, has been charged with homicide by child abuse. Taylor is accused of shaking a 16-month-old toddler in her care so hard that the toddler sustained fatal head trauma. The alleged incident occurred on August 5, 2010. The child’s identity has not been released. It was reported that a neighbor of Taylor, Shirnell Bryant, says Taylor has cared for children at her home day care center for years and has never witnessed anything out of the ordinary. Taylor will be entitled to a criminal defense attorney. If you would like to read more on this story please see 
Recent headlines about abuse occurring in day care centers have many parents concerned. Child safety experts say a critical factor in selecting a day care facility is a parent’s instincts. If parents get a bad feeling about a day care, experts encourage parents to take a different route and seek an alternative instead of letting something bad happen to their child.
Apparently, the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services has plans to withdraw it proposal to add stricter staffing requiring for the Texas day care facilities. The main reason for the withdrawal is money, especially in the current economy. Specifically, officials predict that lowering the number of children that each day care worker would supervise across the state would increase day care rates.
Tragically in Kansas and other States, children are the unfortunate victims of injury and even death in day care centers. In Olathe, Kansas, a day care operator was recently convicted for the death of a 18 month old. The incident took place at the day care center in 2009. It was the child’s first day at a day care center and also her last day of life. Ava Patrick’s head got stuck in the slats of a wooden fence. She suffocated as a result of the incident. The case eventually made it to a criminal jury trial against the operator of the Kansas day care center. A jury convicted Jeanette L. Lawrence, age 47, of involuntary manslaughter. The day care center was overcrowded and understaffed.
In North Mankato, Minnesota, the State of Minnesota Department of Human Services recently fined a day care center for failing to follow procedure in contacting 911 regarding the incident. While the State did not find that the day care center were negligent as to the incident itself, the State of Minnesota did fine the facility as to the timeliness of the reporting of the incident to 911.
In Dallas, Texas, a 2 year old (Sir Anthony Smith) was left unattended in the van of a day care center (H.H. Banks Learning Center)- in the heat of Texas. As a result of being left unattended in the day care vehicle for hours, the child died. An autopsy will be performed due to the age and circumstances of the death. It is suspected that the child died from hyperthermia. Deaths like these can be wholly avoided with some common sense and by following some very basic safety precautions. Namely, using a simple checklist and making sure that the day care vehicle is checked and double checked to make sure that all children were removed from the vehicle. The heat in Texas overwhelmed this young and innocent child and ended his short life.