Child Injury Lawyer Blog
By David Wolf, Attorney
Published by Child Injury Lawyer Network
When a parent enrolls a child in a day care center, the parent expects that the child will be cared for in a safe and caring educational environment. The purpose of day care is to provide for the education, socializatio, and yes, the safety and well being of children. Unfortunately, there have been attacks and violence reported at day care center. Many occur in the United States and some even outside of the United States. Children are the innocent victims of criminals who have committed acts. Why are these acts committed? What prompts a person to harm a child or a group of children? Is it mental illness? Is it a desire to gain a moment of fame? There may be a variety of “reasons” for these acts or no reason at all. Whatever the trigger, children are injured and some even die due to senseless violence. Parents and the community are then left to deal with the aftermath of a child’s death. When a child dies as a result of intentional or negligent acts, there is a ripple effect of sadness and emptiness to the family, school, Church and other religious institutions, and the community as a whole.
In many homes, day care centers, schools, and other locations, there is a danger present for children. Simply enough, the danger presents itself in the form of an open window or a window that can be opened by a child. Whether the child crawls out a first story window or higher window, the danger is present. A child can suffer fractures, lacerations, and head injuries from a fall out of a window. Because of the risks and dangers of windows, it is vital that all child care providers including babysitters, relatives, parents, neighbors, coaches, day care centers, and schools properly secure windows accessible to children. A safety check should be performed and recommendations should be made as to all windows and doors in the building, facility, or home.
In Delaware and other States, day care centers should be safe havens where children are taught right from wrong and their ABCs. Unfortunately, some day care centers fail to teach and some others even encourage bad behavior and bad acts. One such incident was reported regarding a day care center in Delaware. The Atlanta Journal Constitution and other news outlets reported that the staff of a day care center in Dover, Delaware were arrested because they watched and encouraged children under their care to engage in fighting. The incident was even captured on a mobile phone video. Three day care worker defendants were charged with Reckless Endangerment and Endangering the Welfare of a Child. Children can be heard crying and yelling on the video of the incident.
In Nevada and other States, school children bring their cell phones / mobile phones / and smart phones to school. In addition to school children, even children enrolled in day care centers bring mobile phones into the school. While it may seem excessive to for a young child especially one in day care to have a mobile phone, at times, the availability and use of a mobile phone can be quite useful. In some instances, a mobile phone can even provide important evidence and documentation of abuse and neglect that takes place at a day care center or school. In Sparks, Nevada, a mobile phone video was key information / evidence that led to the arrest of a day care center owner / operator. It was reported by KOLO TV in Nevada that a cell phone video was e-mailed to the Washoe County Social Services. The video was recorded by a child enrolled in the day care center. According to the news story, the incident took place at the Creative Kids Day Care Center. It was reported that a day care center worker handled a child roughly. According to the day care center laws for Nevada, corporal punishment is prohibited. The day care center work stands accused of hitting a 3 year old child in the head and face. The day care center was eventually arrested over the incident. See 
During summer months as well as other times of the year, children enrolled in schools, day camps, day care centers and summer camps often visit community pools, water parks, and other swimming areas. Some schools, summer camps, and day care centers even have their own swimming pools. While water, swimming, and aquatic activities can be a great source of fun for children, they can also present significant risk to a child. Of course, the drowning death of a child is a catastrophic and tragic event that certainly warrants at the pursuit of a legal case or claim and involves or should involve significant compensation. As a child injury attorney, I am often asked the following question:
Children enrolled in schools, day care centers, after school programs, summer camps, and other programs often spend many hours during the summer and school year playing on swings in playgrounds. Most times, playing on swings is enjoyable. Unfortunately, at times, children suffer injuries on playgrounds on or near the swing set areas.
What are the dangers of leaving a child unattended in a day care or school van or bus? During the school year as well as summer months, children are transported by day care center and school vans and buses. While there are many dangers of transportation and in of itself in the form of automobile and school bus accidents, there are other dangers which are associated with leaving a child unattended in a day care center van or bus.