Child Injury Lawyer Blog
By David Wolf, Attorney
Published by Child Injury Lawyer Network
In Pennsylvania and other States, it is important for day care owners and child care providers to consistently supervise children under their care. Just a few minutes or even seconds of inattention can lead to serious personal injuries and even the death of children. In Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, a day care owner and her daughter were sentenced to probation for an incident in which a child under their care died. Police officers / detectives believe that a 10 month old baby in the day care center was killed by a 7 year old . It was reported that authorities believe that the 7 year old was the granddaughter of the day care owner. For some reason, the 7 year old beat the 10 month old defenseless baby and then threw the baby on the carpeted concrete floor. As a result thereof, the baby suffered a severe skull fracture. You can read more about this story at Pennsylvania Day Care Owner Gets Probation in Baby’s Death.
A lawsuit over an incident occurring in 2004 has finally been settled. The family of Anthony Flott, now 7-years-old, brought the lawsuit on the Anthony’s behalf after he was dropped and hit his head at a Sleepers to Sneakers day care center. Anthony was 5-months old when the incident occurred. A caregiver was holding the baby when he slipped out of the caregiver’s arms and hit his head on a concrete floor. Anthony’s mother, Vicki Hodges, says she was not informed about the incident and later that night she had trouble waking him for a feeding. Hodges took her son to a hospital where doctors discovered the infant needed emergency brain surgery.
n Nebraska and other States, parents entrust the safety and education of children to day care centers. Often times, a working parent have no other choice but to rely on day care centers while the parent earns a living to support the family. Day care centers can also be a great place to socialize and educate the child prior to Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten. Nebraska day care centers have a both a legal and moral duty under the law to properly supervise and protect children enrolled in the program. Unfortunately and tragically in some instances, day care centers breach this duty. 
In Milwaukee, Wisconsin, it was reported that a 5 year old boy enrolled in a Milwaukee day care center was left in a van for 9 hours. There are dangers in leaving a child in a van. If the incident takes place during hot weather, the child is at risk for hyperthermia. If the incident takes place during cold weather, there is a risk of hypothermia. No matter the weather, there are also other risks when leaving a child unattended in a vehicle. These risks include those related to strangulation and choking. In addition, if a child is left unattended in a vehicle, there is also a risk of abduction and risk of injury if the child wanders away into traffic or or into other dangerous situations.
A woman of Huntington, West Virginia, was arrested on a charge of child neglect resulting in injury. The arrest came after a 10-month-old child was allegedly struck in the face at a day care center. The woman was identified as Pamela Faye Taylor, 63. The incident occurred sometime in October and involved a child who had a red mark on his face in the shape of a hand and a bruise on his forehead. It is believed that the toddler sustained his injuries at Pam’s Kids Daycare in Huntington. Taylor will be entitled to legal representation by a West Virginia criminal defense attorney or public defender. If you would like to read more on this story please see 
A former director of an Oregon, Wisconsin day care center was recently charged with three counts of child abuse and one count of suffocation for allegedly abusing children in her care. Heather M. Hook, 34, of Madison, Wisconsin, was director of the Foxboro Child Care Center. According to the criminal complaint, Hook allegedly tried to force a 15-month-girl to drink her milk and after the child refused, Hook allegedly shoved the toddler’s face in a pile of pillows. The girl’s mother told police she noticed bruises on her child’s body, that included a possible bruise to the child’s head and broken blood vessels on her side. Another mother also told authorities she noticed bruises on her 10-month-old son that were not present the day before. A Foxboro worker informed police of an incident where Hook grabbed the 10-month-old boy and carried him like a ball to an area after the boy was playing near a slide he was not suppose to be. The boy’s bruises were examined by Dr. Barbara Knox, a child abuse expert at UW Children’s Hospital, and described them as abusive in nature.
The Middlesex County Prosecutor, Bruce Kaplan, announced that the death of a 17-month-old toddler that occurred earlier this year at a Perth Amboy Day Care Center was an accident. The medical examiner concluded the cause of death to be asphyxia, in combination with two respiratory ailments, bronchopneumonia and bronchitis.
The Iowa Supreme Court recently handed down a decision that ruled that child injury waiver forms are not enforceable. The case involved a release form used for field trips in the Mid Prairie and Keota School Districts. The ruling makes sense as the use of these documents is really against the public policy. While a school is not liable for every single injury or unforeseeable event that takes place, a school or teacher should not be able to hide behind a blanket waiver form when there is an injury that was caused by negligence or inappropriate supervision. No form or document should give a school district or any other institution that cares for or educates children a free reign to cause injury without any consequences. You can read more about this story at 
In Texas and other States, children, especially those with special needs like autistic children, should get supervision and care from responsible and patient adults who provide day care, child care, or babysitting services. In Texas, a baby sitter was in the midst of a criminal trial when he decided to plead guilty of child abuse charges. The incident involved the scalding / burning of a an autistic child that was under her care.