Child Injury Lawyer Blog
By David Wolf, Attorney
Published by Child Injury Lawyer Network
In South Dakota and other States, there is a time during the day that a child is put at risk even though it is not so obvious to some child care providers. That time of day is sleep time or nap time. A child is put at risk for serious personal injury and even death if a child is put to sleep in a dangerous position. A child is also put at risk when there is a lack of ongoing supervision during sleep or nap time. Because of these significant risk, a day care center should have policies in place for sleep and nap time. Bedding materials should be carefully selected and all other hazards including pillows, blankets, window cords, and stuffed animals.
In Missouri and other States, there are dangers in virtually every community in the form of old buildings and old building codes. In Springfield, Missouri and other cities, many buildings are not subject to current building codes. Some of the newer codes require stricter regulations as to the construction and security in and around windows. This can be especially dangerous for children living in or visiting multi-story townhouses, homes, apartment complexes, and commercial buildings. With older codes, there are less restrictions as to window barriers and screens. This, in turn, can present a danger to children. It was reported in Springfield, Missouri recently that a 4 year old fell put of a third floor window and tragically died from the fall related personal injuries. See 
In Wisconsin and other States, day care centers should be safe havens for children. They should be placed where children are well cared for in supportive, nurturing environment. Unfortunately, some day care center employees and volunteers abuse the children under the care of a day care center. These reckless employees and volunteers use their positions of trust to prey on children. Some are caught while many others go undetected only to go on to abuse more children along the way.
Infants are at risk for suffocation and asphyixation when they are put to bed with pillows, loose blankets, and / or stuffed animals. If you ask most parents if they would put a plastic bag or a sheet of plastic in a crib with an infant, most parents will say that is ridiculuous and reckless in that it puts the child at risk for suffocation. Clearly, it would be a rare occurence for a parent, day care center, or other child care provider to put an infant to bed with a sheet of plastic or a plastic bag for these very reasons. However, many parents and child care providers fail to recognize the risk associated with blanets, pillows, and stuffed animals in the crib or sleeping area of a child. In fact, some blankets and pillows have cartoon characters on them and seem like a good, soft environment for a child to sleep on or near. The very problem with these items are the softness which can quickly turn into a trap if an infant becomes face down or in contact with the soft items to the point that breathing is cut off and / or drastically affected. It was recently reported in Arkansas that an infant died after she was put to sleep near two pillows. It was reported that the infant rolled over and ultimately suffocated. The mother was out of the room for a short period of time. This incident is one of many that unfortunately take place when a child is in a crib or sleeping area near soft objects.
There is nothing more peaceful than seeing your child or a child under your care sleeping in a safe, clean, and supportive environment. There are certainly risks to infants and small children when they are at play inside or outside the home or day care center. A child can be injured while playing in a playground or doing some kind of activity. As such, supervision during these times are vital to prevent injuries to children. In addition to these activities, the sleep habits and environment of children (especially those under the age of 12 months) should also be closely monitored.
Parents rely on day care centers for the proper care and supervision of their children. Unfortunately, there are some day care owners and staff members who should never be in charge of children because they lack the patience, training, and common sense to properly care for children. At times, a child care provider / day care provider loses his or her patience and assaults child at the day care center.
In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and other cities, children are customers of various business establishments, restaurants, malls, playgrounds, department stores, and other areas. Watch television on any given day and you will actually see commercials directly targeting children to come visit the store and purchase the products. Unfortunately, some visits to stores and restaurants result in personal injuries and in some instances the tragic death of a child. It was recently reported that a horrible tragedy took place in Philadelpha, Pennsylvania. It was reported by USA Today and other news outlets that 3-year-old girl died as a result of security gate becoming detached from the front of Rita’s Italian Ice Shop and fell on the girl. Philadephia Police Department officers and emergency rescue responded to the scene. The girl was transported to Hahnemann University and died soon after arrival.
In Georgia and other States, a day care center has some basic responsibilities including the duty to keep a child out of harm’s way. In any given day care center whether in a commercial type of facility or a home based day care center, there are many dangers. Some are obvious and some are not so obvious. Dangers that could result in personal injuries to a child include: firearms, drugs, poisons, sharp objects, pools, lakes, bathtubs, hot water, household cleaners and chemicals, ropes including jump ropes (risks of strangulation), and many other dangers. A day care center and its staff should use their best efforts to keep these dangerous items out of the reach of children. Furthermore, it is vital that consistent and adequate supervision be provided to children enrolled in the day care center. While a day care center is not necessarily legally responsible for all injuries occurring at the day care center, a day care center is liable when the injuries were foreseeable to some extent and preventable with reasonable and necessary safety precautions and proper supervision. Certainly, any injury intentionally inflicted by a staff member can be actionable as a legal claim or case.