Child Injury Lawyer Blog
By David A. Wolf, Attorney
Child Injury Lawyer Blog
In Virginia and other states, many parents rely upon day care centers to watch over their children during the work day. Many such day care centers are connected to or affiliated with a church or religious institution. Unfortunately in many states, there are limited to no government oversight of religious or church run day care centers because there are loopholes and exemptions in state law that opt a church run or religious day care center out of the applicable day care center regulations. As such, many day care centers go unregulated and often engage in negligent or dangerous behavior due to the lack of training and government oversight of the facility. As such, many church run or religious based day care centers may seem safe and well run on the outside are actually riddled with dangers and risks on the inside.
As a Child Injury Lawyers, we are often asked the following question: Does corporal punishment have a place in day care centers? The simple answer to this question is No. Most States prohibit any form of mental or physical corporal punishment in day care centers. In other words, there are specific laws and / or administrative code proceedings that prohibit this kind of conduct in day care centers. While some parents believe in corporal punishment and would acquiesce if a day care center implemented some forms of corporal punishment, it is typically prohibited. Of course, each State has its own rules, laws, and regulations. As such, the applicable provisions should be reviewed, considered, and enforced when there is an issue, concern, or report of corporal punishment taking place in a day care center. Often times, corporal punishment in a day care center is implemented without any concern or thought as to the physical or psychological impact of the child. Furthermore, many acts of corporal punishment are implemented without the knowledge or consent of the parents. In many instances, the implementation of corporal punishment is an indication of the immaturity of the care givers as well as their lack of training and supervision.
In the State of Virginia, day care centers are licensed and regulated pursuant to Title 22 – Chapter 185 of the Virginia Administrative Code. Laws pertaining to corporal punishment in day care centers are regulated State by State. In other words, to determine the laws, regulations, and when applicable prohibitions as to corporal punishment, a parent should review the State regulations in place. Pursuant to Title 22 – Chapter 185 of the Virginia Administrative Code, the following actions are prohibited:
In Bedford County, Virginia and other cities / towns, children reply on school bus and public transportation. Many special needs children rely on school bus transportation to travel to and from school. Most bus drivers and aides are quite attentive to the children. Unfortunately, some drivers and aides are not prepared to work with children. Some school / transportation employees lack the training, patience, and / or common sense to work with children especially special needs children. In Bedford County Virginia, a lawsuit was filed seeking damages associated with the battery of a 12 year old autistic study by Bedford County School employees. The incident was captured on videotape. See 
In Virginia and other States, parents rely on day care centers to supervise and educate their children in a safe and closely monitored environment. Unfortunately, some day care centers fail to honor their responsibilities and lose track of children at the day care center, on field trips, or during transportation trips. Since children lack safety awareness and often times have poor judgment in situations of crisis or danger, children, who are left unattended or unsupervised, often times suffer serious personal injuries. Some even die due to lack of proper supervision. It was recently reported that a child went missing from a Norfolk day care center. While the child was ultimately located and did not suffer any injuries except for being scaed and dirty, the fact that he went missing should cause concern for the day care center, parents, and the community. See 
Facebook is one of the most popular sites in the world, claiming over 400 million users. It is a great way to stay in touch with friends and family, but headlines suggest that minors may become victims of sexual solicitation from fake “friends.”
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 
A Fairfax County day care worker was arrested and is being held on a charge that he molested a four-year-old girl. The man was arrested while trying to flee the country. The day care worker was identified as 22-year-old Siyamand Salehzadeh, he was an employee at Minnieland Day care center in the Centreville area of Virginia.
In Virginia, families of children with autism had succeeded in getting a new bill into the House that would have required many health insurance providers to cover a treatment called “applied behavioral analysis.” But businesses and insurance companies claimed that the costs of the bill would hurt business interests in the state.