In October 2022, the father of a 2-year-old little girl arrived at a daycare center in Irving, Texas, to pick up his daughter. However, daycare workers could not find her. A search ensued until the girl’s dad heard loud banging and screaming coming from outside the facility. He discovered his daughter upset and alone on the playground. When questioned, daycare workers could not explain how the toddler ended up outside or how long she was left unsupervised.
Video footage from the daycare center’s surveillance cameras revealed how the little girl was able to leave her classroom through a popped-open door and easily push open the facility’s back door to get outside. Additional footage captured her crying, unsuccessfully trying to pull the center’s heavy door open, and yelling to get back inside the facility. The situation was especially dangerous because the daycare center has multiple playgrounds, one of which is inappropriate for the girl’s age group. The playgrounds are closer to a busy road and just steps away from a river. A section of playground fencing was damaged with a large enough opening that the girl could have potentially made her way to the river, where she could have drowned, or the road, where she could have been hit by oncoming traffic, or abducted without anyone at the Irving daycare center noticing.
The little girl’s parents contacted our daycare injury lawyers at The Button Law Firm to hold the negligent daycare center in Irving accountable for endangering the girl’s life. Our legal team got justice by securing a settlement to help the toddler and her parents move forward.
How the Irving Daycare Center Broke Texas Daycare Laws
What happened to our client’s daughter at the Irving daycare center is known as daycare neglect. Clearly, daycare workers at the Irving daycare center failed to properly supervise the little girl and other children in their care. In addition, workers did not maintain a safe environment in the classroom and playground, which allowed the little girl, in this case, to wander off unnoticed.
An investigation conducted by the Texas Health and Human Services Child-Care Licensing Division cited the Irving daycare center for:
- Neglecting a child when they did not properly supervise the little girl and did not notice she was missing for a long period of time.
- Lacking good judgment by caregivers, who failed to comply with the minimum standards regarding how to keep a count of children in each classroom.
- Not properly maintaining the facility’s grounds, particularly the playground.
Texas childcare laws, also known as the minimum standards, outline the procedures caregivers should follow to prevent neglect incidents and maintain a safe environment. Requirements include:
- Conducting face-to-name checks throughout the day to account for all children in a classroom or playground.
- Properly supervising all children to notice if a child has gone missing or react quickly if they are attempting to leave a classroom.
- Continually auditing the facility to ensure the school and playground areas are safe and maintained for little ones.
Lastly, the Irving daycare center was responsible for hiring, training, and supervising qualified caregivers who understand and comply with minimum standards meant to keep little ones safe. However, the leadership at the facility chose not to follow the state laws regarding proper staffing and hiring practices. Doing so would have prevented the situation that led to endangering the 2-year-old girl’s well-being.
Getting Justice: Holding the Irving Daycare Center Accountable for Neglect
As you can imagine, this incident of neglect was traumatic for the 2-year-old girl. Being locked out of the daycare center and having no one—not a teacher or daycare director—notice her absence for a long period of time left the toddler feeling scared and frustrated.
The entire situation was easily preventable with basic childcare knowledge.
Thanks to our daycare injury lawyers at The Button Law Firm, the Irving daycare center was held accountable for all its wrongdoings that led to the little girl being neglected. The toddler and her family were awarded a settlement that compensated them for all the damages they experienced, including pain and suffering, and resources to help the little girl process and move forward from the traumatic incident in a healthy way.
The Button Law Firm Can Help Your Family with a Daycare Neglect Case
If your child was neglected and physically or emotionally harmed because caregivers did not comply with Texas daycare safety laws, contact our experienced daycare injury attorneys at The Button Law Firm. With attorneys in Dallas, Houston, and Midland, we are ready to listen, fight for your family, and help your family move forward. Our attorneys at The Button Law Firm are recognized on the prestigious Texas Super Lawyers list, and we can help guide you after a traumatizing incident involving your child. We work on contingency, meaning we don’t charge you or collect any upfront fees to get started on your case. Call us at 214-699-4409, email us at [email protected], or fill out a contact form for a free case evaluation.
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