Brain Injury Caused by Unqualified Caregivers

How Did the Young Girl Suffer a Traumatic Brain Injury at a Daycare Center?

At a Missouri daycare center in July 2021, a caregiver allowed a young girl and two other children to ride a wagon down concrete stairs on a playground. The caregiver watching the children knew the behavior was dangerous and told other children not to warn the girl. Instead, the caregiver told them to “watch what happens” and filmed the incident on a cellphone while laughing. As you may suspect, there was nothing funny about this incident. The little girl wound up slamming her head into the concrete and was left motionless at the top of the stairs.

The daycare center then delayed the girl’s medical care by opting not to call any emergency services, even though caregivers observed a large bump with blood forming on the girl’s forehead. They also noticed a change in her behavior and took her to another room to let her sleep. Some workers checked on the girl repeatedly to “make sure she was still breathing.” Yet, they did not take any action to get her medical care.

The girl’s mom was frazzled to find her typically vibrant daughter stumbling, lethargic, and confused when she arrived to pick her up. She immediately took her daughter to an emergency room, where doctors diagnosed her with a skull fracture and traumatic brain injury (TBI).

How a Missouri Daycare Acted Negligently

The Missouri daycare center’s negligence failed this little girl in so many ways—from hiring practices that permitted unqualified workers to oversee children and failing to keep the girl safe to their response following her severe injury. When the police and childcare licensing investigators got involved, more details regarding the incident were uncovered from text messages sent amongst the daycare’s owner and workers. It was also discovered that the video from the caregiver’s personal cell phone had been altered before being given to the police.

Like Texas, daycare centers in Missouri are required to follow strict minimum care guidelines. This facility failed to meet many of these safety laws when they:

Left the girl without competent adult supervision
Did not handle the emergency promptly or intelligently
Failed to notify the girl’s parents about her injuries immediately
Neglected to ensure its employees were trained and supervised on child supervision

In addition, it was found that the daycare center had more than 37 citations from the state in the eight years leading up to the incident involving the young girl. Even after changing ownership, the daycare center remained negligent by retaining the employees, systems, and procedures instilled by the former management. Point blank: This facility repeatedly disregarded safety laws to keep this little girl safe.

How The Button Law Firm Helped The Girl and Her Family Move Forward

As one can imagine, the young girl in this case suffered significant physical and emotional injuries with lifelong effects as a result of the incident at the Missouri daycare center. Her social life at her elementary school dwindled because she was unable to maintain friendships or participate in activities that most children enjoy because she still experienced frequent debilitating headaches. She also had to undergo long-term medical care to manage her brain injury and its side effects. Doctors even anticipate the injuries sustained to her brain will shorten her lifespan.

The girl’s mother also had to miss several days of work to find alternative childcare for her daughter and to address several disruptions that she had at school. Aggressive outbursts towards her teachers and other students—a side effect of the brain injury—led to several school suspensions.

The daycare injury attorneys at The Button Law Firm fought for this family and held the daycare center accountable for its repeated failures, which caused the girl’s injuries. The girl and her family received compensation to help manage her long-term care and to help the family move forward.

How The Button Law Firm May be Able to Help Your Family with a Daycare Injury Case

If your child was seriously injured at a daycare center, contact our knowledgeable Dallas daycare injury attorneys at The Button Law Firm. We are experienced in helping families hold negligent daycare centers accountable for ignoring safety standards meant to protect young children. Our attorneys will listen to you and your child to assess the situation and determine how a daycare failed your child. 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 or fill out a contact form below for a free consultation.

More Helpful Information

For guidance on navigating the aftermath of daycare injuries, explore these articles. They offer valuable insights into understanding legal rights, addressing medical concerns, and ensuring your child's safety and well-being, providing the crucial information you need to effectively handle such situations.

Schedule a Free Case Evaluation with a Texas Daycare Abuse Attorney Today

If you or someone you know has a child who was harmed by their daycare teacher, contact our firm. We know how difficult getting through this can be. Our experienced team wants to help guide you – as we have helped guide many parents and families within Midland, Houston, Dallas, and the surrounding areas.

You can give us a call at (214) 699-4409 or email us at [email protected]. You can also reach out to us by filling out the form below or by starting a chat with a member of our team.

DISCLAIMER: The results are specific to the facts and legal circumstances of each of the clients' cases and should not be used to form an expectation that the same results could be obtained for other clients in similar matters without reference to the specific factual and legal circumstances of each client's case.

BLF Gets Justice for Family after Child Is Sent Down Concrete Steps in Wagon and Suffers a TBI