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A 2-year-old girl was left outside alone after walking out of her classroom at a daycare in Spring, Texas, while caregivers failed to realize she was missing. She was later found in an outdoor area with scratches across her face and arm after being outside for an unknown amount of time.
At The Button Law Firm, our experienced daycare and child injury lawyers have seen how quickly supervision failures can place children in dangerous situations. What happened at a Montessori School was not a harmless mistake or a brief lapse in attention. A young child was able to leave her classroom unnoticed, access an outdoor area alone, and suffer injuries while under the daycare’s care.
A Preventable Supervision Failure
According to the Texas Health and Human Services Commission investigation, the child had recently transitioned into a new classroom. Staff members were already aware that she had behavioral challenges and a history of attempting to leave classrooms. Employees acknowledged that she could independently open doors and had tried to run out of classrooms before.
Despite knowing this, caregivers failed to take the precautions necessary to keep her safe.
During naptime, the toddler opened the classroom door and walked outside unnoticed. Staff members later gave conflicting explanations about how long she had been outside alone, with estimates ranging from seconds to several minutes. No employee could provide a confirmed timeline.
The child was eventually found in a gated outdoor area near the classroom with visible scratches across her face and arm. Staff believed nearby branches may have caused the injuries, but no one actually witnessed how the child was hurt.
Even more concerning, the daycare reportedly could not provide classroom surveillance footage during the investigation because the video was unavailable or missing.
The child’s parent later reported that the daycare initially informed her about the scratches, not that her daughter had been left outside unsupervised.
The Daycare Ignored Basic Safety Responsibilities
Texas daycare facilities are required to follow strict childcare safety laws, known as the minimum standards, to protect children from preventable harm. These rules require caregivers to supervise children at all times, maintain secure environments, and properly report serious incidents involving children placed at risk.
Licensing investigators determined that those responsibilities were not followed in this case.
Investigators cited multiple deficiencies against a Montessori School related to supervision failures, reporting violations, and incident documentation. Licensing also identified additional concerns involving supervision practices and outdoor hazards accessible to children.
Most importantly, investigators concluded that the child had been placed at risk after leaving the classroom unsupervised and entering an outdoor area without direct supervision.
For this family, the situation could have ended much worse.
How The Button Law Firm Helped This Family Move Forward
After learning that their daughter had been left outside alone, the family was left searching for answers. No one at the daycare could explain exactly how long the child had been outside or how she suffered injuries to her face and arm.
That is when the family turned to our experienced daycare injury lawyers at The Button Law Firm.
Our team investigated the daycare’s supervision failures, the conflicting staff statements, and the history surrounding the incident. Through our investigation, we uncovered that caregivers already knew the child had previously attempted to leave classrooms and could independently open doors. Despite this known risk, the daycare failed to take reasonable steps to protect her.
At The Button Law Firm, we understand that incidents like this impact more than just a child’s physical injuries. Families are often left dealing with fear, anxiety, behavioral changes, and the emotional trauma that follows when trust is broken by the people responsible for protecting their child.
Our team fought to hold the Montessori School accountable for the failures that allowed this incident to happen. With our help, the family secured a life-changing result that helped provide the support and resources their daughter needed to continue healing and moving forward.
Contact The Button Law Firm If Your Child Was Injured at Daycare
If your child was physically or emotionally injured at a daycare anywhere in Texas, contact our experienced daycare injury lawyers at The Button Law Firm. With offices in Dallas, Houston, and Midland, our team is ready to listen, fight for your family, and help you move forward after a traumatic daycare incident.
Call 214-699-4409, email intake@buttonlawfirm.com, or fill out our contact form for a free case evaluation.
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