A lawsuit filed by The Button Law Firm on behalf of the Harris family is drawing attention after WFAA reported on allegations that a teacher at Arka Montessori Academy of Risinger encouraged a physical fight between 4-year-old children before aggressively handling and throwing the Harris family’s son to the floor.
WFAA interviewed the Harris family and Texas daycare injury lawyer Russell Button about what happened inside the Fort Worth daycare and the impact the incident has had on their family.
The coverage highlighted a central issue in the lawsuit: parents can do their homework, ask questions, look for cameras, and still be failed by a daycare that doesn’t make child safety its number one priority.
The Harris Family Thought They Had Found the Right Daycare
Before enrolling their son at Arka Montessori, the Harris family looked closely at the daycare.
Education mattered to them. Cleanliness mattered. They even had their son attend for a half day to see how he adjusted before fully enrolling him.
The daycare’s classroom cameras were also an important part of their decision.
As the child’s father told WFAA, “Arka, we thought we hit gold with Arka.”
That trust changed when the boy’s mother arrived for pickup and immediately knew something was wrong when she saw her son crying.
“I knew from his cry, in the look on his face, that something had happened,” she told WFAA. “And from that point on, I said, I need to see the cameras.”
Surveillance Footage Showed What Happened Inside the Classroom
The lawsuit details surveillance footage showing another child hitting the Harris family’s 4-year-old son before a physical fight broke out inside the classroom.
The children stopped fighting, but the situation escalated when another Arka Montessori teacher entered the room.
That teacher was the other child’s mother.
Instead of calming the situation, the footage shows her grabbing the 4-year-old, shaking him, screaming in his face, and forcefully shoving him.
A statement provided during the state investigation revealed that the teacher was telling her own child to kick the 4-year-old and trying to get the children to fight again.
The teacher then grabbed and dragged the Harris son as he tried to get away. While holding onto his arm, she pulled his leg out from underneath him.
Both feet came off the ground before he was thrown down “like a human ragdoll” and slammed onto the floor.
Another teacher watched and did nothing to intervene.
WFAA Coverage Highlighted the Family’s Loss of Trust
WFAA’s report gave the Harris family an opportunity to explain what it was like to learn what had happened to their son.
“I was mortified when she showed me what actually happened on the video,” the child’s father told WFAA.
His mother described the sense of betrayal even more directly.
“The trust that I put in this daycare, they failed us,” she said.
That loss of trust is at the center of this case. The Harris family believed they had chosen a daycare that would keep their son safe. Instead, they were left watching surveillance footage showing him being harmed by an adult who was supposed to protect him.
Russell Button Says Cases Like This Put Daycares on Notice
During WFAA’s coverage, Russell Button explained why accountability in one case matters for all families relying on childcare.
“When you speak up, when you bring these things to light, it helps hold everyone accountable,” Button said. “That makes other daycares take notice. That makes them change their ways, become safer.”
Arka Montessori Had a History of State Deficiencies
WFAA also reviewed publicly available state inspection records for Arka Montessori.
The station reported that the daycare had no deficiencies during an August 20, 2026 inspection. However, state records showed 21 deficiencies at the facility since January 2024, including deficiencies involving child health and safety.
Those records add important context to the Harris family’s lawsuit and the broader concerns about how the daycare operated.
As the child’s mother told WFAA, “Everything that glitters isn’t gold, and that facility was one of them.”
Parents can review daycare inspection histories through the Texas Health and Human Services website.
The Button Law Firm Is Seeking Accountability for the Harris Family
The Button Law Firm filed this lawsuit to hold Arka Montessori accountable for what happened to the Harris family’s son and for the failures that allowed it to happen.
At The Button Law Firm, we represent kids in daycare and child injury cases to help them get life-changing results and justice against bad daycares, schools, and companies that abuse and neglect the safety of children.
If your child was harmed at daycare or you have concerns about how a daycare handled an incident involving your child, call 214-699-4409, email intake@buttonlawfirm.com, or fill out our contact form to share your story or experience with our team.
.png)
.png)
