Complaint filed by Finney Injury Law alleges
negligent practices at A Brighter Future Childcare and Development
Center violated Missouri childcare
laws
ST.
LOUIS, June 18, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- This March,
when Diona Harrold-Paige picked up her two children from A
Brighter Future Childcare and Development Center, she noticed her
4-year-old nonverbal autistic son had facial scratches and a bump
on his forehead. After demanding to see video footage from the
St. Louis daycare center that
confirmed her suspicions, she took her children to a local hospital
for evaluation and reported her children's injuries to
authorities.
Now Harrold-Paige is suing the daycare center, claiming her son
and 3-year-old daughter were injured by workers at A Brighter
Future Childcare and Development Center. The allegations include
hitting them with paint-stirring sticks, dragging them on the
ground, and causing the boy to hit his head on a cot when it was
aggressively pulled out from under him by a caregiver.
The new lawsuit details how surveillance footage at the center
and an independent investigation by the state confirmed
Harrold-Paige's claims and uncovered additional safety failures at
A Brighter Future Childcare and Development Center. Video footage
showed the caregivers using unapproved discipline techniques such
as hitting her son's face and head with their hands multiple
times and forcing her daughter to stand and face a wall for 47
minutes—instances that break Missouri childcare laws, per the
complaint.
"What happened at A Brighter Future Childcare and Development
Center has shaken our family to the core, and I hope by speaking
out and filing this lawsuit, we can protect other children in our
community from being harmed," says Harrold-Paige. "As a trusting
mother, I never imagined a daycare center would traumatize my young
children, especially my son who requires additional support and is
unable to communicate. It's devastating to discover I was wrong and
that my children had to suffer."
A Brighter Future Childcare and Development Center violated
additional childcare laws by insufficiently watching the children
at the center. Per the suit, surveillance cameras captured
caregivers leaving children unattended in classrooms up to 10 times
in a single day, enabling children to get into physical fights
without an adult to intervene. The director at A Brighter Future
Childcare and Development Center admitted that she knew caregivers
were not properly supervising children and even claimed that she
did not know the negligent action broke state childcare laws,
according to the lawsuit. The facility was also severely
understaffed, with the director spending her days caring for other
children instead of supervising the employees, according to the
complaint.
"This lawsuit against A Brighter Future Childcare and
Development Center aims to give a voice to a little boy who does
not have one and his little sister, who also suffered but couldn't
speak out," says Harrold-Paige's attorney Chris Finney of Finney Injury Law. "This case
highlights a serious breach of trust, as the daycare center did not
deliver on its promise and duty to protect the children at the
facility."
A Brighter Future Childcare and Development Center received 21
citations for safety failures from the Missouri Department of
Elementary and Secondary Education Office of Childhood between
March 2022 and April 2024. The lawsuit states five violations
were issued just a month after the investigation involving
Harrold-Paige's children and while the daycare center was on
increased state supervision.
The case is D.H.P., Individually and as parent and next
friend of K.H. and L.S., minor children, vs. A Brighter Future
Childcare and Development Center, Inc., Case No. 24SL-CC02710,
Circuit Court of St. Louis County,
State of Missouri. A copy of the
complaint can be accessed here.
About Finney Injury Law
Finney Injury Law is a trusted
personal injury firm based in St.
Louis that is focused on fighting for victims impacted by
life-changing incidents in childcare injury, premises liability,
brain injury, and catastrophic injury cases. With experienced and
award-winning attorneys serving clients in Missouri and Illinois, Finney Injury Law works tirelessly
to advocate for victims and get them justice. Learn more at
finneyinjurylaw.com.
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SOURCE Finney Injury Law