Daycare Neglect & Abuse

Day care centers and other childcare programs are heavily regulated by the State and Federal governments in order to protect our children from harm and neglect by those who are assigned to their care and well being. All too often, individuals charged with the duty to care for our loved ones violate our trust and breach that duty by failing in their charge.

If your child has been harmed while under the care and custody of a child care center, you deserve representation. Fortunately, you and your loved one are not alone. It is essential to know your rights to protect your child from abuse. Basically, child abuse and neglect can be separated into four categories:

• Physical Abuse: Perhaps the most obvious form of child abuse is the physical abuse of a child or baby. Regardless of the intent, any harm – from bruises to broken bones to brain damage to death – resulting from physical abuse such as hitting, kicking, shaking, throwing, or beating is considered abuse. It is never acceptable to physically harm a child.
• Child Neglect: Child neglect can take many forms. The one-time failure of a caregiver to properly supervise or care for a child is considered acute neglect, while the repeated, ongoing failure to supervise or care for a child is considered chronic neglect.
• Emotional Abuse: Children can also be subjected to emotional abuse at the hands of caregiver. Emotional abuse is generally defined as an ongoing pattern of treatment that negatively impacts a child’s emotional development. This can include making threats to the child, excessive criticism of the child, or unnecessarily confining the child.
• Sexual Abuse: Finally, sexual abuse of a child includes any use of a child for sexual gratification. This includes any inducement, persuasion, or coercion of a child to engage in or assist with sexual activity, including rape, child prostitution, indecent exposure, or exploitation of a child by production of pornographic materials.

If your child was the victim of any suspicious treatment, abuse, or neglect, you need to contact a lawyer immediately. Experience in handling these types of cases is essential if you want to get the results you deserve and expect.

It is very important to act quickly before that child’s life is irrevocably altered by a catastrophic event resulting from the abuse or neglect.