My Son Was Jumped at Daycare by Three Other Little Boys. He's 9 - Cleveland,OH

If you have the money to hire a lawyer, take time off of work and want to put our child through a trial by all means go or it.
Personally I would just file a complaint with the NAEYC so that their accreditation is investigated and move my child somewhere else.
And if you think people with college degrees are lining up to wipe noses and butts all day for minimum wage you are sadly mistaken :-(

I see that you've added more info from when I first read this earlier.

You didn't mention the therapy nor the neurologist before.

How old are these kids and your son?

Your son goes to a neurologist and you didn't think to get anyone involved in this before now?

These boys kicked him in the head?

I don't think we're qualified to help you here. I would have handled this differently right from the get go. I don't know what you can do 9 months later and after the place has closed.

sounds like you're just itching to sue.
go for it.
you made a ton of assumptions, didn't you? did you not ever go observe the facility? make a mental note of the staff/kid ratios? ask for training credentials for the staff?
how do you know that the staff knew weeks prior to the incident that this gang of preschool hoodlums was terrorizing your son?
if YOU knew about it, why didn't you proactively intervene?
what was unprofessional about the letter you received from the director?
how do you know what action was taken?
how do you think preschoolers should be 'fairly disciplined' when left unsupervised?
if your son has health conditions, why did you subject him to a substandard daycare without adequately researching it?
are you 'bluffing with a lawsuit' or actually anticipating it?
i'm glad your son was 'tooken' out after he got a bump on the head.
khairete
S.

We don't have the entire story here and we are not lawyers.

I believe any judge or lawyer would question your motives because you waited 9 months to come forward.

I'm very sorry you had a bad experience.

If it had been my child, I would have had the place shut down legally the day it happened.

So this happened 9 months ago? What exactly were his injuries? Was he hospitalized? What are the ages of everyone? Lacking some information.

Sure you could sue, but if they recently closed, exactly where do you think the money will come from? I would have addressed all of this months ago. Was your son seeing these specialists prior to this event? Seems a little much for physical therapy, occupational therapy and neurologist. Again, you never state what his injuries were.

Need more info but going on this, I don't think you have much of a case

In which ways has he changed physically, emotionally and socially? To be honest you sound a little sue happy. I seriously don't think you are going to win a big settlement over this and I would be shocked if you found a lawyer willing to represent you unless you pay fees upfront.

I am also shaking my head that you think people with a bachelors degree want to work for a little over minimum wage rocking babies to sleep, changing diapers and kissing boo boos.

I also hope you have found other arrangements for the care of your son and you haven't sent your child back to a daycare you find to be deplorable.

There is simply not enough information about what actually happened here, how long they were alone, and what kind of injuries were involved if any, for us to be able to tell you if you should seek legal action.

Either way, if you don't feel your child is well cared for at this facility find one you feel better about or find at home care. Best of luck.

Thank’s for your question L..

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you're waiting nine months to say anything and do anything?

You need to check with your state's board for child care and see what their rules are. Waiting nine months though, not sure who will take you seriously. Especially if you still have your son there. That's insane.

Why is your son still at that day care?
If your son has a heart condition and asthma, why aren't you home with him and caring for him yourself?

Stop making your son a victim. Give him the tools he needs to succeed and give him the confidence he needs to be successful in life.

Sounds awful. I'm so sorry this happened to your son.

So, if I understand you correctly, the staff informed you of the incident, but did not give you the requested incident report? At least you have a letter from the director documenting what occurred. I know it's not what you wanted, but at least you have a dated acknowledgement from the center that your child was unsupervised. That's something.

I agree with you that children should be supervised no matter what age. Did you report any of this to the agency in your state that licenses day care facilities? If not, was there a reason why? If you did, is there a case number or a contact that you had there? I'm not sure if there's a requirement for a bachelor's degree in your state - and there would be different requirements for the director than for individual teachers. But if you're going to pursue this, it matters less what your opinion is on educational minimums and much more what the state licensing agency requires. So focus on that.

How old are the children involved? Is this regular day car for preschool, or is it a before-school or after-school day care for older kids? The reason I ask is that there are different staff-to-child ratios depending on the ages of the children (but leaving them alone wouldn't be an option anyway), but also that it's likely not wise to use the term "gang" when referring to young children. It's less likely that a group of 3 preschoolers would plot an attack like this, although they may be running around undisciplined and certainly could hurt someone even if what they thought they were doing was "rough housing" - which I'm not excusing at all, just trying to clarify. So the language you use should reflect the appropriate stage of child development.

I guess I would start with the licensing agency and make a report, if it wasn't done at the time. Given the time elapsed, you will have to prove that your child sustained injuries then and also that there have been continued changes in him. You'll need medical records for any check-ups or calls to the pediatrician at that time, as well as any medical or psychological follow-ups. Gather all the paperwork, and write up a diary/journal of what happened with exact dates (or approximate ones), a list of the people with whom you spoke, etc. Make copies and do not turn over your only copy to anyone! Keep a set of everything for yourself. If you have to write up a complaint or a report, have a trusted friend who is terrific with grammar and spelling go over it just to catch errors that you don't see when you're the writer and also the person who is upset. If someone is really objective, they can help you weed out any comments that don't belong, even if they are points you may need to make down the line. (For example, if it's not required that someone have a degree, don't complain about that, because the agency may take it as a criticism of their own standards. Besides, it's not like a degree is necessary to keep an eye on kids - and that's what your argument should be. Same with chronic understaffing.)

If you had costs involved in moving your child to another facility, note those as well. If you did not move your child/children, be prepared that you will be asked why not. Day care is hard to find, and I get that. But be prepared with a calm and logical answer to that.

You could certainly have a consultation with an attorney to see if you have a case. Usually those are free for 1 hour. Do you have a lawyer for anything else (family law, real estate, etc.)? If so, start there and ask for a referral. If not, talk to people in your area whom you respect and who will maintain your confidentiality, and ask for a referral. You can use your local bar association too. I wouldn't advise going to anyone who just advertises on TV unless you also have a referral from a respected friend/acquaintance/professional.

I would say you should not discuss this with the day care center director at this point until you have a plan in place with some expert advice.

You may have a case if indeed the preschoolers were left completely unsupervised - although against whom I'm not sure since the business has closed. So if you want to talk with a lawyer, talk with a lawyer.

But if you want people to take you seriously, I suggest you tone down the emotional language and focus on facts. Your son was not "jumped" by a "gang". They were all preschoolers - 3-4 year olds don't even know what a gang is. But he was left unsupervised, he was hurt and that has resulted in medical bills for you.

I understand the incident was potentially traumatic, however since it happened almost 9 months ago, it doesn't make sense to attribute any current changes in your son's behavior to that event. I also think you won't be able to build much of a case, given the time which has lapsed. You have moved him to another day care provider, right?

talk to a lawer to see if you have a case, but if they are already closed i doubt that you will get anywhere.

People usually sue for monetary damages. People think that suing equals automatic money. That's not the case. Even if you sue and win a lawsuit, it's unlikely that see any actual money from this since the facility is closed unless you're able to sue the owner of the facility personally and s/he has collectable assets (in addition to suing the business). But you never know until you actually file a lawsuit to find out whether there was are assets that can be collected.

Just know that litigation will take YEARS and trying to collect might take a few more years. Not to mention how emotionally draining a lawsuit can be to all parties involved in the suit. Consult a lawyer if you wish, but please let your main focus be on the mental and emotional recovery of your son.

How old is your son.

Children in child care are to NEVER be left alone unless they are school age. If this happened in a school age classroom there isn't much that can be done about them being left alone, that is allowed for a period of time. In Oklahoma is up to 10 minutes, the teacher can check on them then leave them alone for another 10 minutes.

If your child is younger than school age then please pick up the phone, call your state agency that licenses child care facilities and file a report. Express your concern that other children are at risk.