SPOKANE, Wash. – A 14-month-old child was taken to the hospital with bite marks after his parents picked him up from daycare. His parents, Teayana Fletcher and Anthony Barnes, are now searching for answers.
Fletcher and Barnes said this isn’t the first troubling incident they’ve faced with Early Head Start Daycare. They noted that their son, Jayceon, has sustained some kind of injury multiple times within a year.
During the latest incident, Jayceon had to be hospitalized due to several bites. “His face was broken open, it’s bleeding it really broke my heart when I saw him,” said the parents. They add, “He was bit six more times on his face and it broke skin like that’s a problem like that’s definitely neglect.”
The daycare notified the parents Jayceon had been bitten. But the parents believe the daycare downplayed the severity of the injuries. They stated, “Accidents happen, but never never anything this severe.”
Fletcher and Barnes emphasized their proactive efforts in selecting a safe daycare through careful research. “I felt, I’m able to trust these people with my kids they made me comfortable.”
However, following multiple incidents, their trust has eroded.
The parents have contacted the Washington State Department of Youth and Family Services regarding the incident. While a spokesperson, Nancy Guitierez, remarked that they cannot comment on this specific case, she mentioned that daycare investigations are common. “The investigators will have to determine whether that allegation arises to the level of child abuse or neglect as defined by our state law,” she added.
The investigation process includes interviews and site visits, typically taking five days for some form of action. In the meantime, Fletcher and Barnes are committed to taking all necessary measures to ensure their child’s safety. “We are going to do whatever measures we have to go through to do right by our child.”
The Community Colleges of Spokane, which operates Early Head Start, provided no comment due to the ongoing investigation.
For those interested in reviewing state records on daycare complaints, information is accessible online here.
