Entrusting your child under a daycare’s supervision comes with expectations that your child will be safe and sound while in the facility’s care. We expect that the daycare will have our child’s best interests in mind, minimizing any risks that they may be exposed to and that the staff is competent, well-trained, and caring—but such is not always the case. Daycare workers make mistakes. In this case, it was a deadly mistake.
Drowned Boy In Germany
On October 2, two-year-old Adam was on an outing to a lake in Magdeburg, Germany with his daycare center. The three staff in charge of the children did not notice he was missing until they returned to the center. The drowned boy was later found by police and airlifted to the local hospital where he died.
In both Germany and the United States, child neglect is commonly defined by law as the failure of a parent or other person with responsibility for the child to provide needed food, clothing, shelter, medical care, or supervision so that the child’s health, safety, and well-being are not threatened with harm.
According to 2018 data from the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System, 51 States reported a total of 1,770 fatalities with nearly 70 percent of those children dying because of neglect. (1)
The Federal Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act of 2010, defines child abuse and neglect as the following, at a minimum:
- Any recent act or failure to act on the part of a parent or caretaker which results in death, serious physical or emotional harm, sexual abuse, or exploitation
- An act or failure to act which presents an imminent risk of serious harm (2)
Legal Help
Daycare centers and their operators and employees may be found legally responsible for children’s injuries and deaths caused by center or staff negligence even when centers and employees comply with state codes and licensing requirements.
In this case, Adam’s death would likely be considered involuntary manslaughter. A criminal defense lawyer should be engaged to take the case to court. Criminally negligent manslaughter occurs where there is an omission to act or a failure to perform a duty, which leads to unintentional death. It is the lowest level category of homicide and most common in the case of professionals who are grossly negligent in the course of their employment. (3)
In Germany, the death of a person due to negligence shall be liable to imprisonment not exceeding five years or a fine. (4)
Parent Help
Most law firms offer contingency fees. This means that the payment to the attorney is entirely contingent upon the client receiving some sort of monetary recovery by winning the case at trial or the case settling so they only get paid if their clients do first.
Even if you have signed a waiver of liability, this does not mean that your child’s daycare facility cannot be held accountable. Under almost all circumstances, courts will find that liability waivers hold no validity because they essentially grant the daycare an “out” to act negligently without any threat of legal repercussion. (5)
