Daycare Sued After Sticking Children With Thumb Tacks

Parents of multiple children file daycare abuse lawsuit against Tutor Time after children pricked with pushpins.

Daycare centers all over the country take care of hundreds of thousands of children on a daily basis. This puts them at a unique position where parents entrust them with their children, confident in the fact that they will be provided with the care they need while in the hands of professionals.
Unfortunately, this isn't always the case, as was seen in a recent incident out of Southern California involving children at a daycare facility being abused with thumb tacks.

Tutor Time daycare abuse lawsuit.

Tutor Time is a daycare facility which has outlets all over the country. Last may, an unannounced visit by the State Department of Social Services found evidence that violations had occurred. According to reports, workers at Tutor Time in Agoura Hills had been sticking thumb tacks or pushpins in the legs of children who were thought to be unmanageable or misbehaved in one way or another.
The practice, which occurred between 2013 and 2014, even had a name – pica pica, which translated from Spanish means ‘prick prick’. The two attendants who were allegedly carrying out this practice did so in full view of other workers. They even went as far as having one of the sisters to a boy watch as they pushed the painful tacks into the boy’s legs. This has led to emotional trauma on the part of the girl as well as physical trauma of the boy.
The lawsuit, brought forward by four mothers, was filed at the Los Angeles Superior Court. It mentioned two teachers specifically; Jessica Morales and Rosa Nepomuseno. In addition, the Department of Social Services came to the conclusion that staff members knew about the abuse but failed to report it.

Other incidents of thumb tack abuse at a daycare.

What's even more surprising is that this is not the first time a daycare has been accused of abusing children with thumb tacks. In fact, a few years ago our law firm was contacted by the parents of a two-year-old boy who was abused in the same manner by a daycare worker in a Dallas. Surprisingly, workers in this case even referred to the abuse by a similar name – stick stick. At the time, the story gained national media attention (1) (2) and was even featured on the television show "Geraldo at Large." We were able to file a lawsuit on behalf of the family and ultimately brought the case to a successful resolution.
Our firm has a passion for helping children abused at daycare, and we strongly believe in not allowing stories like these to get swept under the rug. Daycare abuse has long-lasting effects which can follow a child for a many years. The emotional, physical and psychological scars can be difficult to mend and may require hospitalization and/or years of therapy.
If you suspect that your child is being abused by a daycare worker, we urge you to take action. By doing so, you can not only protect your child from further harm, but also prevent other children from facing similar abuse in the future.
If you have questions about daycare abuse, please call us 24 hours a day at 1-800-ATTORNEY.