Many parents entrust their kids to daycare centers during work days.
This is a great option – children have adult supervision, they get to socialize, and they’re safe, for the most part.
This daycare worker, however, lost all that trust all at once.
Paige Hatfield worked at an illegal daycare facility located in Olathe, Kansas that she owned and ran in her home.
One of the children under her care was 4-month-old Kingston Gilbert, a boy she beat so severely that it left him permanently blinded – just 11 days after he was first enrolled.
On the 31st of January, Hatfield was supposed to be taking care of the baby boy. Instead, she allegedly violently beat Kingston until he started to vomit.
When he wouldn’t stop throwing up, she called 911, and he was rushed to the hospital.
Doctors found he had abusive head trauma that could only be a result of an intentional, physical attack.
For 18 days, Kingston was kept in the ICU, with his prognosis uncertain. Though he survived the ordeal, the results of this assault went far beyond plain physical pain.
It caused severe brain damage that may eventually lead to delays in development.
Plus, Kingston is now permanently blind, and doctors say the attack may have changed him entirely and made him a different person.
Ashleigh Garcia, Kingston’s mother, was devastated.
It took two years for any legal justice to arrive for Kingston’s family, but her daycare was forcefully shut down after doctor’s reports revealed the allegation and a court case was filed.
In January, she was convicted for misdemeanor in operating a daycare without a license, and for felony in aggravated battery that resulted in bodily harm.
She was found guilty by a Johnston County jury. An enhanced sentence was then hashed out on the 25th of the month because prosecutors stated that Hatfield acted as a childcare provider.
Hatfield reportedly pleaded not guilty, insisting that she had not physically harmed Kingston and was not responsible for his injuries, both short-term and long-term.
But the evidence remained that Kingston was 100% healthy when first dropped off in the morning, but after just six hours spent at the daycare, he had to be hurried to the hospital.
No motive for the abuse has been reported.
Today, the family is still affected by the events. Garcia says some days are barely even survivable.
Their family sees Kingston’s spirit in him, but externally, he is no longer the same kid they once had.
Daycares are meant to be a safe space for parents to feel comfortable leaving their precious kids to be cared for.
This incident severely violates the trust that a lot of parents place in these types of facilities.
If you are a parent who uses daycare services, make sure that you use licensed ones and do background checks before choosing a facility.
The good news is that Hatfield is scheduled to be sentenced on the 28th of March soon, so the family she harmed can receive justice.