Royal Crown Day Care Allowed A Baby To Escape And Wander The Streets, Court Records Show
Royal Crown Day Care — shut by the Health Department in 2010 for a multitude of violations — once let a baby escape from the center and wander the streets alone, the Daily News reports.
The harrowing incident, surely the ultimate nightmare for any parent, turned up in court records during a federal lawsuit in which the day care alleged they had been unfairly targeted by the health department. The Daily News reports that a 3-year-old child dashed out the front door in 2009 and was later found wandering around alone on a nearby street.
It took the jury less than two hours to reject Royal Crown’s allegation, according to the Daily News. The day care center claimed that a letter they sent to Senator Marty Golden, in which they whined about excessive inspections, triggered retaliation from the health department after it was forwarded to the agency by Golden’s office.
Royal Crown Day Care, located at 1018 Avenue Y, had its permit revoked in 2010 after health inspectors unearthed a mountain of violations at the facility. The health department discovered the center operated for seven months without a director. (A qualified educational director is a requirement for operating a day care center in New York City.) In addition, 14 staff members and four teachers lacked clearances and qualifications required by the health code. Inspectors also cited Royal Crown for not meeting staff-to-child requirement and packing their wards into overcrowded classrooms.
The health department found many other violations related to failing to maintain paperwork, including child medical records and employee records. The center also lacked required guard rails, had not trained their staff in CPR and the operator or designee did not attend approved infectious disease/child abuse training.
Royal Crown alleged the letter to Golden triggered a backlash from the health department that led to the center’s demise, the Daily News reports.
Golden’s office told us at the time that it was normal procedure for them to forward complaints to the appropriate agency.
In her closing statement at federal court, according to the Daily News, the lawyer for the city told the Jury: “Did they think state Sen. Golden would call up the Health Department and order them not to inspect Royal Crown anymore?”