A Collin County mom is suing her child's former day care teacher and provider, accusing the teacher of biting her 3-year-old as a form of discipline.
Audra Elliott said when she picked up her daughter from the KinderCare Learning Center on Alma Drive in Allen, her daughter's teacher met her at the door to say another child bit Elliott's 3-year-old. The teacher also told Elliott her daughter then bit herself.
But Elliott said her daughter had a different story. The 3-year-old told her mom the teacher bit her.
As the bite marks later became more visible, Elliott questioned the teacher's account.
"A child's bite is, at that age, barely bigger than a quarter," Elliott said.
She said the bite that appeared on her daughter's upper arm was much larger.
"I got her a pediatrician appointment and he said, 'I thought there was a mistake on the chart but by God, that's an adult bite,'" Elliott said.
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"The bruises were there for a good week, you could see each and every tooth indention," she added. "It was horrible."
The incident was reported Aug. 3. Allen police arrested the teacher in September, accusing her of injury to a child. NBC 5 is not naming the teacher because the criminal case is still pending and she has not been officially charged. KinderCare said the teacher no longer works there.
In January, the Texas Health and Human Services Commission confirmed two violations of state licensing standards at the daycare.
The state noted one violation for physical abuse and another for a caregiver using inappropriate methods of discipline, biting a child on the arm. HHSC said the deficiencies at the daycare were corrected by the time inspectors returned for a follow up visit on Feb. 19.
Last week, Elliott's lawyers filed a lawsuit -- naming KinderCare and the teacher in the suit. Elliott said she believed there wasn't enough training or supervision of employees at the center. She also suspected the same teacher was responsible for scratches to her daughter's scalp.
"I feel guilty because she was in so much pain when I was at work and I had no idea," Elliott said.
Elliott said her kids have not been back to the KinderCare in Allen.
"A lot of frustration and not understanding how a place I trusted with my children could allow something like that to happen, not understanding how any adult person could do that to a little child," Elliott said.
KinderCare Education sent NBC 5 the following statement.
“At KinderCare, the safety of the children in our care is one of our highest priorities. We work hard to provide every child with a safe, nurturing environment to learn and grow in, and take all concerns about children’s safety seriously. Part of that protocol includes reporting the concern to licensing and CPS and placing the teacher involved on administrative leave while we work with these agencies to look into the matter further. We followed all of these steps last summer when this concern first came to our attention. The teacher involved in this matter no longer works for KinderCare.”
