Utah day care, parents settle toddler’s bean bag chair death
SALT LAKE CITY — A Utah day care centre where a toddler suffocated under a bean bag chair when a worker sat on it has reached a settlement with the parents and been cleared of criminal charges, but must undergo monthly inspections by state regulators who found three violations.
A careful review of surveillance footage of the Sept. 8 incident confirmed the initial belief by police that the worker didn’t realize Leonardo Sanchez, almost 2, was under the bean bag when she sat down, said West Jordan Police Sgt. Joe Monson. Salt Lake County prosecutors reviewed the evidence and determined no charges were warranted, he said.
“It was just a very tragic accident,” Monson said.
State regulators, though, found three rules violations while reviewing the footage of that day that has put the centre on a closer watch. The ratio of caregivers to children was inadequate with two workers looking over 17 children — including eight 2-year-olds, found a report by the Utah Department of Health’s child care licensing division. That shortfall meant insufficient supervision of children, creating the second violation. The toddler who died was out of sight of any caregiver for 20 minutes, causing the third violation.