Child care employee charged with ‘aggressive’ efforts to get child to take a nap, authorities say – NJ.com

Authorities have charged a Vineland daycare worker with simple assault and endangering the welfare of a child after a parent reported that her 4-year-old son was injured on his first day at the facility.

Claudia J. Smith-Heard, 48, of Millville, was issued a summons after police investigated the Nov. 1 incident at Golden Gate child care center.

Smith-Heard allegedly pushed the child’s body “numerous times on a cot in an aggressive manner while trying to get him to go to sleep,” according to an affidavit of probable cause filed in the case. The child “sustained numerous visible signs of injury to his face and neck (minor scrapes and redness) consistent with someone pressing down on him.”

Video surveillance and an eyewitness account support the allegations, according to police.

The Cumberland County Prosecutor’s Office also interviewed the child, who “confirmed what occurred in the surveillance footage.”

Smith-Heard declined to comment when contacted Monday afternoon.

The child’s mother, whose name NJ Advance Media is withholding to protect the identify of her son, said she first learned something was wrong on the afternoon of Nov. 1 when she received a call from Smith-Heard asking her to sign an incident report because her son, after refusing to take a nap, began acting up, threw himself around and kicked her.

“I apologized and said I would come pick him up immediately,” the parent said.

She arrived at the daycare and noticed marks on his face.

“He just looked scared,” she said.

Photos she shared with NJ Advance Media show red marks and apparent bruising to the child’s face and neck.

When she got him to the car, she asked her son what had happened.

He told her the staff member “was hitting me in my face because I didn’t want to take a nap. She kept hitting me in my face and she was pinching my lips,” the mom recalled.

She walked back to the facility and demanded an explanation. Smith-Heard denied assaulting the child.

Police and EMTs were summoned to the scene.

The mom recorded video as the EMTs evaluated the child. “It looks like they grabbed him by the back of the neck, whoever did it,” one responder is heard saying, as they spot several marks on the child.

Officials with Golden Gate posted a message on their website confirming that they had completed an investigation into the incident and “terminated the individual involved.”

“The conduct exhibited by the individual is an isolated situation and is not in line with what we believe and value,” the message continued. “We want to assure you it is Golden Gate’s mission and responsibility to ensure the safety of all of our precious children.”

Golden Gate representatives did not return a call seeking comment.

The mother is angry that, as of this week, police still have not allowed her to see surveillance video of the incident.

She is hopeful that her son, who turned 5 last Thursday, will recover from the experience.

He was sleepwalking and talking in his sleep the night after the incident occurred, the mom said, adding that she heard him say “They’re getting too close to me.”

On two recent nights, she found him up at 3:30 in the morning, just sitting in bed, not speaking.

“I don’t know if he’s scared. He’s OK today,” she reported Monday morning. “He’s ready to go to school.”

She’s taking him back to his old daycare, she said.

The entire incident has been a strain on the family, but the mom wants to see the employee held accountable for what happened.

“I hate even talking about it … I’m so tired of repeating the story,” she said. “I need just justice for my baby. He is not OK. I’m not OK.”

Smith-Heard is scheduled to appear in court Dec. 16 on the charges.

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Matt Gray may be reached at mgray@njadvancemedia.com.