GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — A Gwinnett County infant suffered a concussion when she fell from a highchair at her day care.
The incident happened at the Meliora School off Johnson Road in Lawrenceville. The facility confirms 11-month-old Karissa Moon was not strapped in the highchair at the time of the fall, which was captured on the facility’s surveillance cameras. %
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The state is now investigating the incident.
“If they would’ve had her strapped her in properly and correctly like she was supposed to have been, this would’ve never happened to my baby,” said Karissa’s mother, Keyatta Smith.
While the facility’s owner declined to speak to us over the phone, the director told Channel 2 Action News’s Nicole Carr that the facility followed regulations.
“State guidelines say you can either have a strap or a device for the children sitting in the highchairs,” director Heather Smalls said.” In this case, the tray was serving as the device. “So we were following state guidelines.”
“Do you feel like that was good enough? Carr asked.
“The tray was secure on there so I feel like it was sufficient,” Smalls replied, noting Karissa was “wiggly” and kicked the tray out of place.
Channel 2 Action News found the guidelines Smalls referred to in an online regulation booklet published by the state’s Bright from the Start: Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning division, which oversees child care facilities. It states that a child who is able to sit up, but is not able to sit at a table, may be secured in a feeding chair by a strap or another device.
The baby’s father told us the feeding tray should not have been considered secure.
“I checked the latch myself,” Gerald Moon said. “And it has a guard, so ain’t no way in the world my baby could’ve take her feet and kicked it open.”
The child’s parents went on to file a police report and take the baby to Gwinnett Medical Center where she continues to be seen by a doctor. Karissa’s parents say she continues to vomit and has trouble sleeping. They may not know the extent of her injuries for months.
An employee, who was one of three teachers in the room at the time of the fall, said the facility now ensures all the children are strapped in highchairs. She described the surveillance video showing her talking to a second teacher with their backs turned to Karissa and seven other children in the class. She says they heard the “smack” when Karissa fell and rushed to help her.
“Do you see it as an accident?” Carr asked the employee.
“Honestly, I feel like it was a freak accident,” she replied. “Maybe the locks weren’t as new. Maybe they were kind of worn in. I know it’s something that we’ll never let happen again. I feel terrible about it.”
Cox Media Group
