A judge is stepping in after hearing disturbing details about an in-home daycare death on April 10 just outside of Nashville, Tennessee in the town of Bellevue.
Until further notice, the caregiver, Annie Clark — who is legally named Anne Jordan — cannot own or operate a daycare business. A temporary restraining order against the in-home daycare owner was granted after the Tennessee Department of Human Services filed a complaint.
The complaint detailed how the mother of a three-month-old who died discovered him "cold to the touch" in the caregiver's bed. The document said the mother arrived at the apartment at around 3:10 p.m. local time. She knocked on the door for 10 to 15 minutes and got no response.
When another parent arrived to pick up their child, the two parents opened the unlocked front door. The mom found her baby not breathing, and CPR was not successful. The complaint said three babies under six months old and three babies between seven and 16 months old were also alone in the apartment.
The complaint also noted that the daycare was operating without a license.
Tennessee requires anyone who is watching five or more unrelated kids for three or more hours a day to be licensed. And there must be one adult for every four babies.
Several rules were broken in this case. The temporary restraining order now prohibits Clark from obtaining a license to become compliant with the state's rules, and gives the state's daycare licensing officials permission to ensure she doesn't operate an illegal daycare.
The case was scheduled to be heard in court on April 28.
This story was originally published by Scripps News Nashville.
