Former Southfield daycare employee describes watching caregiver jabbing children with tacks

State shuts down ABC Learning Center

SOUTHFIELD, Mich. – The ABC Learning Center at 29829 Telegraph Rd. in Southfield was shut down by emergency order of the state licensing agency.

MORE: Southfield child care center shut down after employee allegedly harms children with thumbtack

According to state records, the lead caregiver at the facility was hiding thumbtacks in her hand and jabbing the children in her care.

“When I first saw it, I knew that’s not what you do to kids,” Angelique Turner said.

Turner was working at the daycare when she saw it happen.

“When I saw her get the thumbtack I didn’t know what she was going to do with it and then she called the children over to her and poked one in the shoulder," she said.

Alert to it, she said she saw the lead caregiver do it again the next day and grabbed her cellphone and recorded one of the children getting jabbed. She told that child’s parent and then went to the program director. The program director is the mother of the lead caregiver.

Per the state report, nothing was done. Turner quit that week. That was November 2018.

Since then the state, Child Protective Services and Southfield police have investigated. The lead caregiver has been charged with misdemeanor assault and battery but has not yet been arraigned.

The state found both the lead caregiver and the program director not conducive to the welfare of children and shut the daycare down.

In addition, the state found the actions of the program director lied about having knowledge of the thumbtack and did not follow any of the necessary protocol. In that report it says the lead caregiver admitted to the behavior.


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