Daycare worker in West Melbourne arrested on charge of child abuse
A 22-year-old Melbourne woman was arrested Monday, accused of kicking a child, handling him improperly and possibly dislocating his arm at a daycare, police said.
West Melbourne police and represetatives of the state Department of Children and Families were called July 11 to Mustard Seed Kidz, a daycare on Eber Boulevard at the edge of West Melbourne, regarding a reported incident involving a staff member possibly dislocating a child’s arm several days prior, according to an arrest affidavit.
The investigation led to the arrest of Sarah Sallade, a Melbourne woman who had been employed by the daycare for about five weeks. She was charged with child abuse without great bodily harm and was released from Brevard County Jail Tuesday on a bond of $5,000.
West Melbourne police reviewed surveillance footage of the classroom July 13, which showed the child biting another young boy, an arrest affidavit said. The young boy went to Sallade and showed him his arm. After she comforted him, she went to the other child, who was sitting on the ground surrounded by blocks. She appeared to kick the blocks and struck the child in the back. She then kicked the child in the back again, police said.
Sallade picked the child up by both of his hands and carried him across the room, the affidavit said. She set him down before picking him up by the torso and setting him in the corner of the room. The child could be seen crying and appeared to be favoring his right arm, as it was slumped over as if in pain, according to police.
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That same day, police met with the director of Mustard Seed Kidz, Sharde Ryder. She told police Mustard Seed Kidz employees are trained to pick children up by their torsos, the affidavit said.
Ryder provided a written statement, in which she said she viewed a surveillance camera and saw Sallade move blocks with her foot and pick up the child by his hands to move him away from other students, the affidavit said. She noted that the child’s feet touched the ground as Sallade carried him and that Sallade moved her hands to his torso before finishing the move to the corner. After setting him down, Sallade talked to him about not biting his friends and offered him his pacifier. A few minutes later, she called for a director.
Ryder did not mention Sallade kicking the child.
She noted in her statement that a guardian of the child had reached out to her following the incident to let her know that they were taking the child to the doctor, the affidavit said. She apologized and asked to be kept updated. She did not report the incident to DCF.
Her reasoning for not reporting it the day that the incident occurred was because she was "in communication with the family and truly didn't anticipate an investigation occurring,” the affidavit said.
Police spoke to Sallade, who said she picked the child up after he bit another boy and set him down, then explained he could not bite his friends. She said she "got a weird feeling" because he was holding his arm, and contacted a director.
Police showed her the video from the incident and she observed herself kicking the child twice, the affidavit said. When police pointed out that the child was sitting on the floor and appeared to be favoring his arm, she said he was quiet and didn't say anything to her about being hurt.
A guardian of the child told police that she took him to Health First’s Viera Hospital on July 8 because of the pain in his arm, the affidavit said. X-rays and other tests showed he had no breaks. On July 11, he was taken to Pediatric Wizards in Melbourne for a follow-up, and his pediatrician said he thought the child's arm was dislocated and put back into place by the emergency room doctor.
DCF has requested the medical records for Viera Hospital and Pediatric Wizards, according to the affidavit.
Sallade was put on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation, the affidavit said. Prior to the incident, she had no write-ups or disciplinary actions taken against her at Mustard Seed Kidz.
Sallade’s attorney, Richard Canina at the Canina Law Firm, declined to comment. Mustard Seed Kidz declined to comment.
Finch Walker is a Breaking News Reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Walker at 321-290-4744 or fwalker@floridatoday.com. Twitter: @_finchwalker
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This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Police say a West Melbourne daycare worker possibly dislocated a child's arm
