When parents leave their kids with a daycare service, they have a few expectations. Chief among these expectations is that there child will be safe from harm or abuse and will be okay when they are picked up at the end of the day. This was not the case for 3 year old Ravante L. Ward of Peoria, Illinois. His daycare, however, is arguing that they are not to blame. Instead, they are turning to the Peoria Park District for his wrongful death.
Ravante was on a field trip to the RiverPlex Recreation and Wellness Center with his daycare, Myah’s Just 4 Kids Learning Center, when he wandered off the playground and fell into the Illinois River. He was rushed to the Saint Francis Medical Center and pronounced dead an hour later.
The daycare is arguing that the Peoria Park District should be held responsible for this wrongful death because of their failure to implement accurate safety measures. The issues outlined by the request include:
- That the RiverPlex playground where the children were has four different ways for the kids to leave. Two of them face the river.
- The river was six feet above flood stage and therefore, about 150 feet from the playground.
- And the park district didn’t have fencing in place despite the high water.
The state’s Department of Children and Family services has cited the care center for failure to abide by rule 407: “Children shall receive supervision appropriate to their developmental age at all times. All children in the facility shall be protected from exploitation, neglect, and abuse.”