Day Care Teacher Accused Of Hurling 2-Year-Old Against Wall 'Like A Piece Of Luggage'
An employee at an early learning center was terminated from her position following allegations that she was observed hurling a toddler against a wall in January.
In a statement, on January 12, an individual visited the Middletown Police Department and requested the arrest of Kristie Kovarcik after an incident at Town & Country Early Learning Center. Detectives from the Special Investigations Unit acquired surveillance footage from the school, confirming that Kovarcik had picked up the child and threw them aside. As a result, the child's head struck the wall, causing a minor contusion above their eye.
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During the incident, the school's director became aware of a disturbance emanating from Kovarcik's room and subsequently reviewed camera footage. Upon discovering the concerning behavior, the toddler was promptly removed from the classroom. The incident was reported to both the parents and the Department of Children and Families.
According to Kovarcik's warrant, obtained by NBC Connecticut, she informed authorities that children were engaging in wrestling and fighting within the classroom. In an attempt to intervene, she lifted the victim, resulting in the child's head making contact with the wall.
The child's guardian alleges Kovarcik, 47, lifted the child by their shirt and tossed them into the air "like a piece of luggage."
Authorities secured a warrant for Kovarcik's arrest, charging her with risk of injury to a minor and second-degree reckless endangerment. Kovarcik surrendered to police on Feb. 26.
In addition to the aforementioned incident, Kovarcik purportedly kicked, shoved, and mishandled other children in the classroom on separate occasions. Consequently, she is no longer employed at Town & Country Early Learning Center.
"Upon observing the incident involving Ms. Kovarcik on our internal camera monitoring system, we immediately initiated an internal investigation, notified the appropriate state authorities, and terminated the employee," the school said in a statement to NBC. "Our safety and training protocols are amongst the strictest in our industry and we treat any such incident with the utmost seriousness. The safety and protection of the children in our care is always our top priority."
