2 women charged in day-care sleep aid case

March 11, 2010|Associated Press

CINCINNATI — Two former Ohio day-care workers accused of slipping an over-the-counter dietary supplement into candy and giving it to their charges to help them sleep at nap time were charged with misdemeanors yesterday.

Pamela Hartley, 56, of Cleves, and Donna Scott, 41, of Cincinnati, have been charged with three counts each of child endangering and three counts each of misrepresentation by childcare provider, Hamilton County prosecutor Joseph Deters said. The women could get up to 18 months in jail, if convicted.

Parents had told investigators their children often seemed groggy after leaving day care. The charges are the most serious that can be applied, Deters said.

Hartley was the director and Scott was the lead infant teacher at Covenant Apostolic Church Day Care in the Cincinnati suburb of Springfield Township, the prosecutor said. They were fired after the allegations surfaced in December. Court records had no attorneys listed for Hartley and Scott.

The church’s pastor, Shelly Hendricks, would say only that the church and day-care unit have cooperated with authorities. Hendricks said the day-care site was still operating but declined to say how many children are enrolled.

A co-worker told police in December that Hartley and Scott gave the children melatonin in candy.

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