A KinderCare Learning Center (Getty Images)
CULPEPER, Va. - A lawsuit filed in Virginia alleges that leaders at a KinderCare center in Culpeper, Virginia, tried to hide a teacher’s attack on a 2-year-old boy from the child’s parents.
What we know:
The lawsuit, filed on behalf of a young boy named Wyatt, details the Aug. 8, 2024, incident at the KinderCare at 673 Sunset Lane in Culpeper.
According to the complaint, a teacher identified as Haley Nicole Lewis grabbed Wyatt, who was two years old and pre-verbal at the time, by his hair and yanked him backward.
Lewis was arrested on Oct. 4, 2024, and was convicted of criminal battery in January 2025, according to court records. She was ordered to serve 12 months of probation.
Family alleges cover-up
Dig deeper:
The lawsuit claims that KinderCare Director Nekesa Williams witnessed the incident through a classroom door and that two other employees were also aware of what happened. However, according to the filing, none of them reported the battery to law enforcement, Child Protective Services or Wyatt’s parents.
The complaint further alleges that KinderCare District Leader Kurtis Barrows was on-site the day the incident took place. The suit alleges that Barrows later admitted to Wyatt’s mother that KinderCare "made the decision collectively as a company" to withhold the information from the family.
The incident came to light after an anonymous complaint triggered an independent investigation by the Virginia Department of Social Services. That investigation resulted in the facility receiving a citation for violating mandatory child abuse reporting laws.
According to the lawsuit, the Culpeper KinderCare location accumulated 27 substantiated health and safety violations over a seven-month period between March and October 2024.
What they're saying:
Attorneys for the family emphasized the severity of the allegations.
"Parents place their trust in childcare facilities under the absolute condition that their children will be safe and that management will be transparent," said J. Michael Sharman, attorney for the family. "The assault and battery against this child is, of course, a very critical matter, but the most serious aspect of this case is that none of KinderCare's mandatory reporters reported the abuse and none told the parents about the assault. The failure to report the assault to the Virginia Department of Social Services or disclose it to Wyatt's parents was not a mere oversight; it was a conscious, affirmative, collective decision by KinderCare's employees."
Sharman also noted that the incident is similar to an active criminal case in Henrico County involving another KinderCare facility on Cedar Fork Road. In that case, prosecutors claim management knew for months that an employee was allegedly assaulting multiple 2-year-olds by pinching, flicking, and pulling their hair. Yet, the director allegedly failed to report the abuse.
The Source: This information is from a lawsuit filed by Commonwealth Law Offices, P.C.