Daycare Worker Accused Of Pushing Child Down Stairs
CLIFTON HEIGHTS, Pa. (CBS) -- A daycare worker in Upper Darby is facing charges for allegedly pushing a small child down a flight of stairs.
The incident happened Friday, around 5 p.m., at the Child Care of the Future daycare center on Secane Avenue.
It's an unshakeable image that Shawayne Tavares will never forget.
"It still hurts me, just seeing the video. When I saw it air I was just like wow. It still hurts," said Tavares. "The little girl was just really shaken up. Her eyes were literally like 'help me.'"
Tavares was watching the newly installed cameras at the daycare center Friday evening when she says she witnessed a daycare center worker violently push a 4-year-old girl down a flight of stairs. Tavares rushed to confront her.
"I go confront her, and I said, 'What are you doing? We don't do this to children," recounts Tavares.
That particular camera had just been installed minutes before the incident. You see 52-year-old Sarah Gable glance up at the camera after pushing the child.
The disturbing surveillance video has now lead to her firing and arrest.
"I think it's every parent's worst nightmare that sends their kid to daycare," said Upper Darby Police Superintendent Michael Chitwood.
Despite the fall, the 4-year-old girl only suffered a knee injury. She returned to the daycare center the next day with images of the fall still fresh in her mind.
"She was a little scared of the steps," said Tavares.
Parents were notified of the incident via a letter. Many were still shocked and rocked to their core.
"My little guy, she would greet him with a hug. So I always thought she was one of the best teachers," said parent Ronnie Siekor. "For us to hear this is very disheartening."
Gable was immediately fired from the daycare center and faces a simple assault charge and endangering the welfare of a child. She had worked at the daycare for about a year but she reportedly had about 25 years working in the daycare industry.
She has since been released from jail on a $25,000 bail.
