A couple is suing a Fort Worth daycare after classroom cameras captured a teacher shaking and screaming at their 4-year-old son and apparently encouraging her young child to fight with him, court documents state.
“This is a very, very serious case on every level,” daycare and child injury lawyer Russell Button told the Star-Telegram when reached by phone Friday.
Heather Harris and Richard Harris filed their lawsuit against Arka Montessori Academy of Risinger on Sept. 4 in Tarrant County. They say the April 27 incident left their son, referred to only by his initials U.H., with post-traumatic headaches and ongoing emotional trauma. Photos contained in suit show bruises on the 4-year-old’s arm from where the teacher allegedly grabbed him.
“Heather and Richard Harris trusted that their 4-year-old son would be safe at Arka Montessori,” the lawsuit states. “Their trust was violated when the safe environment they were promised turned into a child fight club.”
Arka Montessori Academy did not return a request for comment by the Star-Telegram on Friday afternoon.
Caught on camera
According to the lawsuit, U.H. was “hysterically and uncontrollably crying” when his mother arrived to pick him up from the daycare the afternoon of April 27. Teacher Chynia Johnson said he’d gotten into a fight with another boy, “and all she did was separate them,” the lawsuit states.
Heather Harris demanded to see video footage, but Button said the daycare didn’t initially want to show it to her. The mother realized something serious had happened when she heard one of the workers watching the footage gasp.
“That’s when the mom said, ‘I got to see this,’ and came around and watched the video footage, and then later got the rest of it,” Button told the Star-Telegram.
The Harrises’ son had been transferred to another classroom about 4:30 p.m. when his regular teacher went home for the day. According to the lawsuit, video footage shows the teacher in the new classroom talking to someone at the door. The teacher doesn’t see a little boy, identified as Chynia Johnson’s son, hit U.H. on the back, the suit states. The two boys start fighting, but stop by the time the teacher turns around, according to the video.
Johnson comes in a few minutes later to watch the children while the other teacher takes a restroom break. Video footage shows Johnson’s son point at U.H. and then run up to him and push him in the chest with both hands, the lawsuit states.
“When U.H. puts his hands up to stop the boy, Arka Montessori Teacher Chynia Johnson lunges forward, grabbing at U.H. with her left hand as he tries to get away,” the lawsuit states based on video evidence. “She gets a hold of U.H.’s arm and aggressively grabs and shakes him before shoving him away forcefully.”
According to the lawsuit, the video shows Johnson standing up and saying something to her son. She then steps aside and the little boy charges full speed toward U.H., the document states. U.H. puts out his arms and leg to defend himself, and Johnson’s son falls down, according to the suit.
The portion of the video obtained by the Star-Telegram shows Johnson grab U.H. by both arms. There’s no audio, but the teacher seems to be screaming in the 4-year-old’s face, according to the lawsuit. Johnson turns around to pick up her son, and the other teacher enters the classroom.
A moment later Johnson sets her son down and reaches out to grab U.H. by his left arm. She seems to be pulling him toward her, according to the video, while he struggles to get away. The video then shows Johnson grab her own son and push him in front of U.H.
According to the other teacher’s statement in the lawsuit, “Johnson was telling her son to kick U.H. and trying to force her son to hit U.H.”
U.H. appears to try to kick the child in front of him. Johnson is still holding U.H. by the wrist. The video shows her yank his leg out from under him, causing U.H. to lose his balance and hit the floor, according to the lawsuit. The other teacher is still standing by the door and doesn’t appear to intervene.
“Nothing prepared me for seeing my child aggressively handled and attacked by another child at a teacher’s orders,” Heather Harris said in a news release distributed by The Button Law Firm. “My heart just shattered into pieces because I couldn’t be there to protect my son from being harmed, all while he was being cared for by a daycare that I trusted.”
U.H. was left with scratches and bruises from the incident, along with headaches and ongoing psychological trauma, according to the complaint. Raised voices or other loud noises often cause him to start crying in fear, his parents said. He’s also easily frustrated and struggles with anxiety.
Prior issues
Button said Heather Harris and Richard Harris decided to come forward because they felt Arka Montessori needed to be held accountable.
According to the lawsuit, the state’s investigation into the incident revealed the daycare knew of previous issues with Johnson but failed to take action. An administrator and teacher reported hearing Johnson yelling at the children under her care. Another teacher said she’d seen Johnson “grabbing children by their upper arms and roughly sitting them in their chair,” the complaint alleges.
“Arka Montessori negligently operated its facility and endangered the health and well-being of U.H. and others when they failed to provide a safe environment for children in their care, negligently retained unqualified and untrained employees, failed to supervise its employees, leaving 4-year-old U.H. and other innocent children in the hands of incompetent, unqualified, irresponsible, untrained, and unsupervised teachers. Liability is clear,” the lawsuit states.
The Harris’ are requesting a jury trial and compensation for their damages.
Button said he’s not aware of any criminal charges against Johnson at this time, but he hopes publicizing the incident sends a message to other daycares.
“Because of these failures by this daycare to put a teacher with known prior issues in charge of children — a ticking time bomb — a four-year-old little innocent boy paid the price, and it changed his life forever,” Button said.
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