Child and animal neglect, child's leg broken
Meridian, ID (US)Incident Date: Tuesday, Jul 1, 2008
County: Ada
Disposition: Alleged
Alleged: Dawn R. Seekamp
Ada County Sheriff Gary Raney says the arrest Tuesday of a Meridian area day-care operator accused of breaking a 1-year-old child's leg and operating an unsanitary home day-care business should be a wake-up call to parents.
"Every parent who takes their child to day care needs to go beyond the doorway," said Raney, who described the inside of Dawn R. Seekamp's day care as so "disgusting" as to pose a health risk.
"Look beneath the surface. Go in, look around," Raney said. "Look deeper. Ask questions. Dig harder. Keep your child safe."
Seekamp, 37, owner of the West Ada home day care Building Blocks Preschool, was arrested and charged Tuesday with felony injury to a child. She was booked into the Ada County Jail on $1 million bond; on Wednesday the bond was reduced to $100,000.
Raney said he anticipated more charges, including child endangerment, could be filed against Seekamp and her husband, John, who has not yet been charged. Their four children, ages 4 months to 12 years old, were deemed to be in imminent danger due to the unsanitary and unsafe conditions in their home. They will be in state custody.
"It's clear, in my opinion, that Dawn Seekamp should have never been responsible for the care of any children, and I think maybe even her own," Raney said.
Raney released three photographs. He said the photos depict only a small portion of the unsanitary or unsafe conditions in the day care, which he further described as having a mess of cords, boxes, ropes and trash.
"Pigsty, I think, suggests that it was sort of dirty or unkempt. This goes beyond that to the point of being unhealthy," Raney said.
Seekamp's brother, Pat Emery, lives in Arizona and said the sheriff's portrayal of his sister is not accurate.
"She would never, ever intentionally hurt a kid," he said. "And that's exactly what they are trying to portray her as doing. They are portraying her as a monster."
He declined to comment further, saying he wanted to protect his sister's rights.
From 2003 to 2006, the Seekamps were licensed foster parents, according to Idaho Department of Health & Welfare records. Their license was revoked in 2006 because the foster care staff noticed that locks had been put on the outside of the doors to the children's rooms, said Emily Simnitt, a Health and Welfare spokeswoman.
Dawn Seekamp has been licensed since 1998 to operate a home day-care facility for up to six children, according to Health and Welfare.
Sheriff's investigators believe Seekamp was caring for as many as eight to 10 children a day, not including her own four children. Raney asked anyone who has used Building Blocks Preschool to contact the sheriff's office.
Seekamp's home day care was investigated in 2004 after an allegation of abuse, but there wasn't sufficient evidence to file charges, Raney said.
The sheriff said the Seekamps also could face animal abuse charges over allegations they failed to keep their pets properly fed and watered. Investigators said the family has dogs, chickens, turkeys, goats, rabbits and cats.
The Seekamps' home and Building Blocks Preschool are at 1947 E. Bentley, near Locust Grove and Franklin roads in unincorporated Ada County.
Raney said Wednesday that at least one child witnessed Dawn Seekamp slam a 1-year-old boy into a high chair Monday after getting upset about spilled juice.
She "slammed him like a door," the child told police, Raney said.
"Even if the leg wouldn't have been broken, that (action) would have constituted a crime. The fact that the leg was broken certainly makes it more clearly a crime and a more serious event," Raney said.
The boy had surgery to repair the two fractures to his thigh bone, Raney said. An investigator added that the boy is now in a cast from his waist down, with one leg in a full cast and the other in a partial cast. He's expected to need the cast for a couple of months. He was released from the hospital Wednesday.
The investigation this week was spurred by the boy's mother, who told the sheriff's office on Monday night that her child sustained a broken leg while at Building Blocks that day.
Raney said investigators who followed up on the allegation found deplorable conditions in the Seekamps' home, including feces in a high chair and on the floor next to a crib, and a wall with "boogers."
Raney described the outside of Seekamps' home as having bags of "rotting something," a dead bird and dog feces in the dog food on the ground.
"The place inside and out was disgusting," he said.
As a state-licensed day care for up to six children, Building Blocks Preschool was subject to inspection by Central District Health inspectors every two years, said Simnitt of Idaho Department of Health and Welfare. The last inspection done at Building Blocks Preschool was in 2007, Simnitt said.
Simnitt said Health and Welfare officials were reviewing their files to see if there were complaints about Building Blocks. No action has been taken to revoke Seekamp's license.
"At this point, these are just allegations," Simnitt said. "We'll let law enforcement do their investigation." References
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