LUTZ, Fla. – Alexandra Merrick was shocked to discover her 27-month-old child was bitten “approximately 17 times,” according to a lawsuit she filed against Kiddie Campus University, a daycare located at 111 Myrtle Ridge Road in Lutz, Florida. According to the suit, several daycare employees knew the child who bit her son had a propensity to bite other children but left the child unsupervised.
When Merrick’s son was picked up at Kiddie Campus on March 3, 2020, the bite marks were allegedly evident but no incident report prepared by the daycare was provided. The rules of the Florida Department of Children and Families require such accident reports to be delivered immediately. It wasn’t until the next morning Ms. Merrick received hers.
Kiddie Campus University was cited by FDCF for “failure to provide a copy of the report to the individual authorized to pick up the child on the date of the occurrence.”
According to Florida’s Childcare Programs and Inspections Guide, this class of violation is “3,” which is “the least serious violation in nature and poses a low potential for harm to children in care.” There were no other violations cited in this case. The FDCF report states Kiddie Care University was compliant with supervision, ratios, discipline, and administrative function and license matters.
An inquiry into why Merrick’s lawsuit does not contain any exhibits or any photos of the child’s injuries or medical expenses have been left unanswered by Merrick’s attorney, Christopher DeBari. Kiddie Campus University and their attorney also declined to comment.
