Child care rules may be toughened

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Child care rules may be toughened

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - A Greenville state senator wants to
require jail for anyone convicted of causing serious injury to
children.

Republican Sen. Mike Fair told The State newspaper his bill
would require a mandatory prison sentence for child care providers
who hurt children. Fair cited a Columbia case in which a home day
care provider got no prison time after admitting to seriously
harming a baby.

Causing serious injury to a child is a felony that carries a
maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, but there is no minimum
sentence.

Talisha Lavette Smith was given five years of probation after
pleading guilty last month. Authorities say Smith slapped the
7-month-old girl so hard it caused bleeding in her brain.

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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Monday, Jan 5 at 10:53 PM Steve wrote ...

I'm not sure Senator Mike Fair's plan is really the best thing.. how about we find the judge that allowed Ms Smith to get off with no prison sentence and punish HIM for thinking people wouldn't care that he was doing a bad job with all the tax dollars we pay him?

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Monday, Jan 5 at 11:37 PM teresa wrote ...

forget the senator why didn't the childcare center run a background check on this person I work at a childcare center in evans and they run a very strict background check!!!! JUst a thought???!!!

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Tuesday, Jan 6 at 8:28 AM uhhh.... wrote ...

If that were the parent, more punishment would have been issued... who was the judge anyway?

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Tuesday, Jan 6 at 10:23 AM Anonymous wrote ...

Tougher laws are needed for people who commits this type of crime against a child. The majority of child care centers (not all of them) will hire just about anybody to take care of children; regardless of experience or background. I feel the centers need to be mandated by the State to require a criminal background check on ALL employees/owners. Also, the owner of the center should be held liable to some extent as well.

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