KING GEORGE COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — The parents of a five-month old boy who died after going to a King George daycare in February are speaking out after an investigation by the Department of Social Services revealed that employees left him in his crib and did not check on him for over three hours.
When Kasey Hamlet dropped her five-month old son, Maxx Wilson, off at C&A Daycare and Preschool in King George County on Feb. 21, she never thought she wouldn’t be able to pick him up the same day.
However, around 2:15 p.m. that day, law enforcement and EMS were called to the daycare for a reported “Infant CPR in progress.” When first responders arrived, they found Maxx unresponsive. He was taken to a nearby hospital and was pronounced dead at 3:20 p.m.
“It’s a parent’s worst nightmare,” Hamlet said.
“That day changed our lives forever,” Trevin Wilson, Maxx’s father, added.
In May, a medical examiner told the family that Maxx’s cause of death was from COVID-19 and the Aetna virus. But Hamlet and Wilson said something didn’t feel right about the sudden death.
“He was healthy, He was fine. He was laughing, laughing. That weekend. That morning, everything was fine.” Wilson said.
Now, two daycare employees have been charged with felony child neglect. Hamlet and Wilson said this backs up their belief that Maxx’s care at C&A Daycare contributed to his death.
“At that point, we knew something had happened, but they weren’t able to give us any information at all still yet,” Hamlet said.
While the investigation into Maxx’s death is ongoing, The Virginia Department of Social Services conducted an unannounced inspection in March.
The inspection revealed that a staff member was seen swaddling Maxx and placing him on his stomach in his crib with two blankets on top of him at 10:49 a.m. on Feb. 21. Staff did not check on him again for over three hours. Video from the daycare reportedly shows Maxx moving until 12:27 p.m.
A staff member found unresponsive Maxx unresponsive at 2:10 p.m. and another staff member tried to perform CPR before first responders arrived.
Despite their loss, Hamlet and Wilson want to keep sharing Maxx’s story in hopes that it could save another life.
“He’s a superhero. He’s our superman right now. And I hope that he has saved a few kids,” Wilson said. “I’ll even take one, but I hope he saved many kids from stuff like this because daycares have to be held accountable.”
C&A Daycare has received over 20 complaints and violations since 2018.
8News reached out to C&A Daycare for comment, but did not recieve a response.
