The Issue Whether Respondent, in November 2006, violated child care facility licensing standards relating to supervision set forth in Florida Administrative Code Rule 65C-22.001(5), as alleged by the Department of Children and Family Services (Department) in its December 15, 2006, letter to Respondent. If so, whether Respondent should be fined $1,000.00 for this violation, as proposed by the Department in the aforesaid December 15, 2006, letter.
Findings Of Fact Based on the evidence adduced at hearing, and the record as a whole, the following findings of fact are made: At all times material to the instant case, including Thursday, November 16, 2006, Respondent operated a child care facility located at 780 Fisherman Street in Opa Locka, Florida (Facility) pursuant to a license issued by the Department, which was effective June 10, 2006, through June 9, 2007. On November 16, 2006, J. D. was one of nine children between the ages of 12 and 23 months in the Facility's Wobbler/Toddler class. Two properly credentialed Facility staff members, Charnette Muldrow and Barry Thompson, were assigned to oversee the children in the class that day. Cheryl Smith is now, and was at all times material to the instant case, including November 16, 2006, the Facility's office manager. Among her various responsibilities is to make sure that state-mandated staff-to-child ratios are maintained in each of the Facility's classrooms. To this end, she has placed posters in the classrooms indicating what these "appropriate ratios" are and that they "must be maintained at all times." In addition, she "do[es] counts [of staff and children in each classroom] every hour on the hour." She did these "counts" in J. D.'s Wobbler/Toddler classroom on November 16, 2006, and each time found the staff-to-child ratio to be "correct" (one staff member for every six children). Sometime around noon on November 16, 2006, a Facility staff member brought J. D. to Ms. Smith's office. J. D. was not crying, although she had a roundish red mark on her right cheek that she had not had when her mother had dropped her off at the Facility earlier that day. "It looked like ringworm to [Ms. Smith] at first." There were no discernible "puncture wounds," nor was there any blood. The staff member who had brought J. D. to the office explained to Ms Smith that J. D. had "bumped her face" on the "corner cabinet in the classroom." After administering first-aid to J. D., Ms. Smith attempted to contact J. D.'s mother, J. F., by telephone. She was unable to reach J. F., but left a message at J. F.'s workplace. J. F. returned Ms. Smith's call at 12:54 p.m. and was told by Ms. Smith that J. D. had "bumped her head on a cabinet while playing, and she ha[d] a little bruise," but was "doing fine." J. F. left work at 4:30 p.m. and went directly to the Facility to pick up J. D. Upon arriving at the Facility, J. F. first went "upstairs" to see Ms. Smith, who told her "about the incident and what [had] happened." J. F. then went to retrieve J. D. (who was "downstairs"). It did not appear to J. F., when she examined the mark on J. D.'s cheek, that the mark was "from the cabinet." In her opinion, it looked like J. D. had been bitten by "somebody,"4 a view that she expressed upon returning to Ms. Smith's office. Ms. Smith replied, "There's no biters in here.5 Nobody bit J." Before leaving the Facility with J. D., J. F. signed an Accident/Incident Report that Ms. Smith had filled out. According to the completed report, on "11/16/06 at 12:00 noon," J. D. "was playing with . . . toys and bumped her face on the corner cabinet," leaving a "red mark on the right side of her face"; Mr. Thompson was a "[w]itness[] to [the] [a]ccident/[i]ncident"; the injured area was treated with "antiseptic spray[,] triple antibiotic ointment and a cold compress"; and a message was left with J. F. "to call school." J. F. took J. D. directly from the Facility to the Skylake office of Pediatric Associates, a pediatric group practice to which J. D.'s regular pediatrician belonged. J. D.'s regular pediatrician was unavailable that evening, so J. D. saw someone else,6 who gave her a signed and dated handwritten note, which read as follows: To whom it may concern The injuries on [J. D.'s] cheek and back are consistent with a human bite. Please investigate.[7] Thank you. J. F. reported to the local police department, as well as to the Department, that J. D. had been injured at the Facility. J. F. provided this information to Ian Fleary, the Department's childcare licensing supervisor for the north area of the southeast zone, during a visit that she made to Mr. Fleary's office late in the afternoon on Friday, November 17, 2006. J. F. brought J. D. with her to Mr. Fleary's office and showed Mr. Fleary the red mark on J. F.'s cheek, as well as three other, less visible marks on J. F. (one on her cheek, beneath the red mark; one on her lower back; and one on her right forearm).8 Mr. Fleary took photographs of all four marks.9 Mr. Fleary asked one of his subordinates, Linda Reiling, to "address [J. F.'s] complaint as soon as possible." Ms. Reiling, accompanied by Mr. Fleary, went to the Facility on Monday, November 20, 2006, to investigate J. F.'s complaint. Ms. Reiling and Mr. Fleary interviewed Facility staff members, including Ms. Muldrow and Mr. Thompson.10 Ms. Muldrow stated that she had gone to the restroom, having asked another staff member "to watch the children" in her absence, and first "saw the mark on [J. D.'s] cheek" upon her return to the classroom. Mr. Thompson advised that he was "on lunch break at the time the incident occurred."11 No one to whom Ms. Reiling and Mr. Fleary spoke at the Facility "admitted seeing [J. D.] being bitten." Based on her investigation, Ms. Reiling was unable to determine, one way or another, whether the staff-to-child ratio in J. D.'s classroom was "correct" on "[t]he day of the incident," but she did find that there was a "lack of supervision." Ms. Reiling prepared a written complaint documenting this finding and provided it to Ms. Smith. Meloni Fincher, a child protective investigator with the Department, also investigated the matter. She was assigned the case on November 17, 2006, after the incident had been reported to the Florida Abuse Hotline. Ms. Fincher began her investigation by visiting J. F. and J. D. at their home that same day (November 17, 2006), some time after 4:00 p.m. During her visit, Ms. Fincher observed that J. D. had "bruises to her cheek, her back, and [also] her arm." Ms. Fincher was unable to determine the nature or cause of these injuries, so she made arrangements for J. D. to be seen on November 21, 2006, by a University of Miami Child Protection Team physician. Ms. Fincher went to the Facility on November 21, 2006, but was unable to speak to any staff members about the incident at that time. She returned to the Facility on December 7, 2006. This time, she interviewed Ms. Muldrow, Mr. Thompson, Ms. Smith, and Dawnise Mobley.12 None of the interviewees claimed to be an eyewitness to the incident, having personal knowledge of what happened to J. D. After receiving a copy of the Child Protection Team's "medical report," which contained the team's determination that J. D. had "bite marks at different stages [of] healing [which were] consistent with another child [having] bit[ten] [her]," Ms. Fincher, on December 12, 2006, "closed the case" finding "[v]erified indicators of inadequate supervision."13 The evidence received at the final hearing does not allow the undersigned, applying a clear and convincing competent evidence standard, to reach the same conclusion that Ms. Fincher and Ms. Reiling did regarding the adequacy of the supervision J. D. received at the Facility on November 16, 2006. While the evidence is sufficient to support a finding that J. D. suffered a single (red) mark on her right cheek while at the Facility that day, it does not clearly and convincingly establish that she was being inadequately supervised at the time. Inferring that Respondent failed to provide J. D. with adequate supervision based on the mere fact that she received this mark while in Respondent's care is unwarranted, absent a clear and convincing showing (enabling the undersigned to conclude, with a firm belief and conviction and without hesitancy) that a toddler would not receive such a mark while at a child care facility in a classroom setting like J. D. was in unless there was a lack of adequate supervision.
Recommendation Based upon the foregoing Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, it is hereby RECOMMENDED that the Department issue a final order dismissing the "inadequate supervision" charge made in its December 15, 2006, letter to Respondent. DONE AND ENTERED this 11th day of October, 2007, in Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida. S STUART M. LERNER Administrative Law Judge Division of Administrative Hearings The DeSoto Building 1230 Apalachee Parkway Tallahassee, Florida 32399-3060 (850) 488-9675 SUNCOM 278-9675 Fax Filing (850) 921-6847 www.doah.state.fl.us Filed with the Clerk of the Division of Administrative Hearings this 11th day of October, 2007.
The Issue The issue is whether Petitioner’s application for licensure as a foster care facility should be approved or denied by Respondent, Agency for Persons with Disabilities.
Findings Of Fact Based upon the testimony and documentary evidence presented at hearing, the demeanor and credibility of the witnesses, and on the entire record of this proceeding, the following findings of fact are made: Petitioner is an applicant for licensure of a foster home residential facility. She submitted her application to APD on October 16, 2013. The application requested licensure of the facility in Petitioner’s individual name. However, the proposed name of the facility was Comfortable Living, In Good Hands, to be located at 1309 Jules Court, in Eustis, Florida. Petitioner owns the property located at that address, which serves as her current residence. APD is the state agency which licenses foster care facilities, group home facilities, residential habilitation centers, and comprehensive transitional education programs, pursuant to section 393.067, Florida Statutes.1/ APD is charged with reviewing all applications and ensuring compliance with all requirements for licensure. On page 10 of the application, Petitioner signed the attestation statement and had her signature notarized. The attestation states: Under penalty of perjury, I hereby attest that all information submitted as part of this application is true and accurate to the best of my knowledge and by submitting same I am requesting a license to operate a facility in accordance with chapter 393, F.S. I also attest to such information on behalf of the above-named applicant for licensure or license-renewal. The application indicated that the individual responsible for on-site management and supervision of the facility was Wanda Strong. However, Ms. Strong failed to provide any of the information under the section which requires details on the education and experience of the person identified as the On-Site Manager. The application also included a series of questions concerning the applicant’s qualifications under Section V: Affidavit. Question 2 under this section asked the following: “Have you or anyone identified as a board member or party to ownership ever been identified as responsible for the abuse, neglect, or abandonment of a child, or the abuse, neglect, or exploitation of a vulnerable adult?” Respondent answered “no” to this question. Question 12 under Section V posed the following question: “Have you or anyone identified as a board member or a party to ownership, been convicted of a misdemeanor or felony?” The application also provided that if the response to this question was “yes,” the applicant was to provide “additional information regarding such situation(s)” on the lines provided. Petitioner responded to Question 12 in the affirmative, but failed to provide any details regarding her conviction. During APD’s review of Petitioner’s application, APD took steps to verify the accuracy of the information provided by Petitioner by conducting a search of DCF records on the Florida Safe Families Network. APD’s records search revealed a DCF report which indicated eight verified findings of neglect against Wanda Strong. Specifically, the report stated that on February 5, 2013, Wanda Strong was the caregiver at the Strong Family Day Care responsible for leaving eight children alone at the facility. Brandie Horne is a Child Protective Investigator employed by DCF. Ms. Horne conducted the investigation of the complaint against Strong Family Day Care, prepared the written report, and made the findings of neglect against Ms. Strong. In the course of her investigation, Ms. Horne conducted interviews of the children present at the Strong Family Day Care, and the mother of the children. Ms. Horne also interviewed Wanda Strong and Karlisa Woods, Ms. Strong’s daughter. Ms. Horne determined that on February 5, 2013, the mother of the children dropped them off at Karlisa Woods’ residence. Ms. Woods then left the children alone when she left to go to work. When Petitioner got off work from her night job, she arrived at Ms. Woods’ house at 7:45 a.m. Petitioner then left the younger children alone a second time, while she took the older children to school. When Ms. Horne interviewed Petitioner, Ms. Strong acknowledged that the mother dropped off her children with Ms. Woods at 6:40 a.m., and that Ms. Strong got off work from her job at 7:40 a.m. However, Ms. Strong denied that the children were left alone. When Ms. Horne interviewed Karlisa Woods, Ms. Woods claimed that she did not leave the children alone, but rather had all of the children accompany her in her vehicle, when she drove to pick up Ms. Strong from her work. Ms. Horne determined that Ms. Strong’s statement was inconsistent with Ms. Woods’ statement, conflicted with the statements of the children, and contradicted text messages received from the mother of the children. On March 13, 2013, Ms. Horne met with Petitioner to discuss the inconsistencies in her statements and the other evidence uncovered. At that time, Ms. Horne orally notified Petitioner that she was closing the investigation with verified findings of neglect. Ms. Strong told Ms. Horne that her contract with the Early Learning Coalition had been terminated as a result of this situation. Petitioner was fully informed and aware of the verified findings of neglect made by DCF Child Protective Investigator Horne. In addition, Ms. Horne distinctly recalled giving Petitioner a Notice of Rights and Responsibilities (Notice), which is routinely given to persons who are responsible for verified findings of abuse, neglect, or abandonment of children. The Notice states that a person receiving verified findings may request a copy of the investigative summary within 30 days after closure. The Notice also included the name and telephone number of the investigator. While at hearing Petitioner acknowledged receiving from Ms. Horne a document with the investigator’s name and telephone number, she could not recall what further information was included on the document. At hearing, Petitioner explained why she answered Question 2 in the negative, stating that she did not receive “paperwork” indicating a finding of neglect. However, Petitioner did acknowledge discussing the final report with Brandie Horne, including that the finding of inadequate supervision would identify her as the person responsible. Making reference to her notes made nearly contemporaneously with her conversation with Petitioner, Ms. Horne testified that on March 13, 2013, at 9:15 a.m., she orally informed Ms. Strong of the verified findings contained in her report. Petitioner’s response to Question 2 falsely represented or omitted a material fact in the license application. Petitioner also omitted material facts by failing to provide information pertaining to her education and experience as an onsite manager, and by failing to provide details pertaining to her criminal conviction.
Recommendation Based on the foregoing Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, it is RECOMMENDED that the Agency for Persons with Disabilities enter a Final Order denying the application filed by Petitioner for a license to operate a foster care facility. DONE AND ENTERED this 2nd day of July, 2014, in Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida. S W. DAVID WATKINS Administrative Law Judge Division of Administrative Hearings The DeSoto Building 1230 Apalachee Parkway Tallahassee, Florida 32399-3060 (850) 488-9675 Fax Filing (850) 921-6847 www.doah.state.fl.us Filed with the Clerk of the Division of Administrative Hearings this 2nd day of July, 2014.
The Issue The issue in this proceeding is whether the Department of Children and Family Services should revoke the foster care license of Thomas and Shana Stone.
Findings Of Fact At all times material to this proceeding, the home of Thomas and Shana Stone was licensed by the Department as a foster home. Jeffrey G. was placed in the Stones' home on or about November 9, 2001, when he was approximately 10 months old. Two other children, who were eleven and four-year-old siblings, were also placed in the Stones' home around the same date that Jeffrey was placed in their home. The three children slept in the same bedroom which contained a bunk bed and a crib. According to Mrs. Stone, the siblings were unruly and she requested that the Department remove them from their home. The other children were removed from the home on November 12, 2001. On November 16, 2001, the Department received a report alleging that Jeffrey had a bruise three inches in length on his thigh. Jeffrey was brought to the Department's office by a foster care worker on November 16, 2001, for a scheduled visit with his mother. There is nothing in the record to indicate that Jeffrey was brought to the Department on November 16, 2001, as a result of the abuse allegation. Joann Lycett is a licensed protective investigator supervisor for the Department. Prior to becoming a supervisor, she was a protective investigator. During the time she has been an investigator and a supervisor, she took part in between 400 to 500 reports of child abuse or neglect. In addition to her experience as an investigator and a supervisor, Ms. Lycett received specialized training in child abuse investigations and earned certification in the child protection field. Her training includes determining the nature and cause of injuries to children. Ms. Lycett was present at the Department when Jeffrey was brought in for the visit. She observed an oval shaped bruise approximately three inches by two inches extending out from under the child's diaper onto his upper thigh. When the diaper was removed, Ms. Lycett could see bruising on the child's buttock as well. Ms. Lycett observed the bruise to be dark which was an indication to her that the bruise was recent as opposed to a bruise yellow or green in color. From her experience and training, the bruise did not appear to be accidental. Jeffrey was examined on November 16, 2001, by Richard C. Trump, a Child Protection Team medical doctor of the University of Florida.1 Dr. Trump's report reads in part: . . . on the buttocks there are some fairly fresh vertical and linear 1mm wide bruises which are external to the buttock crease. There is a 7x3cm bruise on the left buttock below the aforementioned linear bruises, which ends in a circular bruise at the lower left buttock. The thin linear bruises come together perfectly when the buttocks are compressed flat. All of the bruises are fairly superficial and are red and blue in color; no yellow or green is present. There are no bruises medial to the linear bruises in the crease of the buttocks. Mrs. Stone first observed the bruise the morning of November 16, 2001. Mrs. Stone did not report the bruise to the Department. Jeffrey generally attended daycare from seven or eight o'clock in the morning until 5:30 or 6:00 in the evening. Jeffrey attended day care on November 16, 2001. Mrs. Stone conceded that the bruise could not have happened at the daycare center because she observed the bruise the morning of November 16, 2001, before Jeffrey attended the center. According to Mrs. Stone, Jeffrey wore a brace on his leg which caught on the crib a couple of days before the incident. This, however, would not explain a fresh bruise as described by Ms. Lycett and supported by Dr. Trump's report. Likewise, the other foster children could not have caused the bruise as they were removed from the home four days prior to the incident in question. While the evidence did not prove that Mrs. Stone directly caused the injury, the evidence did prove that the child suffered harm while in the custody and control of Respondents.
Recommendation Based upon the foregoing Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law set forth herein, it is RECOMMENDED: That the Department of Children and Family Services enter a final order revoking the foster care license of the Stones. DONE AND ENTERED this 16th day of August, 2002, in Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida. BARBARA J. STAROS Administrative Law Judge Division of Administrative Hearings The DeSoto Building 1230 Apalachee Parkway Tallahassee, Florida 32399-3060 (850) 488-9675 SUNCOM 278-9675 Fax Filing (850) 921-6847 www.doah.state.fl.us Filed with the Clerk of the Division of Administrative Hearings this 16th day of August, 2002.
