A Rancho San Diego daycare provider faces criminal charges following the death earlier this year of a toddler in her care, a well as a wrongful death suit from the child’s mother.
Stacey Lee Snow, 53, pleaded not guilty earlier this month to involuntary manslaughter in the death of the 16-month-old girl, who authorities said was found unresponsive after she had been put down for a nap April 8.
The Medical Examiner’s Office concluded that the girl asphyxiated, and the report indicated she’d had her head wedged between a plastic cot placed on top of a portable crib and the crib railing.
Snow pleaded not guilty in El Cajon Superior Court on Dec. 8 to involuntary manslaughter for failing to perform a duty. She is also charged with child abuse. Her preliminary hearing is scheduled for Feb. 18. According to the District Attorney’s Office, she faces up to six years in custody if convicted on all charges.
Snow could not immediately be reached Tuesday for comment, and her defense attorney in the criminal matter did not respond to requests for comment.
It was unclear if she is represented by an attorney in the civil suit, which was filed Monday. The child’s mother is suing Snow and her business, Snow Angels Childcare and Preschool, alleging negligence and wrongful death.
The narrative provided in an autopsy report from the Medical Examiner’s Office obtained earlier this year indicates the daycare owner said she put the child down for a nap in a portable crib around 10:30 a.m. and had placed a cover with a mesh center on top of the crib in case the child tried to get out.
According to the report, the daycare provider checked on the child a half-hour later and found her asleep. When the provider returned around 11:30 a.m., she found the child blue and unresponsive. The provider called 911 and started life-saving measures. Paramedics took the baby to a hospital, where she died.
The report notes the investigation revealed that the child was initially found with her head wedged between the railing of the portable crib and a plastic cot that had been placed over it.
According to the Medical Examiner’s Office report, the child’s cause of death was asphyxia due to neck compression, and her manner of death was an accident. The civil suit alleges the child died from cardiac arrest.
It was the child’s fourth time being cared for at Snow’s daycare, which had been operating for about 13 years. Before the child’s death, Snow Angels had nearly no citations or issues with the state Department of Social Services, according to the business’ licensing file reviewed earlier this year by the Union-Tribune.