Parents of infant who died at day care file lawsuit claiming staff were not properly trained
By T.J. Parker, Marisela Burgos
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MIAMI (WSVN) — A South Florida family is taking legal action months after a 9-month-old boy died while in the care of a day care in Homestead, claiming the staff lacked essential lifesaving skills.
Attorneys for Keiara Whorley and Devonte Tomlin, the parents of Tayvon Tomlin, on Monday said they have filed a lawsuit against Lincoln Marti Daycare in Homestead.
They spoke with reporters from the attorneys’ law office in downtown Miami.
“I’m heavy in frustration, but I don’t know if that’s what the world wants to hear right now. I’m just focused on the answers,” said Whorley.
“They failed this family, and they failed Tayvon,” said attorney Stephen Cain.
Miami-Dade Police said a day care worker was making her rounds on July 18 when she found the infant unresponsive in a crib.
The law firm representing the child’s parents shared surveillance video from inside the licensed facility showing a staffer making some type of effort to save the boy, but Cain claims they didn’t properly perform CPR.
“That’s not effective and comprehensive CPR,” said Cain.
One of the surveillance clips shows Trayvon’s older brother as staffers attempted to perform CPR.
The infant’s parents said they’re still waiting for answers from the day care about what happened.
“They haven’t given us any answers,” said Whorley.
The grieving parents said they want to hold Lincoln-Marti accountable.
“Tayvon’s my first child; that’s my first baby boy, so going through that is, like, real shocking,” said Tomlin.
“At the end of the day, what this family is looking for is justice, but part of that justice requires Lincoln-Marti being held accountable for their failures, their inaction in this case,” said Cain.
7News reached out to Sally Seltzer, the attorney representing Lincoln-Marti. She issued a statement that reads, “It is my position and that of my client that it is not appropriate to discuss matters that are currently in litigation and more importantly under investigation. My client and I are extremely sympathetic to the tragic loss experienced by this family, and as I said previously, this matter is still under investigation.”
“I’m always going to be frustrated, hurt, crying, missing my baby,” said Whorley, “but right now, I have all the fight directed towards this case and finding out what’s going on.”
Attorneys for Tayvon’s parents said they’re still waiting for a report from the medical examiner’s office with information about their son’s cause of death.
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