The lawsuit alleges the 2-year-old child’s fall led to extensive bleeding and to her losing a tooth.
LEWISVILLE, Texas — A family is suing a North Texas child care center, alleging negligence after they say their 2-year-old child slipped on a wet floor from water leaking in the facility and lost a tooth.
In a lawsuit filed recently filed against The Learning Experience-Castle Hills in Lewisville, the family alleges the facility “failed to maintain the safety of their facility, resulting in [the child] slipping on water leaking into the facility during a rainstorm” on May 28, 2024.
“The toddler fell forward, slamming her face and mouth into the ground with such force that one of her teeth was instantly and visibly chipped. Her mouth bled so profusely it soaked her dress, stained her face, and continued to bleed for hours,” the lawsuit states. The lawsuit states the child ultimately lost one of her front teeth “prematurely” and experienced discoloration of her other front tooth.
WFAA has reached out to The Learning Experience for comment. We’ll update this story as additional information becomes available.
The lawsuit further alleges the staff at the facility was aware of the water leak, but no warning signs were posted, and staff didn’t call 911 after the child’s fall “despite the obvious severity of her injuries.”
“An investigation conducted by the state revealed that The Learning Experience was aware of the leaking water into the building–yet no guards were put up and no warning signs were posted. In fact, no measures were taken at all to keep children away from the wet, slippery floor—leaving the area accessible to toddlers and putting all children in care at risk of serious harm and injury,” the lawsuit stated. “Worse still, The Learning Experience failed to take the most basic steps to get her the urgent medical attention, despite the obvious severity of her injuries. The investigation revealed that multiple caregiver employees were admittedly concerned with the severity of [the child’s] injury and believed she required emergency care—but no one called 911. “
The lawsuit alleges a staffer at the center told the child’s parents in a call that the child was “just bleeding a little” but was given an ice pack and “doing fine.”
The lawsuit alleges the center was cited during the investigation by the state of Texas childcare licensing division for failing to clean, repair, and maintain the building, grounds, and equipment to protect the health of the children, and for failing to maintain competency and good judgment in the presence of children.
“This was not an unavoidable accident but the direct result of The Learning Experience ignoring a known safety hazard and failing to act to protect the children in its care,” said attorney Russell Button of The Button Law Firm, who represents the toddler and her parents. “A 2-year-old girl paid the price for that negligence, and we aim to hold The Learning Experience accountable, so this never happens to another child.”
The lawsuit seeks damages of more than $1,000,000, but the amount will be determined by a jury.
The Lewisville facility is one of more than 12 in North Texas operated by The Learning Experience franchise, as our content partners at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported. It serves children aged six weeks to 8 years old.