A Fort Worth family filed a lawsuit after surveillance footage allegedly showed a daycare employee grabbing and shaking a 4-year-old while urging her son to fight him. The incident reportedly occurred at Arka Montessori Academy of Risinger on April 27. State investigators cited improper discipline, prior complaints about the caregiver’s aggressive behavior and failures to intervene. The caregiver is no longer employed and the case is now pending in civil court.
Fort Worth Family Sues Daycare After Surveillance Allegedly Shows Teacher Urging 4-Year-Olds to Fight
Image Credit: Fox 4 / YouTube.
A Fort Worth mother’s unannounced visit to Arka Montessori Academy of Risinger on April 27 led to a lawsuit after surveillance footage — central to the family's case — allegedly showed a staff member grabbing and shaking her 4-year-old son while encouraging her own child to engage him physically.
What the Family Says Happened
According to the family's complaint and The Button Law Firm, the boy had been moved to a different classroom near the end of the day after his regular teacher’s shift ended. The suit says another child struck the boy while the supervising teacher’s back was turned. A second employee, identified as the other child’s mother, reportedly entered to relieve the primary teacher and then grabbed and shook the Harris child, shouted in his face and shoved him.
"This place looked like a child fight club," attorney Russell Button told WFAA.
The firm says the footage shows the employee encouraging her son to kick the 4-year-old while holding onto the Harris child and later pulling his legs out from under him, causing him to fall. The family alleges the boy suffered bruises, scratches, headaches and ongoing anxiety following the April incident.
State Findings and Daycare Response
The family’s attorneys say a Texas Health and Human Services Commission investigation found prior concerns about the caregiver, including a pattern of yelling, aggressive behavior and problems with supervision. State investigators reportedly cited improper discipline, prohibited punishment (including grabbing and pulling), and a failure by staff to intervene while a child was being mishandled. The caregiver is no longer employed at the center, according to media reports.
Months later Arka Montessori Academy of Risinger remains open. WFAA reported that a later state inspection on Aug. 20 recorded no deficiencies, and FOX 4 said it did not receive a response from the facility when it requested comment.
Legal Status
The matter is the subject of a civil lawsuit. The allegations in the footage and the complaint have not been adjudicated in court, and FOX 4 reported that no criminal charges had been filed in connection with the incident at the time of its report.
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