CHESTER, Va. — No criminal charges will be filed in the case of a child who wandered away from a Chesterfield daycare and into a busy road.
Police investigators consulted with the commonwealth’s attorney’s office, and they have declined to prosecute, according to a CPD spokesperson.
"After reviewing materials collected during the investigation, and in consultation with law enforcement, it was determined that there is insufficient evidence at this time to support a criminal charge," Chesterfield Deputy Commonwealth’s Attorney Barbara B. Cooke wrote.
The three-year-old boy was found walking down the 4300 block of West Hundred Road in Chester the morning of Feb. 21. Several drivers stopped and were able to get the child off the street before he was hurt.
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The daycare in question is Fortress of God, a religiously exempt childcare center.
A Virginia Department of Social Services investigation found that at the time of the incident, a 17-year-old was alone and in charge of watching the boy and three other children but had left the kids unsupervised for about six minutes.
The Virginia Department of Education has told CBS 6 that they intend to revoke the facility’s religious exemption.
Monique Ede, the administrator of the daycare, said Wednesday that the center is open and accepting new students.
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Virginia code states anytime a daycare staff member is under the age of 18, they have to be under the supervision of an adult staff member.
While on site, the DSS inspector found a number of repeat staffing violations.
The inspector noted that two infants were sleeping in a classroom unsupervised.
And, they encountered a person who was not a staff member, but who was supervising three infants alone.
When the inspector spoke to that person, they reported that they stopped in to help due to the incident, but did not work there.
WATCH: Virginia daycare where child was found wandering in road had prior violations
Ede told the inspector that many people showed up at the center to offer support, and she did not know who that person was.
We sent an email to Ede asking her if she wanted to respond to the violations.
She sent us back a letter that seemed to be a complaint of sorts that she intended to send or did send to DSS and the Virginia Department of Education.
In it, she said she started her daycare to offer hope to parents who were struggling, and kept her prices between $50 and $150 a week.
She said she allowed some children to attend for free.
Ede said she felt like the DSS inspector targeted her and had little regard for her personal story and struggles. She claims her rights were violated and an abuse of authority occurred.
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