In September 2016, I had my son, Luke. A couple of months later, he started at a public daycare where his teacher, “Shelia,” soon decided to quit and open her own in-home daycare. Luke adored her, and over time, our families became close. Her husband, “Richard,” got along with my husband, and our kids played well together.
Courtesy of Melanie Harris
Everything seemed fine until December 2017, when Richard had three weeks off from his construction job. The first week, he called saying Luke had fallen off the couch. I didn’t think much of it. The next week, just before Christmas, Richard said Luke had been pushed off a Bumbo chair by another child and scratched his face. I felt annoyed, but reminded myself once more that kids will be kids.
Courtesy of Melanie Harris
In both cases, Shelia had been out running errands.
On December 28, my lunch plans fell through, so I stopped by unexpectedly to see Luke. He was asleep on the couch, unusually hard to wake. When I picked him up, his head felt extremely swollen. Richard told me that Luke had tumbled off a rocking chair while he and Shelia were in another room. He believed Luke was okay, so he never called me. But I could tell something wasn’t right, so I hurried him to the emergency room.
Courtesy of Melanie Harris
At the hospital, a CT scan revealed a skull fracture stretching from his right temple to behind his ear. The doctor suspected abuse and contacted CPS.I couldn’t believe it, these were people I had thought of as friends.
But after several specialists confirmed the injury wasn’t consistent with an accident, reality set in. Luke was admitted to the PICU for observation.
Courtesy of Melanie Harris
Investigators questioned us, and we gave full statements. Since parents are always looked at first, we had to prove we hadn’t harmed our child. Luke went back to his old daycare while the investigation continued. When I picked up his things from Shelia’s, Luke clung to me the moment Richard arrived a moment that still haunts me.
Courtesy of Melanie Harris
Eventually, Richard admitted to “accidentally” pushing Luke in one earlier incident. He later refused a lie detector test and was arrested in February 2018. He faced two charges of cruelty to a juvenile and an additional charge of second-degree cruelty to a juvenile.
Courtesy of Melanie Harris
After multiple delays, he took a plea deal in December 2018 and became a convicted felon. This experience was isolating. People often said unhelpful things like, “I’d kill him” or “You can’t trust anyone,” which only added guilt. Through it all, I tried to stay calm for Luke.
Courtesy of Melanie Harris
I’m grateful he was too young to remember, grateful for the friends and family who stood by us, and most of all grateful that he survived without permanent damage.
