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On August 10, 2023, the Office of Childhood (OOC) received a voice recording of provider Kim Bland saying, "Hold up, let me whoop you." After conducting an investigation, Compliance Inspector (CI) Patrick O'Malley has found this allegation to be substantiated based on the following evidence:
5 CSR 25-400.175 (1)(C)8., which states the following: "No discipline technique which is humiliating, threatening, or frightening to children shall be used. Children shall not be shamed, ridiculed, or spoken to harshly, abusively, or with profanity."
On August 10, 2023, CI O'Malley received an email from CI Regina Watkins, which included an audio file forwarded from Center for Family Policy and Research senior office support assistant Audrey Soria. Ms. Soria identified the audio file as a voicemail received from Ms. Bland. CI O'Malley listened to the voicemail and heard the following: "Hold up, let me whoop you."
On August 11, 2023, CI O'Malley conducted a phone interview with Ms. Soria, who stated that on August 10, 2023, the Center for Family Policy and Research's general voice mailbox received a voicemail from Ms. Bland. Ms. Soria stated that Ms. Bland's name and phone number were attached to the voicemail. The person speaking on the voicemail says that they are going to "whoop" someone.
On August 11, 2023, CI O'Malley conducted an unannounced inspection of Little Castle Home Day Care and conducted an interview with Ms. Bland, who affirmed the voice on the voicemail was hers. Ms. Bland stated that she was speaking to her 3-year-old granddaughter, who was making noise while Ms. Bland was on the phone. Ms. Bland stated that there were several other enrolled children in the room while she was speaking to her granddaughter. Ms. Bland stated that her granddaughter lived in the home with her daughter but was not enrolled at the facility. Ms. Bland stated that she did not whoop her granddaughter. Ms. Bland's granddaughter was not at the facility while CI O'Malley was present.
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