No criminal charges will be filed in the death of a child at a Waterbury Center day care earlier this year, Washington County State’s Attorney Scott Williams announced Monday.
Three-year-old Parker Berry died in February after wandering away from a group at Elephant in the Field day care.
Staff at the facility realized the boy was missing when his parents arrived to pick him up. He was found in a partly frozen stream and was taken to the hospital. He died about 30 hours later.
Williams said that after reviewing the evidence, he will not file criminal charges in the case.
“I have determined that none of the actions or inactions of adults involved with this terribly sad incident qualify as demonstrating a criminal mental state, including criminal recklessness or negligence,” Williams said in a statement.
In July, Williams announced that his office would not bring charges against the 28-year-old para-educator who was watching the child at the time he wandered from the group.
Williams reported that he had been in touch with Parker’s family and they were satisfied with the review and decision-making.
Reached Monday, Noah Fishman, of Elephant in the Field, declined to comment.
The day care’s license to operate was suspended by the Department for Children and Families in February shortly after the incident.
In July, DCF permanently revoked Elephant in the Field’s license after a review found several violations “of a serious nature.”
