Young Head Injury Victim Sparks New SC Law For Day Care Providers | Shapiro, Washburn & Sharp

Is your child in danger of receiving a serious head injury or traumatic brain injury while under the care of a day care provider? A new law has been signed by South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford that could help protect your children while you are at work by making sure that your child’s caretakers have received the proper training.

The law, called Kendra’s Law, is named for Kendra Gaddle, a young girl whose life was forever changed when she was struck in the head and shaken by her daycare provider, Talisha Lavette Smith. Smith was sentenced to ten years in prison, though that was later reduced to five years on probation. Kendra, who was six months old at the time of her head injury, is now a young girl who struggles with retina scarring, behavioral issues, sensory issues, weakness on her right side, and other permanent disabilities from her child abuse trauma.

Kendra’s Law hopes to educate anyone and everyone who wants to care for children in South Carolina, whether they work in a school or day care or whether they take care of children in a family’s own home. The law states that all child care providers take a mandatory 2-hour class that covers many basics of child care as well as important safety issues. Kendra’s parents hope that the law will help save another child from the struggle that their child must endure.