Windsor police are investigating the death of an 11-month-old baby, whose head was found wedged between the mesh siding and articulated padding of a playpen at a day care center at 607 Buckhorn Mountain Court. Police Chief John Michaels told 7NEWS that Kalea Mummery was one of several children being cared for in the home-based day care center Monday, when they received a report of a child not breathing. He said the licensed operator’s son, Garrett Moore, 36, was the only adult at the center when the incident occurred.
“He performed CPR,” the chief said, “but couldn’t revive the child.”Neighbors said they knew something was wrong when they saw emergency vehicles streaming into the neighborhood.
“We saw paramedics running into the house,” one neighbor said. “Then we saw them bring a child out.”
Mummery was airlifted to Medical Center of the Rockies in Loveland, and then transferred to Children’s Hospital in Aurora, where doctors tried but couldn’t save her. She died at 7:24 a.m. Wednesday. Michaels said they haven’t determined yet whether the child’s death was an accident or something more.
“Any unattended death gets our full attention,” the chief said. “We have to check everything.”
“These are very difficult cases,” he added, “because it’s a small child and because this is a small community where we know the people involved.”The chief said the playpen was a Cosco Juvenile Model No. 05010CSF. When asked if there were any known issues with that model, the chief replied, “We have been checking on recalls. We have not found anything yet. We will continue to research that make and model and any problems associated with it.”
Moore told police he'd placed the baby in the playpen and found her wedged and not breathing when he returned 30 to 40 minutes later to check on her. Department of Human Services spokeswoman Liz McDonough told 7NEWS that Moore’s mom, Janette, voluntarily surrendered her day care license. “She is no longer providing child care,” McDonough said. McDonough said the son was qualified to be a caregiver at the center.
Michaels said that at one point there were 13 children inside the day care center, which is licensed for 12.
He said he didn’t know if they were all there at one time. When asked if there were any staffing ratio issues, McDonough said, “Since (Janette Moore) voluntarily surrendered her license, we’re no longer part of the investigation.” She said the only reason Human Services would investigate is to determine whether to revoke a license. “That’s no longer an issue,” McDonough said. She added that Garrett Moore was qualified to be a caregiver at the day care center. An autopsy was scheduled for Wednesday afternoon.
The Weld County Coroner’s office hasn’t released preliminary results. Family members referred to Mummery as “our Heavenly Angel. They said, “She was able to donate both kidneys and her heart valves to give the gift of life to others.”In an email to 7NEWS, they said, “Kalea was truly an amazing little girl and a blessing to everyone who knew her. She is joining her sister, Kalista, who passed away at 9 days old on May 4, 2007."