The Saline County prosecutor charged a 66-year-old woman Friday for fracturing a child's leg and bruising the face of another child.
Janet Marie Craig has been charged with two counts of child endangerment and operating a daycare without a license.
Court documents state the incidents occurred at Craig's house on the 1700 block of South Linn Avenue near the Marshall Memorial Municipal Airport.
"They were both accidents," Craig told 41 Action News.
One of the incidents happened last August.
Craig told detectives she put her hand over a boy's mouth and could see her finger marks on his face. Then, in November, Craig told investigators a 3-month-old broke his leg when it got "caught underneath hers and was twisted" on the couch.
Records state Craig never called for help.
"I can understand bumps and bruises, you know, kids play and trip and what-have-you, but to have fractures, that seems little scary to me," Kiera Houk, a parent, said.
Prosecutors also say Craig wasn't properly licensed to run a daycare.
"I did it on my own," Craig told 41 Action News. "They were people that I knew, and I watched their kids."
Under Missouri law, if you're taking care of four or more children that not are related to you — whether you're getting paid or doing it for free — you need to be licensed.
"I just can't imagine being that parent, going to pick your kid up and all of a sudden they're not in the shape you left them," Houk said.
That's why Houk closely vetted the daycare she used for one of her two daughters.
"[You should] really check as to where you're at and just know more about them before you bring your kid to them," Houk said.
A warrant has been issued for Craig's arrest; a bond is set for $2,500.
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Andres Gutierrez can be reached at andres.gutierrez@kshb.com
