Day Care Director Charged For Failing To Report Abuse

2-Year-Old Died In Foster Mother's Care

The director of Childtime Learning, a local day-care center, is facing charges after failing to report signs of abuse on a foster child, according to a Wayne County Prosecutor news release.

Jacqueline Dorothy Hadwin, 36, of Westland was charged with failure to report suspected child abuse or neglect on 2-year-old Allison Newman.

Allison attended the day care located on Helm Street in Plymouth before she died while in the care of her foster mother, Carol Poole, 40, on Sept. 22.

Poole was charged with felony murder in connection with Allison's death.

Hadwin's charge is a misdemeanor, punishable by up to 93 days in jail or a $500 fine, according to a news release. Hadwin was expected to report any type of abuse or neglect to Child Protection Services.

Childtime Learning released the following statement:

"Childtime was surprised and saddened to hear that the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office has decided to file charges against Jacqueline Hadwin, the center director at our Plymouth location. Since this is an ongoing investigation we are limited in what we can say, however, Mrs. Hadwin continues to deny any wrongdoing.

As always, we will continue to cooperate with all the appropriate authorities.

Everyone at Childtime takes their responsibility of being mandated reporters very seriously. While child abuse is a rare but sad reality, we have never hesitated to notify the appropriate authorities when we suspected that a child might have been in danger. In fact, we have promptly reported suspicions of abuse and neglect both in Michigan - and around the country - in those cases where it was warranted.

Childtime currently cares for nearly 25,000 children in 21 states across the country and we owe that success to our exemplary teachers who take their responsibility very seriously. We have earned the trust of thousands of families each day by remaining committed to providing our children with a safe, secure and nurturing environment and we will continue our tradition of excellence proudly."