Trial date set in abuse charges against Carson day-care owner

A former Carson City day-care owner will be tried in December on felony child neglect charges.

The trial was set Monday in the case against Norma Childers.

Childers, 55, is charged with four felony counts and one gross misdemeanor count of abuse, neglect or endangerment for allegedly placing tape over the mouths of three children and locking others in a utility closet at Sugar N Spice Day Care, formerly on Old Hot Springs Road.

According to the criminal complaint, Childers allegedly taped shut the mouths of a 3-year-old girl and a 4-year-old boy before they were put down for a nap on Aug. 19, 2004.

The allegations came about after an employee at the facility reported the incident to the Carson City Health Department. The employee, who said she'd worked at the center since July, reportedly told investigators she witnessed Childers place purple tape over the children's mouths when Childers became upset over noise the children were making.

Following Childers' April 2005 arrest, the center was closed by the health department because she allegedly misrepresented information on the application for a license.

The Childerses have since moved from the area.

The trial is expected to last seven days.

Nevada Chief Justice Miriam Shearer is hearing the case after District Judge Michael Griffin recused.

In 2000, Childers and her husband, Michael, were acquitted by a jury on felony abuse and neglect charges at Nevada Cares, a nursing home they owned in Carson City.

That same year in California, the couple signed a stipulation regarding 75 allegations of wrongdoing in an elder-care facility they owned there. The stipulation admitted to failure to provide adequate care to their clients, under-skilled staff, failure to report injuries and violation of personal rights of clients, among other things.

As part of an agreement with California authorities, a criminal case was dropped and the Childerses agreed to not run another such facility in the state for 10 years.

• Contact reporter F.T. Norton at ftnorton@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1213.