A daycare center in Newark was shut down after a baby was given to her mother covered in bruises, scratches and bite marks.
Officials in Newark ordered the closure J & A Nursery on Eastern Parkway for several violations which included not having fire escapes or a license.
Anari Ormond’s daughter, six-month-old Zuri, received injuries including bite marks, cuts and bruising at the nursing home last week.
A daycare center in Newark was shut down after a baby was given to her mother covered in bruises, scratches and bite marks. Anari Ormond’s daughter, Zuri, received injuries including bite marks, cuts and bruising at the nursing home last week
Anari Ormond said she was shocked and upset when she saw her daughter Zuri covered in bruises and tried to get answers from the owner at J & A Nursery on Eastern Parkway
Ormond said that the owner, Lisa Muhammad, first text her to say that the child had been left unattended around a two year old and he had bitten her in the stomach.
But when she arrived at the center, Muhammad told her she fell down the stairs with Zuri as he was holding her, leaving her injured and with bruises and scrapes all over her.
Ormond appeared at municipal court Thursday for the daycare owner’s arraignment, CBS New York reported.
She was told by the judge that Lisa Muhammad requested a lawyer and the matter was adjourned.
The center, which is based out of a home on Eastern Parkway, was shut down for operating without a license which is illegal, CBS reported.
The nursery was operating out of a basement, with multiple cribs and play areas set up.
Muhammad, the owner, received seven violations. Another citation against the nursery includes the failure to provide a second way to exit the building, which represents a significant hazard if there was a fire.
J & A also allegedly failed to obtain a certificate of occupancy. The daycare owner is expected to appear in court again on these violations on December 19.
Ormond said that the owner, Lisa Muhammad, told her she had fallen down the stairs with Zuri as he was holding her, leaving her severely injured and with bruises and scrapes all over her
Prosecutors continue to investigate the case as Ormond wants to see criminal charges taken against the owner of the center
Meanwhile prosecutors continue to investigate the case as Ormond wants to see criminal charges taken against the owner of the center.
Earlier this month, Anari Ormond said she was shocked and upset to see the extent of her child’s injuries while she was allegedly being cared for at J & A Nursery.
Ormond told CBS at the time: ‘She told me basically that I guess my daughter was left unattended around a two-year-old and that he bit my daughter in the stomach.
However when she physically arrived at the nursery, she was given a different version of events.
‘Went upstarts to get Neosporin and on her way down the stairs she fell with Zuri and that she was badly bruised.’
The center, which is based out of a home on Eastern Parkway, was shut down for operating without a license which is illegal
Ormond said she found it difficult to get answers about what happened to her daughter
The young mother is a recent Howard University graduate and is employed as a Pre-K teacher. She paid $800 a month for child care
Images taken of the baby girl reveal bruises and cuts on Zuri’s cheeks, legs, and head, while her ankle also has marks on it.
Ormond said her baby’s injuries are now healing but she is ‘still traumatized’ after the ordeal.
The young mother is a recent Howard University graduate and is employed as a Pre-K teacher. She paid $800 a month for child care.
She said earlier this month: ‘I pay that much because I trusted them. I definitely think that there should not be other children in her care at this point.
‘From my understanding I’ve been trying to call the state and this breaks my heart too and they have no record and the city of Newark has no record of her business.’
According to Ormond, there were eight children being looked after at the center on a daily basis.
A nursery caring for more than five children requires a state license but New Jersey officials have no record of the facility existing.